BYJU’s will be firing nearly 1,000 workers.
The business has struggled to draw customers to its online K-12 (Kindergarten to 12th grade) services.
Byju’s, one of India’s leading edtech companies, recently announced that it would be laying off around 600 -1000 employees as part of a restructuring effort. The layoffs are expected to affect employees across various departments, including sales, marketing, and content creation. Byju’s has attributed the layoffs to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the company’s business operations, which has forced the company to re-evaluate its growth strategy. Despite the layoffs, Byju’s remains one of India’s most valuable startups, with a valuation of $16.5 billion as of 2021.
An employee of the company who spoke on the record under the condition of secrecy for the Economic Times stated, “There have been back-to-back meetings with management about cutting costs, throughout this year, and the internal mandate has been to let go of at least 3,500 employees this year, preferably more.”
BYJU fired 15% (more than 1,000 employees) of its technical team members in February of this year.
BYJU made the decision last year to eliminate up to 2,500 jobs, or 5% of its staff, in order to become profitable by March 2023.
The layoffs at Byju’s have sparked a broader debate about the state of India’s edtech industry, which has seen explosive growth in recent years. Many analysts have raised concerns about the sustainability of the edtech business model, which relies heavily on customer acquisition and retention. The COVID-19 pandemic has also exposed some of the challenges facing the edtech industry, including the digital divide and the lack of access to quality education in many parts of the country. Despite these challenges, the edtech industry in India is expected to continue growing, driven by rising demand for online learning and the increasing adoption of digital technologies in education.
The edtech industry in India has attracted significant investment in recent years, with several startups raising large amounts of funding from venture capitalists and private equity firms. Some of the major players in the Indian edtech market include Byju’s, Unacademy, Vedantu, and Toppr, among others. These companies have leveraged technology to create innovative learning solutions, such as interactive video lectures, personalized learning plans, and gamified learning experiences. The edtech industry in India is also benefiting from the government’s push to promote digital education and expand access to quality education across the country.
However, the industry also faces several challenges, including the need to adapt to changing customer needs and preferences, and the need to ensure quality and affordability in a highly competitive market.