Photo: Alex Fridman via YouTube | Edited
Elon Musk will spend less time at Twitter after Linda Yaccarino was anointed as the new CEO. Musk will devote more attention to Tesla, aiming to again micromanage the company. His latest decision was to announce to Tesla staff that he would review and personally approve all hiring requests from now on.
If you believed Elon Musk was about to give up his latest toy without finding a replacement, you're in for a surprise. Musk, who also leads SpaceX and Tesla, will have more time to spend outside of Twitter now that the social media platform has a new CEO. This is something that investors have been asking for the past year since Musk bought Twitter. Still, they might've been happier with Musk distracted than with him alert.
On May 15, Tesla's CEO sent a letter to all its employees telling them he would personally approve all hires, including contractors. Based on the email's tone, Musk seems concerned about the company's hiring practices. He announced all Tesla vice presidents to send him a list of their department hiring requests for review. Musk wants this list forwarded on a weekly basis and warned his subordinates to "think carefully" before sending him a request. Tesla's CEO said that no one can join the company, even as a contractor, until he personally approves it.
The move is bizarre, considering that Tesla hired 30,000 new employees in 2022. This represents an average of about 600 employees per week, potentially cluttering the entire Musk's agenda. This hiring spree will only accelerate because Tesla is expanding in Mexico and plans new mineral-processing facilities, among other things. Unless Musk gives his team more leeway, his request threatens to grind Tesla operations to a halt.
Unless Musk plans a hiring freeze, this might be another one of his tricks to keep workers alert. People are always more careful when they know the boss is watching. The move could also be aimed at controlling spending at a time when Tesla profits have plummeted. The company reported a 20% drop in first-quarter net income compared to Q1 2022, fueled by massive price cuts operated in the quarter. The situation is not expected to improve anytime soon, which might confirm that Tesla is trying to curb unessential hiring.
This is not the first time Tesla implemented a hiring freeze. The last time this happened was in 2022, when Musk announced the company wanted to cut 10% of its staff and pause hiring globally. At the time, he had a "bad feeling" about the economy's direction. Many technology companies announced layoffs around the same time, fearing a recession was looming. Still, despite the announcement, Tesla continued to hire more people in 2022, increasing its workforce by 28% throughout the year.
On May 15, Tesla's CEO sent a letter to all its employees telling them he would personally approve all hires, including contractors. Based on the email's tone, Musk seems concerned about the company's hiring practices. He announced all Tesla vice presidents to send him a list of their department hiring requests for review. Musk wants this list forwarded on a weekly basis and warned his subordinates to "think carefully" before sending him a request. Tesla's CEO said that no one can join the company, even as a contractor, until he personally approves it.
The move is bizarre, considering that Tesla hired 30,000 new employees in 2022. This represents an average of about 600 employees per week, potentially cluttering the entire Musk's agenda. This hiring spree will only accelerate because Tesla is expanding in Mexico and plans new mineral-processing facilities, among other things. Unless Musk gives his team more leeway, his request threatens to grind Tesla operations to a halt.
Unless Musk plans a hiring freeze, this might be another one of his tricks to keep workers alert. People are always more careful when they know the boss is watching. The move could also be aimed at controlling spending at a time when Tesla profits have plummeted. The company reported a 20% drop in first-quarter net income compared to Q1 2022, fueled by massive price cuts operated in the quarter. The situation is not expected to improve anytime soon, which might confirm that Tesla is trying to curb unessential hiring.
This is not the first time Tesla implemented a hiring freeze. The last time this happened was in 2022, when Musk announced the company wanted to cut 10% of its staff and pause hiring globally. At the time, he had a "bad feeling" about the economy's direction. Many technology companies announced layoffs around the same time, fearing a recession was looming. Still, despite the announcement, Tesla continued to hire more people in 2022, increasing its workforce by 28% throughout the year.
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