Navigating Tech Layoffs

CrowdStrike just laid off 500 people. While we're told there's a 4 million person cybersecurity talent shortage. Make it make sense. I'm a cybersecurity recruiter. And I'm watching something that doesn't add up. The headlines say → 4.8 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs globally → 700,000 open positions in the US alone → "Desperate need" for security talent → Companies "can't find" qualified candidates But the reality? → CrowdStrike cut 500 workers (5% of workforce) → Sophos laid off 6% after acquiring Secureworks → CISA lost ~1,000 staff to layoffs and departures → 25% of security teams experienced layoffs this year → 38% faced hiring freezes So which is it? A talent shortage? Or a talent contradiction? Here's what I'm actually seeing Companies aren't cutting security. They're cutting security PEOPLE. And replacing them with • AI-driven tools • Managed security providers • Automation platforms • Outsourced SOCs The uncomfortable truth The "talent shortage" was never about bodies. It was about BUDGET. Companies overhired between 2020-2022. Now CFOs want "efficiency." And "efficiency" means fewer people doing more work. What this means for job seekers: The junior analyst role you're applying for? 150 other people are too. Many of them just got laid off from CrowdStrike, Sophos, or federal agencies. They have experience. Certifications. Clearances. The competition just got brutal. What this means for the industry We don't have a talent shortage. We have a HIRING shortage. Companies want senior engineers at junior prices. They want 10 years experience for entry-level roles. They want unicorns they don't have to train. And when they can't find them? They call it a "skills gap." My hot take Stop telling people to "get into cybersecurity" if you're not willing to hire them when they do. Stop claiming there's a shortage while laying off thousands. Stop blaming candidates for not having experience you won't give them. The cybersecurity talent shortage is real. But it's a shortage of OPPORTUNITY, not people. To everyone who just got laid off You're not the problem. The market is broken. Keep building. Keep networking. Keep going. Your skills are needed. Even if the budget spreadsheets say otherwise. What are you seeing in the market right now? #CyberSecurity #Layoffs #TalentShortage #Recruiting #InfoSec #JobMarket #CareerAdvice

There’s a growing debate about whether AI is already reducing U.S. jobs. Some economists say yes, others no. Models are built, datasets parsed, papers published. I took a different approach—a novel and underused method in economics: surfing the internet and reading what senior executives are actually saying. Not peer-reviewed, but surprisingly effective. Case in point: Salesforce, just yesterday. CEO Marc Benioff confirmed the company cut 4,000 customer support jobs—nearly halving the division from 9,000 to 5,000—because AI agents now handle half of all customer interactions. And he’s not alone. There are hundreds of similar stories from executives across industries—publicly stating they’re slowing hiring, reducing headcount, or letting attrition run because of AI. Yes, maybe some are overstating the case. But at this point, I think we can stop debating whether it’s happening. The remaining question is: how much? #ai #labormarkets #recruitment #futureofwork #economy #careers

Salesforce lays off 4,000 customer-support roles—AI takes over. Simultaneously, OpenAI is launching an AI-powered jobs platform with certifications. What does this mean? First, the facts: Salesforce has reduced its customer support headcount from around 9,000 to 5,000—cutting approximately 4,000 roles—as AI agents now handle nearly 50% of customer interactions. As CEO Marc Benioff candidly admitted on the Logan Bartlett Show, “I need fewer heads,” emphasizing agent-driven automation handling a million-plus customer chats and resurrecting a backlog of over 100 million unaddressed sales leads . Meanwhile, OpenAI has announced plans for a new AI-powered Jobs Platform—slated to launch by mid-2026—that aims to connect businesses (including small firms and public sectors) with candidates skilled in AI. This initiative is accompanied by a certification system aspiring to reach 10 million Americans by 2030, embedded within ChatGPT’s Study Mode and piloted later this year. So what’s the interplay and impact? • Disruption & opportunity: Salesforce’s decision is a stark example of the speed at which AI is reshaping roles—especially repetitive, customer-facing ones. Yet OpenAI’s response—upskilling via certifications and facilitating better talent matching—hints at a longer-term framework for equipping displaced workers for the new AI economy. • Skills over degrees: This signals a shift toward “skills-first” hiring. Employers increasingly value AI fluency and demonstrable capability over formal credentials—something studies have shown clearly benefits both job-seekers and businesses . • Strategic divergence: It’s telling that OpenAI’s platform directly challenges LinkedIn—Microsoft’s job network—which reflects growing strategic tensions despite their existing partnership . • Narrative balance: The headlines can provoke fear—AI is “replacing” thousands of jobs, and an AI job site might feel like adding insult to injury. But it's vital to avoid alarmism. Reality is nuanced: AI is displacing some roles—but simultaneously creating demand for new skills and new infrastructure to support workforce transitions. As professionals, what can we do? 1. Embrace lifelong learning. Prioritize developing AI-adjacent skills, regardless of role or seniority. 2. Advance the human+AI narrative. Celebrate how AI complements human strengths—not eradicates them—and advocate for hybrid models. 3. Stay informed, pragmatic, and balanced. Discern between clickbait and strategic shift. Read beyond the headlines. TL;DR: Salesforce’s layoffs underline real disruption. OpenAI’s platform signals a proactive response—by building pathways for the future workforce. Yes, let’s recognize the risks—but also the opportunities to adapt, re-skil, and progress #ai #saas #hiring #talent #recruitment #applications

