“We can do better,” says Satya Nadella as Microsoft confronts employees’ frustration after layoffs and more

Microsoft has been facing employee troubles in the last couple of years. Layoffs, protests, employees being unhappy over returning to office have been the order of the day at Microsoft. Now, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella told employees that the company must work harder to rebuild trust after a bruising year of layoffs and a new mandate requiring staff near its Redmond headquarters to return to the office three days a week starting February.

“I take it as feedback for me and everyone in the leadership team, because at the end of the day, I think we can do better, and we will do better,” Nadella said in an internal meeting, according to audio obtained by CNBC.

The remarks followed months of unrest inside Microsoft. The company cut 9,000 jobs in July, on top of earlier reductions, and its back-to-office policy has stirred frustration. Amy Coleman, Microsoft’s HR chief, admitted responses have been “mixed,” with many employees feeling their autonomy is slipping away. Even so, workers around Seattle already average 2.4 office visits per week.

Nadella argued that physical presence is especially critical for interns and early-career staff, who risk missing out on mentorship in a largely remote environment. “Those are things that just will break a social contract,” he warned.