Troubled edtech major Byju’s has laid off at least 100 employees from its mentoring and product expert functions, according to sources. Some reports suggest that the company has laid off around 400 employees. The layoffs come at a time when the company has roped in Infosys veteran Richard Lobo as an “exclusive” advisor to help drive its human resources function and guide the management on organisational change and transformation.
According to a sources, the employees who have now been let go of were placed on a performance improvement plan (PIP) beginning in July.
A Byju’s spokesperson confirmed the letting go of 100 employees but steered away from terming them as a layoff.
“As part of a periodical performance review, 100 individuals who did not meet expectations after a performance improvement plan, were let go with proper procedures,” a company spokesperson said.
“There are no fresh layoffs in the post sale division. In fact, during the past two months, as part of our commitment to augmenting this division, Byju’s has recruited 200 new professionals,” the spokesperson added.
“This measure is firmly rooted in performance-based considerations and is not in any way a cost-cutting endeavor,” the spokesperson added.
The layoffs come at a time when Byju’s has been forced to raise capital at a lower valuation, and is also facing legal challenges from its investors.
In addition to Richard Lobo, the troubled edtech company also roped in former State Bank of India chairman Rajnish Kumar and former Infosys chief financial officer Mohandas Pai on its board advisory committee, in an effort to steer it out of the cultural, financial, and legal mess it finds itself in.