With layoffs being so common these days, I want to share some of the signs I noticed that helped me get out of a company before I was affected by a layoff 2 years ago. The truth is, the signs are always there, but it is up to you to pay attention. Here are a few I saw and some that usually pop up before cuts happen: • The workload slowed down and suddenly we were being asked to help out in other departments instead of focusing on our own roles. • Finance updates started sounding shaky. Town halls became more about what we needed to do to meet goals instead of celebrating that we had already met them. • People started quietly disappearing. Some left on their own, others were let go for performance. • Little by little, the fun perks were taken away. Team lunches, events, development budgets… gone. • Hiring slowed down big time. Jobs that would normally get filled right away stayed open for months. • Budgets got tight. Travel was harder to approve, trainings were postponed, even basic tools had extra hoops to jump through. • Leadership communication turned vague. Questions in all-hands got brushed off with big picture buzzwords. • Projects that used to be a big deal suddenly stopped with no real explanation. • Morale dropped. Less recognition, more quiet quitting, and managers avoiding hard conversations. I also want to share to not get too caught up in the company kool aid. It is okay to love where you work and be proud of it, but always keep yourself ready. Update that resume, track your wins, stay connected to your network, and save where you can. That way, if the time comes, you are not scrambling to get ready, you already are. Layoffs are not personal. A company is always going to do what is best for them, their stakeholders, their shareholders, and their brand at the end of the day. Protect yourself the same way they protect themselves. Sometimes layoffs are not about if, but when. Staying prepared is the best way to protect yourself.

Your company is about to lay you off. Here are 5 signs they're hoping you won't notice: 1. Your manager stops including you in strategic meetings Last month you were in every planning session. This month you're hearing about decisions after they're made. 2. They're suddenly asking for detailed documentation of your work "Can you document all your processes for knowledge sharing?" Translation: We need someone else to do your job. 3. Your access to systems gets mysteriously limited Can't see the budget spreadsheets anymore? Can't access certain folders? They're slowly cutting your digital umbilical cord. 4. New hires are being trained on your responsibilities That "intern" who's asking very specific questions about your daily tasks? They're your replacement. 5. Your manager avoids eye contact and keeps conversations brief The person who used to chat for 10 minutes now gives one-word answers. Guilt is hard to hide. Bonus red flag: HR suddenly schedules "casual check-ins" with your team. Nothing about HR is ever casual. I've seen this pattern hundreds of times. Companies telegraph their moves weeks before the official announcement. They just hope you're too busy working to notice. If you're seeing these signs: Start job hunting immediately. Update your LinkedIn. Reach out to your network. Don't wait for the official email. The severance package won't compensate for the months of unemployment while you scramble to find something new. The hardest part? Your manager probably knows and feels terrible about it. But they're not allowed to warn you. Trust the signals, not the reassurances. Have you noticed any of these signs at your current company? #layoffs #jobs #linkedIn

Salesforce just laid off 4,000 support reps this fall.   And in the same cycle, they announced they’ll be hiring thousands of new salespeople.   It’s an interesting contrast for a company selling AI SDRs and AI support agents.   On one hand they are automating large parts of service.   On the other, they are expanding one of the most human-dependent teams in the org.   The message underneath is simple.   AI can run a lot of the motion. But people still carry the momentum.   AI can qualify a lead, respond to a ticket, or follow a workflow.   It can build activity at scale and keep the machine organized.   But when a deal becomes political, emotional, or sensitive, it works differently.   You want a human who understands timing, nuance, insecurity, pressure, and the real stakes behind a buying decision.   This is the gap Salesforce is signaling.   They are removing the work AI can do cleanly.   They are investing in the work only humans can do well.   If Salesforce still needs strong sellers to move big deals, it raises a simple question:   How are you shaping the talent that carries your revenue forward?

