Dell Technologies faces an unprecedented workforce crisis as employee satisfaction plummets to historic lows, with internal survey results revealing a catastrophic 50% decline in morale over two years. The company’s employee net promoter score (eNPS) crashed to 32 in 2025, down from 48 last year and 63 in 2023, according to leaked internal documents obtained by Business Insider.
Jenn Saavedra, Dell’s chief human resources officer, acknowledged the severity in an internal video: “The eNPS score is below the benchmark we do aim to achieve, and we take that seriously.” The admission came during Tuesday’s announcement of the annual “Tell Dell” survey results, which measure how likely employees are to recommend the company as a workplace.
The technology giant’s workforce rebellion reflects broader tensions across corporate America, where aggressive return-to-office mandates and relentless layoffs test the limits of employee loyalty.
Numbers Tell a Devastating Story
Dell’s workforce has shrunk dramatically through successive rounds of cuts. The company’s most recent Form 10-K filing revealed 12,000 job losses in the year ending January 31, 2025, representing a 10% reduction. Over two years, headcount fell by 25,000 employees—a staggering 19% decline—leaving just 108,000 workers.
The human toll extends beyond statistics. One Round Rock headquarters employee described the impact: “The fall in head count had led to increased workloads on their team. At the same time, the ongoing workforce reductions have held back internal movement and promotions.”
Key workforce metrics paint a grim picture:
- Employee satisfaction score: 32 (down from 63 in 2023)
- Workforce reduction: 25,000 jobs lost over two years
- Current headcount: 108,000 employees
- Annual decline rate: 10-12% per year
- Leader satisfaction score: 76 (contrasting sharply with overall morale)
Return-to-Office Rebellion Intensifies
Dell’s increasingly stringent RTO policies have become a flashpoint for employee discontent. The company began requiring workers living within an hour of an office to return five days per week starting March 2025. This escalation followed a February 2024 directive asking employees to classify themselves as hybrid or remote, with roughly 50% choosing to remain remote.
A Dell engineer with over eight years at the company expressed frustration: “Previously, managers were flexible, workforce reductions were rare, and employees enjoyed a good work-life balance. The constant layoffs are just the cherry on top.”
Office conditions compound the misery. Workers report “noisy rooms and desks that feel temporary,” contributing to an atmosphere of impermanence and instability. Sales teams faced the first wave of five-day mandates in September 2024, setting a precedent that eventually spread company-wide.
Culture Shift Drives Exodus
Long-time employees describe a fundamental transformation in Dell’s corporate culture. What once stood as a flexible, employee-centric environment has morphed into something unrecognizable to veteran staff. The shift coincides with leadership’s aggressive push toward artificial intelligence and cost reduction.
Internal discussions on TheLayoff.com reveal deep-seated resentment: “Most people at Dell don’t have careers. They’ve got jobs. Disposable, grind-you-down, ‘be grateful you’re still here’ jobs.”
Contributing factors to cultural decline include:
- Elimination of flexible work arrangements
- Constant reorganizations disrupting team stability
- Vanishing promotion opportunities despite increased responsibilities
- AI-driven modernization creating job insecurity
- Management perceived as disconnected from employee concerns
One employee summarized the sentiment: “They took a bit away each year and just don’t seem to care. The come back to office seems to be the breaking point for most.”
AI Push Creates Additional Friction
Dell’s aggressive pivot toward artificial intelligence has created another source of employee anxiety. The company rolled out AI across its internal operating model throughout 2024, positioning itself as a leading infrastructure provider for AI applications. While leadership touts modernization benefits, workers perceive the technology as a threat to job security.
The annual report explicitly stated plans to reduce costs by “leveraging new technology” and optimizing business processes. Dell confirmed it would continue limiting external hiring while pursuing “additional reductions in our overall headcount.”
Operating expenses fell 4% in fiscal 2025, driven primarily by a 7% decline in salaries and benefits. The correlation between AI implementation and workforce reduction hasn’t escaped employee notice.
Management Response Falls Flat
Leadership’s attempts to address plummeting morale have proven ineffective. Saavedra promised more transparent communication and encouraged frequent conversations between teams and leaders. Yet employees view such measures as inadequate given the scale of dissatisfaction.
Critics point to management’s disconnect from reality: “She stated that we have uncertainty, but said it was due to direct managers not communicating the company’s strategy well enough. This was total gaslighting, as anyone knows the uncertainty is from the never ending layoffs, reorgs, the RTO policy.”
Paradoxically, the leader net promotion score remains high at 76, with employees praising immediate supervisors as supportive and collaborative. This disconnect suggests systemic issues emanate from executive decisions rather than middle management failures.
Financial Pressures Drive Decisions
Dell’s cost-cutting measures reflect broader technology sector trends as companies prioritize profitability over growth. The partnership with Nvidia to build next-generation supercomputers and focus on AI infrastructure requires significant investment, potentially funded through workforce reductions.
Market dynamics influencing Dell’s strategy:
- Declining PC sales forcing business model evolution
- Competition from cloud providers in traditional markets
- Pressure to demonstrate AI capabilities to investors
- Need to maintain profit margins amid revenue challenges
- Industry-wide shift toward automation and efficiency
Employees recognize the financial motivations: “The constant drive of upper management to stockholders only, in other words the employees are tools to be used then discarded when no longer needed.”
Industry-Wide Implications
Dell’s experience mirrors challenges across the technology sector. Companies from Amazon to Meta have implemented similar RTO mandates while conducting layoffs, creating a perfect storm of employee dissatisfaction. The phenomenon raises questions about sustainable workforce management in an era of rapid technological change.
Glassdoor reviews reveal consistent themes: “Frequent layoffs and overfocus on minimizing opex to the point that we don’t have the tools to do our jobs.” The platform shows Dell’s overall rating at 3.8 out of 5, based on over 41,000 reviews.
Future Outlook Remains Uncertain
Speculation about Dell’s future intensifies among remaining employees. Some predict potential sale or split similar to HP’s trajectory. Others anticipate continued workforce reductions as AI capabilities expand. The company’s ability to retain talent while pursuing aggressive cost reduction remains questionable.
Warning signs for Dell’s leadership:
- Key talent exodus to competitors offering remote work
- Difficulty attracting new graduates despite prestigious programs
- Declining innovation as experienced workers depart
- Potential unionization efforts gaining momentum
- Reputational damage affecting customer relationships
One employee’s stark assessment captures the prevailing mood: “Most people I know are not feeling secure in their jobs.”
Dell Technologies stands at a crossroads. The pursuit of efficiency and modernization has created a demoralized workforce questioning the company’s commitment to its people. Whether leadership can reverse this trajectory before losing critical talent remains an open question with significant implications for the company’s future competitiveness.
