Zomato CEO gets overwhelming response for 'Chief of Staff' role; receives over 10,000 applications

Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal has revealed that over 10,000 individuals have applied for the Chief of Staff position announced on November 20, despite the role's unconventional terms sparking significant backlash online.

Read more: Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal seeks 'Chief of Staff' with a unique offer

The Gurugram-based position, which gained widespread attention on social media, requires candidates to pay a Rs 20 lakh fee and forego a salary for the first year. Instead, Zomato promised to donate Rs 50 lakh—equivalent to the typical first-year salary for such a role—to a charity chosen by the selected candidate. Starting from the second year, the successful applicant would receive a competitive salary of over Rs 50 lakh annually.

While Goyal described the opportunity as ideal for individuals driven by purpose, the announcement faced a storm of criticism online.

However, he mentioned there were a mix of well-thought through applications, between 'those who have all the money', 'those who have some of the money,' 'those who say they don't have the money,' and the ones 'who really don't have the money.'

Update 2: we have over 10,000 applications, a lot of them well thought through, mixed between -

1. Those who have all the money
2. Those who have some of the money
3. Those who say they don’t have the money
4. Those who really don’t have the money

We will be closing the… https://t.co/8a6XhgeOGk

— Deepinder Goyal (@deepigoyal) November 21, 2024

Social media users called the job offer "another marketing gimmick" and a "bad idea," questioning the ethics of asking candidates to work without pay while requiring a significant upfront payment.

In his latest update on Thursday, Goyal shared insights about the applicants and confirmed that the application process would close at 6 PM. "Stay tuned for update 3," he added.

Read more: Marketing gimmick gone wrong?: Zomato founder faces backlash for ‘chief of staff’ job offer