FIITJEE founder D K Goel. (Photo Credit: fiitjee.com)
Dec 11, 2024 20:55 IST First published on: Dec 11, 2024 at 20:53 IST
FIITJEE.com describes D K Goel as “Founder Chairman” and “Chief Mentor”. The first designation is essentially descriptive, a fact of history – FIIT JEE was founded in 1992, and Goel was and continues to be among the top men in the company. Being “chief mentor”, though, should require a little more than being there at the beginning.
Earlier this week, a video of Goel “mentoring” his team emerged on social media. In it, he is seen abusing an employee – ranging from calling him names to misogynist “ma ki gaali”. The reason for his ire was, reportedly, that the employee questioned some investments made by the company in an ostensibly “open forum”. When the employee pointed out that the questions he was raising were already in the public domain, Goel proceeded to challenge him – “take me to court”.
In one sense, there is little that is surprising about the “mentor’s” behaviour. It is of a piece with so many videos that have emerged in recent years that show people with privilege acting boorishly. In fact, an argument can be (and has been) made that with the ubiquity of the camera and recording, there is at least a modicum of accountability: Goel’s meeting was on Zoom with hundreds of FIIT JEE employees and was recorded and shared.
The question, though, is this: Will the CEO face any consequences?
Goel also faced flak in March this year when he said, “Salary is not a right”. His company had withheld paying some employees to “send a wake-up call to the business team”. Apart from giving contract lawyers nightmares, there is much in this to keep a team of psychologists and sociologists engaged.
In an era where so many are fond of touting “cancel culture” as the great bogey, what allows a CEO to abuse a colleague and claim impunity? Goel is not alone. In June this year, as North India suffered from a debilitating heatwave, an Amazon warehouse in Manesar, Haryana made its workers swear “oaths” that they would not drink water unless they met daily targets (the labour lawyer can join the contract lawyer in her chagrin). The warehouse seems to operating fine, and Jeff Bezos continues to be a bodybuilder-billionaire charging other rich folk to joyride in space.
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Goel may not be Bezos, but he likely wants to be. He perhaps recognises that just as most of us will not stop ordering from Amazon because of how the company treats its workers, the FIIT JEE model is also “outrage proof”. About 15 lakh students appeared for the JEE – the IITs have less than 18,000 seats. In a country where competitive exams continue to be seen as the main route to economic security and even social capital; where the “aspirants” are too often constrained in what they aspire to, FIIT JEE knows that it won’t lose clients because the “chief mentor” treats people who work for him with a complete lack of decency.
The problem, for FIIT JEE might be that 2024 isn’t 1992 and its early-mover advantage in the coaching sector is all but gone. And in an era where there are so many ed-tech start-ups giving it a run for his company a run for its money, there might be a hidden cost to Goel’s behaviour. The Chief Mentor, by abusing staff, makes FIIT JEE seem like a place that isn’t worth working for. And in a competitive environment, his entitlement and impunity make him a bad CEO as well.
There are no moral consequences to being an entitled, abusive boss in India. But perhaps, the potential harm to the bottom line might finally hold out hope for just deserts.
aakash.joshi@expressindia.com
