Anand Mahindra slams Better.com Vishal Garg over layoffs: 'What type of culture...'

Anand Mahindra had wondered if it is fair to give Better.com CEO Vishal Garg a second chance.

After asking whether Better.com CEO Vishal Garg, who has come under intense criticism after he laid off 900 employees on a Zoom call recently, should be given a second chance, industrialist Anand Mahindra said it “seemed inevitable” that the Indian-American decided to take time off from work.

Mahindra, who joined hundreds of others in slamming Garg, had some strong words for the manner in which he carried out the layoffs. He questioned the culture that led Garg to his actions.

“Seemed inevitable. But CEO’s don’t operate in a vacuum. They act in a manner that they believe will help them succeed. Boards of directors need to reflect on the culture they foster and support. What type of culture led to this CEO thinking his action would be rewarded?” Anand Mahindra, 66, wrote on Twitter.

Seemed inevitable. But CEO’s don’t operate in a vacuum. They act in a manner that they believe will help them succeed. Boards of directors need to reflect on the culture they foster & support. What type of culture led to this CEO thinking his action would be rewarded? https://t.co/1L6DdZY8YW

— anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) December 11, 2021

Last week, Mahindra had tweeted, “I’m curious whether you think a CEO can survive after a blunder like this? Is it fair, or not, to allow a second chance…?”

He retweeted several people replying to his question, with most of them slamming Garg for his actions.

Vishal Garg apologised last week for his manner of handling layoffs at the mortgage company after a video of him firing 900 people via a Zoom call went viral on social media. Chief Financial Officer Kevin Ryan will be managing the day-to-day decisions of the company and will be reporting to the board, Vice reported, citing the email.

The CEO had cited the market, performance and productivity as reasons behind the decision to lay off employees in the United States and India.

Better.com said in May it would go public through a merger with blank-check firm Aurora Acquisition Corp, in a deal that valued it at $7.7 billion.

"If you're on this call, you are part of the unlucky group that is being laid off," Garg told the staff during the Zoom video call last Wednesday. "Your employment here is terminated effective immediately." This is the second round of lay-offs Garg has undertaken, he said.