Edtech giant and India’s most-valued startup, Byju’s, has reportedly laid off a further 15 per cent of its employees.

According to reports, over 1,000 jobs across engineering, sales, logistics, marketing and communications teams have been cut in the second major layoff by Byju’s in recent months.

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Promised no more job cuts in October

In October 2022, Byju’s laid off around 2,500 employees accounting for 5% of its then workforce.

Cost optimization and outsourcing of operations have been cited as the reason for the second major layoff in the company.

It should be noted that in October, following the massive job cuts, Byju’s co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Byju Ravindran had told employees in multiple internal emails that the company would not be laying off anyone of its employees.

BCCL

Employees fired, spent money on Lionel Messi

The Bengaluru-based ed-tech firm, which was valued at $22 billion in November 2022, had come under heavy criticism for spending Rs 330 crore to become the official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup and also roping in Argentinian Football star Lionel Messi as the Global Brand Ambassador for its “Education For All” social initiative, just days after the layoffs.

Mounting loses at Byju’s

Despite its status as India’s most valued startup, Byju’s, founded in 2011, has failed to keep its books balanced.

In the 2021 financial year, Byju’s posted a revenue of Rs 2,428 crore as its losses in the fiscal rose 17-fold to over Rs 4,500 crore. Data showed that Byju’s lost more than Rs 12 crore daily in the assessment year.

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Byju’s, which is also the lead sponsor of the Indian cricket team since 2019, recently announced it would not renew partnerships with BCCI, ICC, and FIFA.

Byju’s business model under scanner 

It is not just mounting losses that are haunting Byju’s. 

The company has been under increasing scrutiny for its ‘unethical’ business practices, including the miss-selling of its products to people who could not afford them and those unaware of what they were buying.

Amid the rise in complaints, the child rights body National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) had issued a summons to Byju’s over allegations that the edtech firm is indulging in malpractices to lure parents and children into buying their courses.

BCCL

Change in sales policy at Byju’s

Following this, in January, Byju’s announced it has rolled out a 4-tier tech-driven internal sales process replacing its existing direct sales process.

Under the new sales model, interested customers with a minimum monthly income of Rs 25,000 will be eligible to buy courses from Byju’s. They will need to consent to place the order before closing the sales.

Byju’s has claimed that as part of its 4-tier sales process, it will educate an incoming lead about its product portfolio and its new refund policy over a live Zoom session that is recorded for future audit, after which the process for the order will begin.

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