If a company wants to reduce its headcount, there are several levers it can pull. It could freeze hiring in order not to grow any further, or when people leave the business, their roles may not be filled. In 2025, there’s another option: Use AI to replace some of the roles managers would have otherwise recruited for.
According to the Fed’s latest Beige Book, businesses are doing all of the above (and more) to try to avoid announcing mass layoffs.
