Microsoft FIRES 9,000 Sales Reps

Workforce Restructuring - Microsoft laid off 9,000 employees, replacing general salespeople with solutions engineers [1] - The company is prioritizing product knowledge over relationship-based sales, reflecting a shift in customer expectations driven by AI [3][4] - The company aims to replace employees lacking product expertise with those who possess it [4] AI Impact on Sales - An estimated 30% to 40% of sales representatives focused on initial calls could be replaced by AI [2] - AI is raising the bar for customer expectations, diminishing the value of generalist salespeople [3] - The industry anticipates AI to significantly impact the sales landscape, necessitating specialized knowledge [1][2]