Laurene Powell Jobs, one of the wealthiest people in the world, cut just under 30 employees at Emerson Collective last week, in one of the first widespread layoffs at the philanthropy since she founded it 14 years ago.
The cuts, which were described by seven people with knowledge of the matter, amounted to more than 10 percent of the organization, which runs a network of political, artistic, athletic and journalistic ventures.
In recent months, Ms. Powell Jobs, 61, has suggested in Monday staff meetings that budget cuts were coming at Emerson Collective, three people who heard her remarks said. Last month, just after President Trump imposed sweeping tariffs that sent markets reeling, she said she believed the philanthropy needed to practice more austerity.
Several people who were laid off said some of Ms. Powell Jobs’s senior aides had indicated that the cuts were not solely a business decision and that political forces were also at play. During the layoffs, some aides referred to the political climate, saying that the organization was rethinking its strategy and that some roles were no longer necessary, the people said.
The layoffs reflect the business and political pressure that institutions like Emerson Collective face, especially as Mr. Trump pressures nonprofits that he sees as liberal. Many organizations in the world of liberal philanthropy became concerned after he singled out Harvard last month for a revocation of its tax-exempt status.
In a statement, Emerson Collective said that the causes for the “realignment” were solely financial conditions and that political considerations played no role. The organization is a limited liability company, not a traditional nonprofit.
“Like many companies operating in the current economic climate, Emerson Collective has undertaken a strategic review of our work to ensure our resources are being deployed in the most effective way,” the organization said. “This has led to a strategic realignment and a limited reduction in our work force.”
Ms. Powell Jobs has a net worth of $11.4 billion, which is down about 5 percent this year, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. In recent months, she has greenlit spending at The Atlantic, which she separately owns and which has pursued aggressive reporting on the Trump administration.
Ms. Powell Jobs has long been a loyal Democrat. In 2020, Mr. Trump told his followers to call and write to her because of her ownership of The Atlantic, saying she was “wasting money” on the magazine.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris, the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, has called Ms. Powell Jobs a member of her “extended family,” and they have been close friends for over two decades. Last year, Ms. Powell Jobs donated millions of dollars to a dark-money group backing Ms. Harris.
At a March event with Emerson Collective in Washington, Ms. Powell Jobs notably hosted some Republicans, such as Senators Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, people with knowledge of the event said.
Ms. Powell Jobs, who was married to the Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, occupies an influential perch atop Silicon Valley and culture. She sits on the board of Stanford University and is a part-owner of the Washington Wizards basketball team and the Washington Capitals hockey team. She is also a major art dealer, spending about $30 million to buy an art institute in San Francisco last year, just a few months before buying the city’s most expensive home for $70 million.
At the core of her ambitions has been Emerson Collective, a somewhat secretive family office that she oversees and that manages her investments in start-ups, politics and philanthropy.
As of Wednesday, Emerson Collective’s website listed 255 staff members, though some of the people had been laid off and were completing their exits.
Ms. Powell Jobs has started other philanthropic entities, including a climate fund, Elemental Impact, and a school-reform group, the XQ Institute, both of which cut jobs in recent weeks, people briefed on the matter said.
Emerson Collective has recently cut back on some perks, such as work-expensed lunches, people briefed on the matter said. Ms. Powell Jobs has insisted that her companies operate like businesses, and she has overseen past cuts at The Atlantic and another media venture, California Sunday magazine.
Theodore Schleifer is a Times reporter covering billionaires and their impact on the world.
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