Inside Axis Bank’s toxic work culture

Why read this story?

Editor's note: 61,734. That’s the number of people who left Axis Bank between 2018-19 and 2020-21. A full 2,000 people more than the 59,614 employees on its payroll in 2017-18. The period coincides with Amitabh Chaudhry’s taking over the helm of India’s third largest private sector bank, a time when its books have begun to look healthy, as has its asset quality. Even the shares of the bank are putting up a decent show at the bourses. Chaudhry himself has been rewarded with an extension, which kicked in at the start of the year. Yet not all is well at the bank. As the saying goes, happy employees make for a happy company. And, clearly, employees at Axis Bank aren’t a very happy lot; most seem ready to quit at the drop of a hat. What’s behind the dichotomy? Why are employees leaving in droves when the bank is doing much better than it was three years ago? The blame, it appears, rests with Chaudhry’s “whatever it takes to grow” attitude. The very fairytale turnaround he engineered is the reason why more …