Zerodha is the top online stock trading platform in India. In a time when startups and digital companies frequently associate growth with recruiting quickly, Zerodha has adopted an entirely different strategy. The business, which is renowned for its creative financial solutions, has concentrated on keeping a small, close-knit IT team. Zerodha stands out in the rapidly expanding finance industry because it has only employed five new employees to its tech department in the last four years.
Credits: Hindustan Times
A Selective Approach to Growth
Zerodha’s Chief Technology Officer, Kailash Nadh, recently revealed the company’s unique hiring approach. “We’ve hired about 5 people in the tech team in the last 4 years in total, with 3 in the last year,” Nadh said. This brings the total headcount of the tech team to just 35 members.
In contrast to most tech companies, which scale up by aggressively expanding their workforce, Zerodha emphasizes the quality of relationships and team cohesion over numbers. “It is a group of people who hang out with each other, who have the right philosophies, who gel well with each other,” Nadh explained. The company prioritizes human decency and the ability to work well together, valuing team dynamics over individual talent.
Credits: NewsBytes
The Myth of the Scaling Team
Zerodha’s strategy challenges the conventional wisdom that the size of a tech team should grow in proportion to the company’s success. Nadh debunked the belief that more people are required as a company’s user base and revenue expand, calling it a “misconception.” According to him, it’s entirely possible for a small, dedicated team to build and manage large, scalable systems.
“For me, if an engineering team grows exponentially as the company and its business grows, that is a bit of an anomaly,” he said. Nadh believes that modern software teams have lost the lean efficiency that was the norm 10-15 years ago. “Startups did not have the tendency to hire hundreds of programmers,” he noted, pointing out that a small, efficient team can maintain an organization’s framework and handle its growth effectively.
A Low Attrition Rate: The Power of Retention
Zerodha’s commitment on developing a close-knit workforce is apparent in their staff retention rate. Its 35-person IT team has lost just two individuals in the last ten years, an astonishing statistic in an industry notorious for high staff turnover. The retention percentage is a powerful indicator of Zerodha’s work culture, which values its employees and makes them feel like they are contributing to a worthwhile cause.
By fostering a closer bond among team members, this method promotes a more collaborative and less transactional work atmosphere. It’s a vast contrast from many other IT firms’ fast-paced, high-pressure work environments, where employees frequently feel like cogs in a machine.
The Drawbacks: Dealing with Tech Glitches
Although Zerodha’s small staff has done a good job managing the company’s expanding needs, there have been some difficulties. There have been technical issues with the platform, which has frustrated traders. One major occurrence occurred on June 3, when Zerodha’s platform malfunctioned during a market rise. At a time when traders were most in need of the platform, exit polls indicating that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will serve a third term were announced.
In a recent response to these worries, Nithin Kamath, CEO of Zerodha, said that a large portion of the criticism originates from social media, particularly Twitter, where traders frequently air their grievances. Although Kamath played down the seriousness of the technical problems, the episodes have made people wonder if the company’s small staff can handle the growing number of users.
Conclusion: Zerodha’s Thoughtful Expansion in a Rapidly Growing Industry
Zerodha’s hiring policy can teach other startups and enterprises that could be tempted to grow too quickly some very important lessons. The company has maintained a good work culture while building a highly efficient system that serves millions of customers by keeping its IT team small and focused. Despite some technical difficulties along the way, Zerodha’s distinctive employment strategy can serve as a model for businesses trying to grow sustainably without sacrificing their essential principles.
