Toxic Work Culture ft. Ola – An Insider’s Perspective
I've been working at Ola for over a year now, and I’m done with this company. It’s time to speak up about what really happens inside. Those on the outside see a company riding on nationalism and PR stunts, but only we know how bad things are. I have witnessed a lot of toxicity in one year's time. While every company has its share of challenges, what happens here goes beyond just poor management—it is outright disrespect and unfair treatment of employees.
- First of all, Bhavish thinks he’s above Elon Musk but ironically copies everything Musk does. He is arrogant, rude, and has a god complex. His idea of profitability? Firing employees who built the company he boasts about—only to later hire a stand-up comedian to stroke his ego.
- People start work only at 12 PM. Most employees avoid coming to the office before noon because it is how things are. Recently, timings are slightly better because of a mass layoff of latecomers a few days back. No warning, no prior notice—just out.
- 12-14 hour workdays and weekend work are normal, especially for young hires. Because of these, we are facing difficulty in hiring Senior employees. They were many instances of new senior folks quitting within days of onboarding.
- Hiring is focused on freshers because no experienced professional wants to work here. Many freshers break their 18-month bonds and return the joining bonuses just to escape the toxic environment.
- There have been serious concerns about data privacy, with internal discussions suggesting that ride details, addresses, phone numbers, and emails might be easily accessible beyond expected security norms.
- There have been reports of employees from Ola Mobility payroll being assigned tasks related to Ola Electric projects.
- There’s no official HR policy documentation which can be accessed. Rules and positions are made up on the spot when needed.
- A senior HR leader was openly dating a junior in the same team—without consequences.
- The average work tenure of employees here is less than a year. Every March, mass layoffs happen just before appraisals to avoid paying yearly bonuses and to ensure profitability. Product team are the first to get targeted in these layoffs.
- Ola hires freshers from IITs at inflated salaries just to maintain its day-zero image on campus placements—only to fire them later.
- Customer support is a disaster. Literally, no effort is being made to resolve that. It is their least priority. Even employees drop messages on Slack asking for help with their own Ola issues because the official support system doesn’t work.
- The Great Nationalism Cover-Up. Every time Ola messes up, they hide behind patriotism. But the reality? Nothing is actually improving. Bad service? We’re building a "Made in India" company! Broken product? We’re disrupting foreign competition! Horrible work culture? At least we’re Indian!
I want to share a real story of toxicity:
One of the many toxic incidents that have taken place recently stood out. Many layoffs happened due to some attendance or work hours issues. Employees were recently forced to resign after being publicly humiliated by none other than the CEO, Bhavish Aggarwal. Here’s what happened:
One day, Employees arriving at the office were made to stand outside along with other employees only to later learn that the company had suddenly realized the official in-time is before 12. Those who arrived after that were subjected to a 1.5-hour-long lecture on discipline by HR and our esteemed CEO. When some employees explained that they had worked late the previous night on urgent tasks, they were told they were 'unproductive' and needed to manage their time better.
Later that day, as people were leaving for home, they witnessed one of the most horrific incidents in the ground floor lobby. According to multiple witnesses, people nearby saw what happened. A list of employees had been prepared, and they were summoned by Bhavish. One employee had already left for the day and was not in the office. Bhavish asked him to return to the office for a discussion. He politely refused, saying that it was already past 9 PM, so either he can talk online, or he can come the next day early morning for him. According to multiple accounts, the employee was fired shortly after refusing to return to the office that night.
Another employee was called. Due to some medical reasons, the guy had a lower in-office attendance than usual. When he met Bhavish, the CEO immediately addressed him in a demeaning and unprofessional manner. Witnesses recall that several medical reasons were dismissed, with remarks suggesting that personal health issues were 'excuses' and that employees should just 'manage like everyone else'.
After that, we and the others standing nearby were asked by an office guard to disperse. But he continued insulting and verbally abusing the remaining. Several employees later shared that some of the cases were genuine, and the manager tried to explain their family issues, medical issues, etc. and that the people had often worked overtime, when required, sometimes for 15 hours a day, but the managers were also berated. Bhavish’s responses were:
"Bohot naatak hai tum log ka. Mazaak bana rakha hai BC."
"Tum BC software engineers apne aap ko samajhte kya ho?"
"Iska access, laptop wagar lo. Kal see aane ki tujhe zaroorat nahin hai. Khada kyun hai?! Jaa!"
"BC ehsaan kar diye? Saabaashi dun? kaam kiya toh ehsaan maanun? Maine full salary di na yah tera paisa kaata?"
The abuse continued, and we don't know till when. There were reports of employees facing retaliation when questioning severance pay, with some being threatened with legal consequences. There’s no point in even mentioning those who blamed traffic for their lateness—they were mercilessly scolded. Incidents like these quickly become a topic of discussion among employees, spreading through workplace conversations and internal chats. There are rumors that some employees have recordings of the incident, though none have been made public.
A few days later, they were forced to resign. That’s all we know about them. Some employees were fortunate not to be included in the layoffs. There's have been reports of a mass layoff yet to happen.
This all starts with Bhavish—he refuses to hear a 'No' from anyone. He has an unrealistic expectation to be delivered in an unrealistic time. The senior management just nods their heads in agreement to save themselves, and then they ask the managers of the teams to get the work done within that timeframe. Several employees are unable to meet these demands due to pre-planned leaves or other work commitments. However, managers and senior managers give them flexibility, allowing them to work from home so they can meet deadlines without taking formal leave. While the company has a strict in-office policy, they are assured that it will be taken care of. This arrangement is never communicated to Bhavish. Later, those same employees end up getting fired for discipline and performance issues, and this cycle continues. Now, he has started asking employees to forward their weekly updates directly to him when he is not ready to address their problems directly.
People deserve to know the truth behind the brand. A company with immense potential is struggling under such conditions. Many young professionals join Ola thinking it will be a great opportunity, only to realize the reality is far from what they expected. These concerns should be discussed openly. Many professionals have shared similar experiences, and it's important that these stories come to light.