A Bengaluru man, newly hired at a startup as a fresher, found himself abruptly terminated within three months, leaving him feeling disheartened and uncertain about his future. The man, who had six months of prior internship experience, shared his experience online, detailing the events that led to his dismissal.
According to him, the termination was communicated via a text message from a board member.
Initially hired as a front-end developer, he was soon assigned tasks requiring full-stack development, an area he had no prior experience in. Within a week of joining, he was given an internal project where approximately 70 per cent of the work involved backend development.
Despite his enthusiasm to learn, he struggled with tasks beyond his expertise. He encountered recurring technical errors, some of which resolved without explanation. While he followed protocol by reporting issues on the project’s Slack channel, responses were inconsistent. Delays in reviews, which often took three to four days, further impacted his workflow, yet the blame for missed deadlines fell solely on him.
After 2.5 months on the job, he received an unexpected message from a board member stating that his services were no longer required. Efforts to present his perspective were unsuccessful, leaving him frustrated and introspective. He expressed concerns that he was set up for failure by being assigned responsibilities outside his skill set without adequate support or guidance.
Seeking advice, he turned to an online community, where many sympathised with his plight. Commenters encouraged him not to internalise the experience as a personal failure, attributing the situation to poor management and lack of planning by the company. Others advised him to use the ordeal as a learning experience to identify red flags in future job opportunities.
The incident highlights the challenges freshers face in startups, particularly when roles expand beyond their initial scope without proper support systems in place.
