Salesforce Executive Threatens To Withhold Stock Grants, Bonuses If Employees Fail To Meet Training Goals: Report

A top executive at Salesforce Inc (NYSE:CRM) has reportedly warned employees that they could face financial consequences if they fail to meet an internal training goal.

What Happened: The company’s president and chief engineering officer, Srini Tallapragada, sent an email to his direct reports, stating that those who do not achieve the “ranger” rank on the company’s internal training platform could miss out on stock grants and bonus payments.

In an email sent on Jan. 10, Tallapragada reminded employees of the 2023 goal set by Salesforce for all its workers to attain the “ranger” rank on Trailhead, the company’s internal training software. “Hopefully all of you are rangers — if not better get going if you want your stock grant and bonus,” Tallapragada wrote, reported Business Insider.

According to a company spokesperson, 91.4% of employees achieved the ranger status. This rank requires the accumulation of 50,000 points on Trailhead, which is the seventh level of achievement on the platform.

Despite the training goal, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff was reportedly among the employees who did not achieve ranger status in 2023. This development comes amid a series of layoffs at Salesforce, which has seen a 10% reduction in its workforce in early 2023, followed by a further 1% reduction in January.

Salesforce did not respond to Benzinga‘s request for comment.

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Why It Matters: The recent warning from Salesforce’s top executive comes in the wake of the company’s ongoing cost-cutting measures. In January, Salesforce announced layoffs of 700 employees, following a previous reduction of 10% or around 8,000 workers in 2023.

This move was part of ongoing cost-cutting pressures from investors, including activist shareholders like Elliott Management, to drive its margins. Despite these cuts, Salesforce still maintains 1,000 open positions, suggesting these layoffs are part of workforce adjustments rather than a significant strategic shift.

Meanwhile, the layoffs are part of a broader trend in the tech industry. After a noticeable declining trend in tech layoffs during the second half of 2023, the number of employees laid off in the tech sector increased by 304% in January.

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