The CEO of Indian food delivery giant Zomato, Deepinder Goyal, has sparked a public debate by advertising a chief of staff position with an unconventional twist: the role offers no salary initially, but instead requires a 2 million rupee ($23,700) “fee.”
In a series of social media posts late Wednesday, Goyal called for “down-to-earth” candidates with “Grade A communication skills” who are eager to help build Zomato, its quick delivery service Blinkit, and other business verticals.
However, the role comes with no salary during the first year. Instead, candidates must pay the $23,700 fee for what Goyal described as an “opportunity” offering “10x more learnings than a 2-year degree from a top management school.”
Goyal reassured potential applicants that the chief of staff role would come with an annual salary of at least 5 million rupees ($60,000) from the second year, assuming things go well.
The unique job posting has received mixed reactions on platforms like LinkedIn and X. Some business professionals and users praised the opportunity, seeing it as a steep learning curve that could provide more value than an MBA. However, others criticized the move, saying it creates barriers for ambitious candidates who cannot afford the “fee.”
“Appreciate the creativity, but it inherently excludes ambitious, driven individuals from the middle class who don’t have that kind of money,” said Deepak Singh, a former Walmart Flipkart employee, on LinkedIn.
Aparna Mittal, a diversity and inclusion expert, commented, “This looks like a case of the privileged creating opportunities for the privileged only.”
Conversely, tech programmer Arnav Gupta welcomed the unconventional offer, saying, “If you’re aiming for a career in management consulting/strategy, this is worth far more.”
Zomato did not respond to requests for comment regarding the reactions to Goyal’s posts, which have accumulated over 5 million views.
Under Goyal’s leadership, Zomato has grown into India’s largest food delivery company and is expanding into the quick commerce sector, with groceries delivered in as little as 10 minutes. The company’s share price has doubled this year, bringing its valuation to over $28 billion.