As a CISO, I spend a significant portion of my time focused on force multiplication. How can we do more with less? How can we automate to stay ahead of the threats? AI has been a game-changer. It’s helping teams sift through alerts, automate vulnerability patching, and handle Tier 1 SOC analysis faster than ever before. The efficiency gains are undeniable. Microsoft has laid off over 17,000 humans in 2025 to date large based on AI deployment. But as I look at the strategic, 5-to-10-year horizon, a new, critical risk is emerging, born directly from this progress. By automating our entry-level tasks, we are systematically dismantling the very training ground we rely on to create our future senior experts. And frankly, it keeps me up at night. We've all seen the reports. AI is exceptionally good at handling the routine, the predictable, the data-heavy tasks that make up the bulk of an entry-level cybersecurity analyst's day. But we're making a critical mistake if we view these roles as mere "grunt work." They are not. They are the crucible. That Tier 1 SOC analyst job isn't just about clearing alerts. It's where a future threat hunter first develops a "gut feeling" for a false positive versus a truly novel attack. It's where a junior pentester, running basic scans and writing simple scripts, learns the fundamental building blocks they'll need one day to architect a complex red team engagement. This is the apprenticeship model of cybersecurity, and we are automating it into oblivion. The Looming Senior Skill Gap Fast forward five years. I need a new Principal Incident Responder, someone who can lead the defense against a sophisticated nation-state attack, under immense pressure, with incomplete data. Where do I find them? The candidates I need won't have spent years in the trenches triaging thousands of alerts. They won't have the muscle memory built from countless hours of foundational, hands-on work. How can you effectively lead a security operations center if you've never been on the front lines? How can you architect a resilient cloud security posture if your formative years didn't involve wrestling with the basic configurations and deployment errors that AI now seamlessly corrects? We are creating a pipeline problem. We are harvesting the low-hanging fruit with AI, but in doing so, we are failing to plant the seeds that will grow into the mighty oaks of our future leadership. I put a Call To Action in the comments... #Cybersecurity #CISO #AI #FutureOfWork #TalentDevelopment #Leadership #RiskManagement

Salesforce just replaced 4,000 support jobs with AI. CEO Marc Benioff called it “not dystopian, just reality.” 50% of customer support cases are now handled by Agentforce AI. Headcount went from 9,000 → 5,000. On paper, it’s efficiency. For the humans, it’s something else entirely. Because these weren’t “replaceable” people. They were mid-level professionals, many with years of experience. And overnight, the ladder they were standing on was cut shorter. This is the new blueprint: → AI doesn’t just cut costs. → It replaces functions. → And the first functions to go? Customer support, sales, repetitive mid-skill roles. When I read this, I thought about my own early career. As an engineer at Twitter, junior tasks, bug fixes, feature pipelines, were training grounds. Now those are the first things machines take over. It’s exciting for companies. It’s terrifying for workers. The lesson? Job security today ≠ stability. Job security = adaptability. If you can’t direct AI, it will replace you. If you can, it will multiply your value. That’s why we built Jobright.ai. Because navigating this shift requires tools that: → Surface roles where humans still have an edge. → Tailor resumes for AI filters. → Connect you to insiders, so you don’t compete with 200 strangers. We can’t stop transitions like Salesforce. But we can help you adapt before the next one hits. #Jobright #OpentoWork #JobMarket #JobTrends

NIST CSRC quietly posted a banner across website: “Due to a lapse in federal funding, this website is not being updated”. Similar banner appeared on the CISA website. I can't help but seeing this as yet another crack in the foundation of global cyber collaboration. Recent budget changes amplify this. Congress approved a $135 million cut to CISA's budget. Buyouts, early retirements and layoffs drove roughly 1,000 employees out of CISA, leaving its workforce around 2,200; divisions that defend federal networks lost hundreds of specialists. Even the MITRE contract for the CVE program nearly lapsed earlier this year. NIST, which underpins global cybersecurity, faces similar headwinds. The WH budget would cut $325 million from NIST’s $1.2 billion budget and eliminate 556 positions, reducing funding for cyber research. Apparently the division already lost more than 20 % of its federal staff and a number of leaders. Before this shutdown. NIST’s frameworks, cryptographic standards and post‑quantum algorithms are adopted worldwide, and CISA’s advisories are used by governments and companies everywhere. When funding lapses halt updates, the world loses a trusted source of guidance. If this trend continues, the knock‑on effects could include: · (Further) fragmentation of standards: governments and private consortia may develop competing frameworks. Global companies will be forced to comply with multiple, potentially conflicting, local standards. · Increased digital sovereignty: regions will increasingly insist on local cryptographic modules and cyber policies rather than relying on U.S.‑based standards. · Slower certification and vulnerability disclosure: backlogs in FIPS 140 and the National Vulnerability Database delay products and patching, creating windows of opportunity for adversaries. It saddens me deeply to see the decline of what was once the backbone of global cybersecurity cooperation. NIST and CISA weren’t just defending the U.S.; they defended the shared cyber commons. Yet in this moment, my only pragmatic advice is that regions must cultivate their own resilience. EU (and others) should build their own vulnerability databases, cryptographic validation infrastructures, secure information sharing frameworks, and interoperability standards. Start local. Then federate. Fragmentation is painful. It weakens trust. It duplicates effort. It slows progress. But redundancy is necessary, if the U.S. can no longer reliably play its previous role. Some of my colleagues argue that “the U.S. shouldn’t be funding cyber for others.” But the truth is: the U.S. profited immensely from being the world’s cyber facilitator, standards setter, and clearinghouse. As this global role erodes, the U.S. will suffer too. The loss of this leadership doesn’t just weaken "others". It weakens all. #NIST #CISA #Cyber #Cybersecurity