Introduction
Unacademy is an Indian edtech company founded in 2015 by Gaurav Munjal, Roman Saini, and Hemesh Singh. The company is headquartered in Bengaluru and provides online learning opportunities to students across the country. Unacademy has raised considerable funding from investors, including Facebook, General Atlantic, and Sequoia Capital, among others.
Layoff Incident
On 11th July 2022, Unacademy announced its second round of layoffs, where it let go of 350 employees. The company had earlier laid off about 350 employees in August 2021. The latest round of layoffs constitute about 10% of the company’s workforce, with the majority of them being in sales and marketing positions.
Reasons for Layoffs
According to the company, the layoffs were a strategic decision to align the cost structure with the company’s business goals. Unacademy’s management stated that the company underwent a significant restructuring process, including a review of its business model based on the feedback received from customers and stakeholders.
Company Performance
Before the layoffs, Unacademy had been on a growth trajectory with an expanding user base. The company boasts a billion-dollar valuation and has received significant investment from prominent investors. Unacademy is regarded as one of India’s leading players in edtech, competing vigorously with other players like Byju’s.
Stakeholder Statements
In response to the layoffs, Unacademy’s management stated that they deeply regretted having to let go of employees, but they believed that these measures were necessary to ensure the company’s long-term success. They added that the company is committed to supporting all laid-off employees by providing a severance package that includes compensation and benefits.
Conclusion
Sadly, the layoffs at Unacademy highlights the increasingly common trend of companies shedding employees. In the ever-increasing competitive market space, businesses need to ensure they are running as lean as possible. However, it’s also essential to safeguard employees, who contribute to the companies, and businesses need to provide adequate support for employees to ensure their financial and emotional welfare is maintained.
