Edtech unicorn upGrad acquires recruitment firm Wolves India

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upGrad Rekrut, a subsidiary of the edtech unicorn upGrad, has acquired recruitment and staffing firm WOLVES India, the company said on July 14 but did not disclose the deal amount.

WOLVES India will operate independently as a subsidiary of upGrad Rekrut and strengthen its tech placement portfolio, upGrad said in a statement.

The development follows upGrad cofounder and managing director  Mayank Kumar’s remarks that the unicorn was insulated from the slowdown in the Indian edtech sector. In a recent episode of CNN-News18 show Bits to Billions, Kumar had said upGrad was looking to hire people in various roles as demand continued to be strong. 

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According to upGrad, Bengaluru-based WOLVES specialises in placing tech talent across startups, along with mid and large-sized organisations in India and overseas. The seven-year-old recruitment firm has closed over 5,000 placements till now in technology and product roles, upGrad added.

WOLVES India has also been working towards solving hiring complexities across the aero-space segment through its product - Quasara, to help global businesses to set up their offshore centres, said upGrad.

The company also said that the tech industry in India will continue to observe steady demand for skilled talent and is expected to become a $350 billion market by FY26.

“While with upGrad Rekrut we saw our learners receiving record-breaking CTCs (cost-to-company) during FY22, the joining of WOLVES India will give us an edge in the tech ecosystem. It shall foster wider employment opportunities for our learners in the form of highly paid tech roles and enhanced career acceleration,” said Kumar, on the acquisition.

WOLVES India said it will continue to operate independently under the leadership of its Founder and Director, Raghu S.

“We are thrilled to welcome Raghu and his team on board to partner with upGrad Rekrut to offer an enhanced placement portfolio, thus enabling upGrad learners with the tech jobs of tomorrow. This aligns with our ambition of becoming the global talent superpower in the next few years,” said Ajay Shah, Managing Founder and Husain Tinwala - Co-founder of upGrad Rekrut.

Bucking the trend amid its peer, upGrad, earlier in June, said it is looking to add nearly 3,000 people in the next three months. The seven-year-old company, which employs 4,000 people at present, will increase its workforce to around 6,500-7,000 by August this year.

Also Read: Layoffs, restructuring, slowdown: India’s edtech firms are struggling post-pandemic

In the same month, upGrad doubled its valuation after raising $225 million in fresh funding, balking a frosty global venture capital environment. The company increased its valuation to $2.25 billion in the round that included billionaire James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems LLC and US testing and assessment provider Educational Testing Service.