On December 2, technology giant Lenovo Group has been caught in a whirlpool of public opinion recently. Several netizens certified as Lenovo employees broke the news on social platforms that the Shanghai branch of Lenovo Infrastructure Solutions Business Group (ISG) had sudden large-scale layoffs, involving hundreds of employees, and even pregnant female employees were not spared.


The rumors of layoffs are in sharp contrast to Lenovo ISG's recent outstanding performance.

According to reports, the layoff process was accused of being extremely "cold-blooded" and "lack of humanistic care." Several parties involved described that the company notified an all-hands meeting and the scheduled time was 15 minutes, but senior executives were 13 minutes late before joining the meeting. Subsequently, the meeting did not have any substantive communication. It only played a recording that lasted about two minutes, and then unilaterally announced the layoff decision. The meeting was quickly ended without giving employees any opportunity to ask questions or appeal.

Some employees pointed out that the layoffs were not limited to the Shanghai ISG department, but also affected the software, firmware and operating system (OS) teams in Beijing, Tianjin, Shenzhen and other places. Rumor has it that Lenovo's software research and development functions in China will be completely abolished, and related business may be transferred to India. Only some teams responsible for the sales of self-developed products in China will be retained.

As for the targets of layoffs, it was reported that this adjustment was "one size fits all", and even female employees who are pregnant, lactating, etc. and who are subject to special protection by law were not spared. This approach was accused of breaking the "bottom line" of the workplace and triggered widespread moral controversy.

The rumors of layoffs are in sharp contrast to Lenovo ISG's recent outstanding performance.

On November 20, Lenovo Group just released its second quarter financial report for the 2025/26 fiscal year. Data show that Lenovo's total revenue in the quarter reached US$20.45 billion, a year-on-year increase of 15%; net profit was US$510 million, a year-on-year increase of 25%. Among them, ISG business revenue hit a new high, reaching US$3.3 billion (approximately RMB 23.9 billion), a year-on-year increase of 65%, becoming the fastest growing business segment of the group.

Why did Lenovo suddenly carry out such radical layoffs when its performance was soaring?

Industry analysts believe that this may be related to Lenovo's global strategic adjustment. On the one hand, despite ISG's strong global revenue growth, the Chinese market is facing a fierce competitive environment and the pressure of domestic substitution, and profit margins have been compressed. On the other hand, Lenovo may be reconfiguring global R&D resources. The "global product software R&D moved to India" mentioned in the revelation, if true, means that Lenovo is trying to reduce costs and improve global operational efficiency by moving R&D centers.

In addition, the appointment of Lenovo's new CTO Tolga Kurtoglu is also regarded as one of the driving forces behind this adjustment. Tolga Kurtoglu will take office in July 2024. She was formerly the CTO of HP and the head of Xerox Global Research. Some employees suggested on social media that the "old man" in the layoff recording was the new CTO, and said that he described the layoffs as some kind of "special award." This remark further inflamed employees' dissatisfaction.

Lenovo’s layoffs have once again triggered workers’ anxiety about the “security of big factories.” As uncertainty in the economic environment increases, even giant companies with growing performance may "cut costs and increase efficiency" in pursuit of higher efficiency and profit margins.

"Yesterday there was a workstation, but today the whole floor doesn't belong to you." A netizen's comment expressed the sentiments of many working people. When the sickle of corporate strategic adjustment falls, individual efforts, qualifications and even family status are often excluded from decision-making considerations.

As of now, Lenovo Group has not officially responded to rumors of layoffs and specific details.