Over 20 years of cumulative expertise at Intel weren’t sufficient to save lots of Sriram Ramkrishna’s senior neighborhood supervisor and developer relations job on the firm.
In June, the 56-year-old Portland, Oregon resident heard his division was at risk, and he formally misplaced his place in a spherical of layoffs this July.
To make issues worse, on the day of Ramkrishna’s departure, his spouse misplaced her job, too.
In an as-told-to essay for Enterprise Insider, he mentioned the months-long job hunt has been “difficult,” however it is going to be “some time earlier than I begin panicking about funds” (1).
Along with his severance package deal, the couple has a financial savings cushion. Plus, even with elevated job competitors, Ramkrishna says he feels higher ready than earlier than.
This isn’t the primary time Ramkrishna has handled a layoff in his profession. In actual fact, he labored at Intel from 1996 to 2016. Ramkrishna additionally says he has a stronger sense of his pursuits and expertise, in addition to an in depth assist neighborhood with former Intel staff {and professional} connections.
However even with these strengths, Ramkrishna admits it can take “luck and timing” to land a brand new job.
“If an employer I am concerned about posts a job, there’s certain to be no less than 400 candidates. I’ve needed to discover a solution to stand out, particularly when going via the entrance door would not really feel like a viable choice,” he mentioned.
Sadly, Ramkrishna’s scenario is changing into all too widespread as Massive Tech firms proceed to announce large layoffs.
Current information from the chief outplacement agency Challenger, Grey & Christmas confirmed that expertise firms have a few of the highest job cuts in 2025, with 153,536 between January and November, up 17% from the 130,701 introduced via November 2024 (2).
Apart from Intel, main firms like Amazon, Alphabet, and Meta have all introduced job cuts from varied divisions. Unsurprisingly, AI is likely one of the mostly cited causes for layoffs this yr.
Main CEOs like Klarna’s Sebastian Siemiatkowski aren’t hiding that AI will change issues dramatically.
“I really feel plenty of my tech bros are being barely, you understand, to not the purpose on this subject. I feel there’s a large shift coming to data work. And it’s not simply in banking, it’s in society at giant,” Siemiatkowski mentioned in an interview with Bloomberg Tv (3).
Challenger’s information additionally says “cost-cutting” is a serious purpose behind the newest wave of job cuts. Of the companies Challenger tracked, it discovered that employers cited slimming prices for 50,437 layoffs in October.
Unsurprisingly, these excessive layoff figures translate into larger competitors amongst job seekers. Christine Cruzvergara, the chief schooling officer on the profession social community Handshake, advised PBS their information reveals total jobs are down 15% in comparison with 2024, but purposes have gone up by 30% (4).
So, even with many years of expertise and sterling credentials, the mix of cost-cutting and intense competitors is making the job hunt longer and more durable.
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A significant takeaway from Sriram Ramkrishna’s story is the significance of constructing a strong financial savings stash.
Customary recommendation is to put aside no less than three months of wages in an emergency fund, however do not forget that Ramkrishna has been on the lookout for work for over 4 months.
Given the larger uncertainty within the present job market, it’s safer to extend these emergency financial savings to the higher six-month vary, particularly if folks really feel they’re in industries extra delicate to traits like automation.
Whereas employed, prioritize paying off high-interest debt ASAP, which may very well be suffocating if earnings stops. Keep in mind, simply since you lose earnings doesn’t imply debt funds go on pause. By lowering your required month-to-month funds ASAP, you’ll create extra respiratory room throughout a interval of unemployment.
For assist with saving and debt repayments, contemplate downloading a cash administration app. On-line trackers can provide you detailed insights into your money flows so you are feeling extra management over constructing a strong finances. A cash administration app may also assist separate out necessities, which is useful if that you must slim down prices after a job reduce.
It additionally helps to create a “job loss plan” forward of time, form of like a “fireplace drill” to your skilled life. Think about you simply acquired information of a layoff and the way you must alter your funds to deal with extended unemployment.
Understanding these specifics forward of time removes many “what if” ideas and helps you make extra rational choices throughout a high-stress interval.
Lastly, do not forget that one in all Sriram Ramkrishna’s best property has been his robust skilled community.
Connecting with former colleagues and attending conferences provides Ramkrishna extra alternatives to search out work by offering direct entry to hiring managers and invaluable non-public Slack channels and Discord servers.
Wherever you might be in your profession journey, it pays to maintain networking. You by no means know when these connections will grow to be your lifeline to a brand new occupation.
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Enterprise Insider (1); Challenger, Grey & Christmas (2); Bloomberg (3); PBS (4)
This text supplies data solely and shouldn’t be construed as recommendation. It’s supplied with out guarantee of any form.
