We, at grofers, have done a lot of things right over the years, while also making our fair share of mistakes. Not putting enough focus on technology was one of them. Given we already have some of the best technologists in the country, we realise we have the opportunity to do so much more.
As a way to show this commitment, our CEO sent out the below message to the entire company. This is our line in the sand, that we are making a real commitment to building tech-first for the innumerable exciting things we have on our plate. If you know someone who would be kicked about joining our journey, please refer them here.
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Note for the tech team (engineering + product + design + data)
Tech team –
After coming out of the second wave, and at a point where our next funding round is secure, I think it is time to kickstart a lot of initiatives that I have been waiting for the right time to begin.
We have done well so far, but we need to do better. And in hindsight, one of the most important things we could have done in the past in order to do way better is focus and invest more in tech than we have so far. Tech = engineering + product + design + data.
We will only succeed as an organisation if we invest heavily in tech. Our DNA needs to evolve to one of a tech company, and not an e-commerce company that utilises technology. Everything from productivity to personalisation to marketing is now a tech problem.
Tech will always be our number 1 priority going forward. I also realise that we are sub-par in terms of compensating our tech team compared to other technology companies in the country. That has two repercussions – we are not able to attract the best of talent, and we fail to motivate our existing tech team.
This month onwards, we are going to correct this, so that we can take our first step towards being a true tech company. The entire tech team gets a no-ifs-and-buts 33% increase in salary starting July (i.e. if your annual salary was ₹30 lakhs, it will now be ₹40 lakhs). Depending on how much impact each of you have created over the last year, there will also be a hefty ESOP allocation coming your way which will be communicated to you in the next few weeks.
Tech team – I need your enthusiasm and leadership to transform the organisation. Please be the heroes of grofers. Lead the organisation where it needs to get to. Let’s start thinking of our team in two parts – “tech and ops”, and not “business and tech”.
Over to you,
albi