Edtech firm Byju’s, which in FY21 lost more than Rs 12 crore everyday, has announced that it will lay off 5 per cent of its workforce — about 2,500 people — across multiple departments as it looks to improve its finances and achieve profitability by end of the current financial year.
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This would be the second most significant round of layoffs at the startup, last valued at $22 billion, after it had cut hundreds of jobs in June amid a global funding winter that impacted companies from across sectors, setting back their plans — including Byju’s — to go public this year. Even as it looks to lay off a large chunk of its employees, Byju’s said that at a group level it will continue to hire across all levels and will end this financial year as a “net hirer”. It plans to hire 10,000 more teachers in the coming year, and hire senior leadership.
As it looks to reduce its cash burn, the firm said it will retarget its marketing budget towards “more efficient growth”. “Since significant brand awareness has been created in India over the past few years, there is a scope to optimise marketing budgets locally and prioritise spending to increase brand awareness in overseas markets,” Byju’s said in a statement. Byju’s is the main sponsor of the Indian national cricket team and also an official sponsor of the upcoming FIFA World Cup.
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FY21 losses had risen 17-fold
In its FY21 results, which Byju’s had announced in September following an 18-month delay, it posted a revenue of Rs 2,428 crore as its losses in the fiscal rose 17-fold to over Rs 4,500 crore.
There are also changes slated in the firm’s sales methods. Byju’s said it will focus more on inside sales, using video calling platforms which will reduce operational costs. Multiple inside sales hubs will now be created across India from where Byju’s sales associates will reach out to incoming leads through calls, email, and Zoom meetings, it said.
In its FY ‘21 results, which Byju’s had announced in September following an 18-month delay, it posted a revenue of Rs 2,428 crore as its losses in the fiscal rose 17-fold to over Rs 4,500 crore. At the time Byju’s had attributed the mounting losses to a change in the way it calculated its revenue, which its auditor Deloitte asked it to calculate on a rateable basis. Byju’s has previously said that for FY22, it has clocked Rs 10,000 crore in gross revenue. However, these are unaudited results.
