Post by Adhyuth Ramadyani

The Startup Safety Net Has a Hole (And Only the Employees Are Falling Through) When a startup pivots into a wall, who pays the price? Look at the headlines this week. A leading procurement startup reportedly lets go of the majority of its workforce after hitting a wall with product positioning. Koo (and its founder’s subsequent venture) makes waves for doing the "noble" thing: winding down and returning remaining capital to its venture capitalists.  On paper, returning money to investors is praised as a class act. It preserves relationships. It keeps the elite ecosystem intact for the next fundraise. But let’s look past the PR gloss. When a product is confused, the founders brainstorm. When the idea fails, the investors get a partial refund. But when the music stops, the employees get a pink slip and a handshake. The brutal asymmetry of risk: Founders get another shot. Investors get their remaining capital back to deploy elsewhere. Employees get their livelihoods disrupted overnight because of strategic missteps they had zero control over. We talk endlessly about "skin in the game," and we are family bullshit, but the truth is stark: Investors lose a line item on a spreadsheet. Founders lose a thesis, but gain "valuable ecosystem lessons." Employees lose their rent money, their health insurance, and their peace of mind. Product-market fit is hard. Pivots are inevitable. But we need to stop romanticizing the "responsible shutdown" when the human cost is entirely offloaded onto the people who built the code, closed the sales, and trusted the vision. If we can protect the capital of billionaires, we can do a better job protecting the lives of the workforce. To everyone impacted by the recent shakeups across the ecosystem: it wasn't your failure, it was the founders failure! The market is tough, but your skills are real. #Startups #Layoffs #TechIndustry #CorporateCulture #Leadership