Major restructuring at Ola Electric

Ola Electric is gearing up for significant organisational changes in the lead-up to its initial public offering (IPO). The company is reportedly planning to trim its workforce by about 400-500 employees in the coming weeks as part of a cost-control strategy.

While the exact number of employees to be affected is still being determined, the company’s leadership is actively assessing the scale of these layoffs across various departments. Media reports have also suggested that some of the displaced employees may be replaced with new hires at a lower cost, although the overall headcount is expected to decrease.

According to insiders cited in the report by ET, certain teams have already finalised the number of cuts. Bhavish Aggarwal, founder, Ola, has been spearheading efforts to streamline costs across all areas of the organisation, indicating a concerted effort towards financial optimisation.

Ola Electric’s draft IPO papers filed in December 2023,indicated a workforce of 3,733 employees as of October 2023, with a notable attrition rate of 47.48 per cent in FY23. This move follows a trend within the Ola ecosystem, as Ola Cabs previously laid off around 200 employees in April, alongside the departure of Hemant Bakshi, CEO, and Kartik Gupta, CFO, Ola Cabs.

Ola Cabs has been endeavouring to improve profits for some time now. Earlier, in April, the company had wound up operations in Britain, Australia and New Zealand where it had launched services in 2018. As far as the reason for closure of the business in these countries is concerned, the company had stated that it wished to concentrate on making its domestic business more profitable before the initial public offering.