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Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday defended the job performance of executives at the social media company, a day after laying off about 4,000 employees.
Zuckerberg told employees during a company-wide meeting that Facebook’s parent company has generally met “most” of their expectations over the past year, but that many top executives have also taken on new and expanded roles, according to a recording of the call that the Washington mail is available.
“I think it’s a bit difficult to attach the performance of the … company to people who haven’t necessarily been in those roles before,” Zuckerberg said, adding that it’s important to “recognize” their performance when people take on new roles.
“I think they’re doing quite well,” added Zuckerberg.
Zuckerberg responded to a question from employees about how the company’s recent poor financial performance has impacted top executive compensation and whether executives would be held accountable. Meta staff bonuses are being impacted by a mix of individual performance ratings and company ratings, which were lower over the last cycle, according to people familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive internal matters.
Zuckerberg said top executives go through the same performance system that humble employees experience.
Meta begins a new round of downsizing among high-skilled workers
Meta declined to comment.
Executives promoted over the past year include Susan Li, who became chief financial officer, and Javier Olivan, who assumed the role of chief operating officer, replacing Sheryl Sandberg.
On Wednesday, Meta laid off about 4,000 workers mostly concentrated in the company’s technical teams, Zuckerberg said. The restructuring is part of a months-long workforce reduction that will see a total of 10,000 job cuts. The latest layoffs come on top of the 11,000 jobs Meta cut in November.
“Those were my decisions,” Zuckerberg said. “I just want to make it clear that I take responsibility.”
The company faces increasing competition for ad revenue and users of the short video network TikTok. New privacy rules passed by Apple affect Meta’s ability to offer targeted advertising. Meanwhile, some digital advertisers have reduced spending amid rising inflation and slowing demand in the e-commerce market.
Zuckerberg said the company has grown too quickly during the pandemic, leading to cutbacks. On Thursday he said in the town hall that the company would only grow about one to two percent per year in the future.
He also said the company fired around 20 percent of managers in its technology departments on Wednesday.
Meta’s workforce has been concerned about the cuts, and many have questioned the company’s leadership and direction in recent months, The Post previously reported. Some of those who remained were now looking for new jobs, others fear an uncertain future.
Meta reports quarterly earnings next week.