Zomato Chief of Staff Role Insights from a Candidate’s Experience

While the Zomato Chief of Staff position gained much attention last year, a recent post on X introduced a new perspective. Sanjay Krishna, a senior product manager hailing from Kerala, shared his journey of applying for the sought-after role, despite not making it to the final selection.

Sanjay expressed his thoughts on X, stating that he sent the email out of sheer curiosity yet ended up having one of the most enriching interview experiences. Although he did not secure the position, the conversations and feedback have significantly aided his personal and professional growth over the recent months. He conveyed his gratitude for the opportunity he was given.

“Sent out the mail purely out of curiosity and ended up having one of the best interview experiences. Didn’t make the final cut, but the conversation and feedback have helped me tremendously over the past few months. Grateful for the opportunity!”

— Sanjay Krishna (@SjayKH) February 5, 2025

This post was a reaction to Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal, who recently discussed the company’s comprehensive recruitment process. Goyal revealed that more than 18,000 applications had been submitted, with over 150 candidates interviewed. From these, 30 candidates were offered roles, and 18 have joined Zomato and its associated companies like Blinkit, filling what Goyal refers to as “high-impact roles.” He highlighted that the new recruits include “founders who bootstrapped startups from their dorm rooms, engineers who rewrote entire tech stacks over a weekend, operators who turned chaos into scale, and a handful of brilliant young minds fresh out of college.”

Insights on Zomato’s Recruitment Process

In regards to the Chief of Staff positions, Goyal mentioned that “4 of the 18 people who have already joined us work directly with me, and 2 of them hold Chief of Staff roles. We are still not finished; with 18,000+ applications, we continue to delve through this incredible talent pool.”

The Zomato CEO further mentioned that the new hires are being “handsomely compensated for the value they bring,” and clarified that no monetary payment was needed to work with them initially. When he called for applications, the listing specified that the chosen candidate would not receive a salary during the first year, and instead, they would need to contribute Rs 20 lakh to the company for the role. Goyal confirmed that the entire fee for this position would be allocated to Feeding India. Candidates would only start receiving their salaries at the beginning of the second year, with discussions regarding pay saved for the start of Year 2.