According to the Wall Street Journal, Google’s revenue growth is slowing, and the tech giant is starting to pump the brakes on its years-long hiring bonanza. The previous hiring strategy, which assumed every Google team would hire new members each year, is being phased out for a more moderate one that requires teams to justify the need for new hires.
The first quarter of 2015 brought 1,819 new employees to Google–a record low since the final quarter of 2013. According to the WSJ, Google added an average of 2,435 employees every quarter of 2014.
Google (GOOG) hasn’t stopped deserving its reputation for being a luxurious place to work. Its perks remain. But employees also complain of increased scrutiny on their expenses as the search engine grows up and starts to look for more efficient ways to run the sprawling company.
In 2014, Google revenue grew 19%– down from 21%, 22% and 29% in 2013, 2012, and 2011.
