Microsoft is updating its annual rewards and performance programs and introducing the option for long-serving US employees to voluntarily retire. This marks the first time in the company’s history that such a voluntary retirement program is offered.
“These employees have significantly contributed to Microsoft’s growth over the years,” states Microsoft’s HR chief Amy Coleman in a memo to The Verge. “We are offering a one-time Voluntary Retirement Program for those considering a new chapter.” The program is available to just a “small percentage of our US employees.”
Employees in the US whose age plus years of service totals 70 or more qualify for the program, which includes “generous company support,” according to Coleman. While it’s unclear if this foreshadows more layoffs, it seems to be a strategy to avoid a larger round ahead of Microsoft’s new fiscal year in July.
Microsoft is also revising its employee reward structure, simplifying performance-related bonuses and stock plans. The new, streamlined program consolidates pay points from nine to five levels without reverting to a stack ranking system.
“We are adjusting stock awards to be independent of bonuses, allowing managers greater flexibility to reward high performance,” Coleman explains. This change aims to retain talent lost due to recent executive departures, granting managers the ability to distribute additional stock separate from the standard bonus schedule.