AI growth and job losses; what this signals for financial services
- paulrobinson764
- Nov 6, 2025
- 2 min read
AI Growth, Human Cuts: What Big Tech’s Job Losses Signal for Financial Services
Big tech is doubling down on AI—but not necessarily on people. IBM, despite beating expectations on revenue and profit, announced cuts to its global workforce as it pivots toward high-margin software and AI-driven growth.
Similarly, Salesforce and Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook) have cut hundreds of UK jobs even though their profits have soared—reflecting the collision between “AI obsession” and workforce realities.
In short: enterprises are reallocating resources toward AI and cloud growth, and shedding roles even in profitable times.
Why it matters:
It signals a broader shift from traditional staffing models toward leaner, more tech-centric operations.
For leadership and HR, it highlights the urgency of reskilling and adapting workforce strategy in an AI-first world.
For investors and stakeholders, it emphasises that strong earnings don’t always equate to head-count growth.
How this trend will extend into financial services:
Although the article focuses on tech companies, the underlying pattern is highly relevant to financial services: firms are increasingly investing in automation, data analytics and AI to drive efficiency, risk-management and customer experience. As they do:
we expect banking, asset-management and fintech firms to review and restructure roles accordingly;
operational functions (back-office, compliance, analytics) may be especially impacted;
talent strategies will need to shift toward AI fluency, data literacy and digital transformation capabilities.
At Watchdog Services we monitor company submissions—such as filings at Companies House—and are already tracking how financial services firms are adjusting their staffing and capability disclosures in response to this trend.