Meta gives 7,000 workers poor performance reviews

Thousands of workers at Facebook parent Meta reportedly didn’t get a like from Mark Zuckerberg on their performance reviews — an ominous sign that more layoffs are in the offing.

The tech company, which also owns WhatsApp and Instagram, gave some 7,000 employees, or 10% of Meta’s workforce, subpar reviews, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

Employees who score low on the key performance metrics often leave the company, sources told the paper. Zuckerberg will consider another round of layoffs if not enough depart, the people said. 

Last November, Meta culled 11,000 jobs — or roughly 13% of its 87,000 global workforce — from its payroll.

The company on Friday also slashed a key bonus metric — part of Zuckerberg’s overall strategy of making 2023 Meta’s “year of efficiency.”

A former Meta employee said the subpar reviews are a sign that “OG Mark” or “old school Zuck” is back.

The CEO is said to have had a reputation for delivering blunt, direct feedback to employees who weren’t meeting expectations, according to the Journal.

“We’ve always had a goal-based culture of high performance, and our review process is intended to incentivize long-term thinking and high-quality work, while helping employees get actionable feedback,” a Meta spokesman told the Journal.

Another round of layoffs would be a dramatic reversal from the company’s hiring policies over the course of the last three years, when the payroll nearly doubled.

But Meta’s stock fell by more than 70% last year as the company lost billions in its metaverse investment.

Zuckerberg won praise from investors on Wall Street earlier this month when he pledged to oversee even more cost-cutting and restructuring.

“Next, we’re working on flattening our org structure and removing some layers in middle management to make decisions faster,” Zuckerberg said in the company’s earnings call earlier this month.

The boss added that Meta would be “more proactive” about jettisoning lower-performing projects.

Last week, Meta managers told Financial Times that teams were left “demoralized” by delayed budgets and plans that have been put on hold as the company maps out its restructuring.

“Honestly, it’s still a mess,” one Meta employee told Financial Times over the weekend. “The year of efficiency is kicking off with a bunch of people getting paid to do nothing.”