Microsoft: Make These Changes: What the policy change means in 2025
Microsoft Quietly Changes Its Performance Review policy: What it Means for Employees and the Tech Industry
Microsoft is one of the world’s leading companies. No one can beat them all around the world. Microsoft has positioned itself as one of the world’s most progressive tech companies — especially when it comes to workplace culture, diversity, and inclusion. But a recent major shift has surprised employees and industry observers: Microsoft has quietly removed “diversity and inclusion” from its mandatory employee performance reviews.
The change, revealed through internal updates and non-disclosure discussions, signals a major shift in how the company evaluates employee growth, rewards, and workplace behavior.
In this blog, we break down what changed, why it matters, and what this could mean for the broader tech industry.
What Exactly Did Microsoft Change? (Microsoft: Make These Changes: What the policy change means in 2025)
9Microsoft: Make These Changes: What the policy change means in 2025
According to reports, Microsoft has:
# Removed “Diversity & Inclusion” (D&I) criteria from employee evaluations
Previously, workers were assessed not just on performance, but also on how well they contributed to inclusion, team culture, and building a diverse workplace.
# Stopped publishing its annual diversity report for 2025
For nearly a decade, the company released a detailed “Diversity & Inclusion Report” showcasing gender, race, and representation progress.
This year, however, Microsoft skipped the report — a sharp change from past transparency.
# Shifted the language to “Inclusion” only
Internal communication suggests the company wants a more flexible approach, focusing on general inclusion rather than measurable D&I targets.
Why Did Microsoft Make This Change?
While Microsoft hasn’t offered a detailed public explanation, several factors may be influencing the decision:
1. Changing global political and legal environments
Debates around corporate diversity, affirmative action, and social policies are intensifying — especially in the U.S. Microsoft may be adjusting to avoid legal complexities.
2. Pressure to simplify performance reviews
Some employees reportedly felt D&I expectations were “unclear” or hard to measure fairly.
3. A shift toward business performance focus
Tech giants are under pressure to cut costs, boost productivity, and streamline management structures. Simplifying reviews could be part of that strategy.
Employee Reactions: Mixed Feelings Inside Microsoft
Reactions inside the company vary:
Some employees welcomed the move, saying evaluations should focus more on job performance than culture-related metrics.
Others worry it signals a step backward in fostering representation, fairness, and supportive work environments.
Concerns also rise due to the missing diversity report, which many considered a sign of accountability.
Whether this is temporary or permanent remains unclear.
Why This Matters Beyond Microsoft
When a company as influential as Microsoft makes a major HR shift, the entire tech industry pays attention. Here’s why:
🔹 Tech giants often follow each other’s HR trends
Changes in performance reviews at Microsoft could influence similar moves at Google, Amazon, Meta, and others.
🔹 Signals a broader industry shift
Efficiency-focused policies are making a comeback, partly driven by layoffs and economic pressures in 2024–2025.
🔹 Raises questions about commitment to diversity
Silently removing D&I metrics may create concerns about whether diversity efforts are losing priority across tech.
What Does This Mean for the Future of Tech Workplace Culture?
The tech industry is facing a major cultural crossroads. Companies must balance:
performance and productivity
fairness and inclusivity
global politics
employee satisfaction
Microsoft’s policy change could be the beginning of a new era of workplace evaluation — one where culture-related metrics become less central.
But it could also lead to new methods for measuring inclusion more accurately and fairly in the future.
Conclusion
Whatever Microsoft changes its policy, it is internally quite updated.
Microsoft’s quiet update to its performance review system is more than a small internal policy tweak — it’s a reflection of shifting priorities in the tech industry. Whether this move leads to stronger, more streamlined management or creates challenges in fostering inclusive environments remains to be seen.