is trying to expand aggressively in artificial intelligence while simultaneously shrinking its workforce—a balancing act that came into focus after CFO Hilary Maxson pushed back on the idea of simply asking employees to take on more work.
Speaking at her first companywide meeting on Tuesday, Maxson told employees that Oracle should not operate on the principle of “doing more with less”, according to a report by .
The comments came shortly after Oracle began another round of layoffs. The company’s workforce fell by around 21,000 employees, or 13%, during the fiscal year that ended 31 May 2026, according to a recent filing.
Rather than expecting employees to compensate for a smaller workforce by taking on additional responsibilities, Maxson said Oracle should be more selective about where it puts its time and money.
She pointed to simplifying processes that do not benefit customers and making clearer decisions about where resources can have the greatest impact.
The comments come at a crucial point for Oracle. The software giant is pouring unprecedented amounts of money into data centres and computing infrastructure to capitalise on demand for AI services.
Oracle reported $28.5 billion in capital expenditure in the first quarter, sharply higher than the $8.5 billion recorded a year earlier. The company has also maintained its fiscal 2027 capital expenditure guidance at between $90 billion and $95 billion.
The spending spree has also increased Oracle’s debt burden, with the company borrowing tens of billions of dollars to finance its expansion of data centres and AI infrastructure.
Against that backdrop, reducing employee costs has become an important part of maintaining financial discipline, according to a person familiar with Oracle’s strategy.
Yet the layoffs were largely absent from Tuesday’s town hall. During the roughly hourlong meeting, executives instead concentrated on Oracle’s growth, customer demand and the potential opportunities created by AI.
Co-CEO Mike Sicilia asked employees to consider a straightforward question about their work: whether it contributes to a better outcome for customers.
That message reflects the tension at the heart of Oracle’s current strategy. The company is cutting its workforce and trying to control costs at the same time that it is committing tens of billions of dollars to build the infrastructure needed for the AI boom.
For Oracle employees, Maxson’s comments also offer a different interpretation of the layoffs. The company appears to be positioning the workforce changes not simply as a push for greater workloads, but as an effort to remove low-value processes and redirect employees and resources towards areas considered more important to customers and growth.
The bigger question is whether Oracle can achieve that balance as its AI ambitions continue to drive both spending and demand for resources.
Maxson said Oracle should instead make deliberate decisions about how it uses its time and money.
She argued that the focus should be on eliminating processes that do little for customers and directing resources towards areas where they can have a bigger impact.
The comments come as Oracle dramatically increases spending on artificial intelligence and data-centre infrastructure. The company reported $28.5 billion in capital expenditure in the first quarter, compared with $8.5 billion during the same period a year earlier.
Oracle has also retained its forecast of spending between $90 billion and $95 billion in capital expenditure during fiscal 2027.
That investment comes with a significant financing burden. Oracle has taken on tens of billions of dollars in debt as it expands its data-centre capacity and builds infrastructure to meet demand for AI computing.
The workforce reductions are part of efforts to control costs as the company ramps up those investments, according to a person familiar with the strategy.
Interestingly, Tuesday’s roughly hourlong town hall did not directly address the latest layoffs. Instead, executives focused on Oracle’s growth prospects, customer demand and the opportunities emerging from AI.
Co-CEO Mike Sicilia urged employees to consider whether their work ultimately improves outcomes for customers.
His comments point to a broader shift underway at Oracle: the company is attempting to balance aggressive investment in AI infrastructure with pressure to maintain financial discipline.
For employees, that could mean a workplace undergoing significant restructuring even as Oracle continues to expand in areas linked to AI.
Maxson’s message suggests that the company wants that transition to involve more than simply reducing headcount and asking remaining employees to absorb the additional workload.