Instead, the young, peppy and flexible environment of the new-age firms has made way for a hard performance driven culture, which some say is also “hostile” and “toxic” at times.
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A 28-year-old product designer at a fintech company, who moved with a twofold jump in his salary package in 2021 when startups were on a hiring spree, said: “I didn’t know it actually meant doing the job of two (people). We work with a few clients and partners in the US and most days I work during both Indian and US days.” “I got well above my market rates but it’s very tough to sustain now,” said the young professional who asked not to be named.
Some employees claim they are facing rising stress and anxiety levels due to “unrealistic work overload”, “no respect for personal or family time”, “constant threat and fear of job loss”, and “often brash and overbearing culture” within teams. This, they say, is pushing many to desperately pursue other opportunities – though even those are not easy to come by in an otherwise slow job market.
“Burnout, stress and missing work-life balance are among the most often stated reasons to look out,” said Prasadh MS, head of workforce research at Xpheno, a specialist staffing firm.
The current downturn comes after the dream run of 2021 when startups saw a hiring spree with massive pay packages, lucrative stock options, and exotic perks such as lavish joining kits, outings and weekend parties, health club memberships, and mindfulness and meditation sessions to attract and retain top talent.
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A 30-year-old software engineer at a consumer tech startup says: “My wife and I work in different startups. We have been planning to start a family but had to deal with two miscarriages. It’s a lot of stress.”For some it was like a mirage created by a 3-4X jump in pay, which prompted them to take on heavy loan burdens and forced them to continue in their current jobs despite the heavy work pressure.
“It turned out to be a financial trap,” says a 28-year-old data analyst at a consumer tech company. “Time for self is lost…The culture is toxic and impacts my health.”
“The funding winter has created a strain on profitability, leading to a challenging work environment for employees,” said Ashish Sanganeria, senior partner at Transearch, a global executive search firm.
Many have also made themselves expensive outliers with their above-market compensation packages.
“Many candidates get filtered out on the role budget front,” said Prasadh. “Some candidates are even open to taking a lower package to get stability and a balanced workplace.”
However, while on one hand, employees complain of rising stress, startups too are facing intense pressure from boards and investors to improve operating efficiencies and make profits.
“Startups are always optimising to retain their best performing team members, and the time frame to demonstrate wins is always tightening…so yes, it is a challenging category to work in,” said Pranav Pai, managing partner at 3one4 Capital, a venture capital firm.
Concurred Ankur Pahwa, managing partner of venture capital fund PeerCapital: “During the funding winter, startups often focus on cost optimization and efficiency, influencing HR practices and hence culture.” “In many cases, the pressure may not be intentionally created, it may be because the startups themselves are in a survival mode.”
“2021 saw several candidates shopping around, demanding non-standard pay scales, and many times not showing up after accepting an offer. Employers still have unpleasant memories of this behaviour, and this will definitely be top of mind during this correction. Most companies have stopped tolerating excessive spending or unprofessional behaviour, especially during recruitment,” added Pai.
Pahwa, however, admitted that it is crucial to recognize that there’s a limit to how much work pressure an individual can endure, and surpassing that point can lead to a psychological breakdown.
Psychologists say there has been an increase in the number of youngsters seeking counselling with symptoms of stress and relationship issues.
“Across our client and partner portfolio, the past year has seen an increasing number of startup team members seeking support for their mental health,” said Amit Malik, founder and CEO of mental health organisation Amaha.