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Byju Raveendran, Founder and CEO of edtech startup BYJU’S, called 2022 the defining year for the company as it battled allegations of mis-selling, deferred payments, funding commitments that did not come through, and employee lay-offs. 

In an internal email to his employees, Byju Raveendran said, “After many rocking years, we needed a rocky year to pave the way for our long-term success and resilience. I have always maintained that we are pioneers in execution, not in perfection.”

The founder said BYJU’s will target “growth with efficiency” going ahead, as compared to the exponential growth phase from 2017 to 2021.

In the email, he said the company had shifted its sales model to inside sales and was targeting profitability at a group level in 2023. 

The email detailed that BYJU’s will continue to invest in its hybrid model through BYJU’s Tuition Centres (BTCs), which was launched in early 2022. The startup plans to add over 250 BTCs in 2023, to the existing network of 300-plus Aakash BYJU’s.  

“Taken together with our apps that have massive digital distribution, we are not just among the largest but also among the most diversified edtech companies in the world. Some might say we are the first to achieve the elusive edtech triad,” said the email. 

It was reported earlier this year that BYJU’s was planning to float an IPO of its subsidiary, Aakash Educational Services, in early 2023. 

The company also let go of nearly 2,500 employees across verticals over the year as part of its cost-cutting measures. It had to reverse its decision to lay off 140 employees in Thiruvananthapuram after facing flak from the state government. 

The email from Byju Raveendran said the startup planned on hiring 10,000 teachers in 2023, in addition to the 20,000-strong teaching workforce.

“BYJU’S is a large and caring family of 50,000+ members. We are among the top 30 private employers in India – and the only startup in that list. We have nearly 20,000 teachers on our payroll, making us probably the largest employer of teachers anywhere in the world. And we are planning to hire 10,000 more in 2023.

“No other startup offers opportunities of the scale and scope that we provide,” Byju wrote in the email.

The company has also been in the news for signing up Argentinian football player Lionel Messi as its brand ambassador at a time when it was pushing for cost-cutting measures.

Reports suggested that lenders had asked the company for settlement of part of a $1.2 billion line of credit extended in November 2021.

BYJU’s also delayed filing its audited financial results for the FY21, as the company sought to adjust for change in revenue recognition as advised by its auditors. The company reported net loss of Rs 2,702.14 crore for FY21 against a profit of Rs 7.39 crore in the year-ago period.