Ola Electric Sees Two Top-Level Exits: Report

After almost a year of a fairly stable period, Ola is witnessing another couple of top executives leave the company. This time it's Saurabh Sharda, head of partnership and corporate affairs and Slokarth Dash, head of planning and strategy. According to reports online, both have resigned and there are a couple of more top-level exits in store for Ola Electric.

According to one report, an Ola spokesperson stated that Dash and Sharda had delivered well for the company for seven-plus years and the company wishes them well for their future pursuits. Both executives have been there since the early days of Ola Cabs. Dash began his career at the homegrown electric vehicle and cab hailing brand as a manager back in 2015. He was then roped into being a core member of the Ola Electric, just like Sharda.

Ola has been facing these issues for quite some time now. 31 out of the 40 top executives hired by the company had resigned and moved on. Sanjay Bhan, hired as Chief Business Officer, joined in 2019 and left within just 10 months. Murali Sashidharan, who had joined as the communications strategy head, left in the same month of joining. He went on to join Ather Energy.

In 2021, Gurinder Singh Sukhija also quit Ola and joined Ather Energy. In the same year, head of quality assurance, Joseph Thomas, quit the company within a year. Then there was Shaji Titus, Senior Director Manufacturing, who left less than two years into his stint at Ola. Pankaj Sharma, who had worked with brands like Maruti Suzuki, Royal Enfield and Volkswagen, also quit a year after joining Ola Electric.

Currently, Ola sells two electric scooters in the market - S1 Pro and S1 Air. The Pro is the top-end variant while the S1 Air is the entry-level variant. Recently, the S1 Air had gotten an extension on its introductory price window till August 15, 2023. Ola opened the bookings for the S1 Air on July 27, 2023. The S1 Air is equipped with a smaller 3 kWh battery pack as opposed to the 4 kWh unit seen on the S1 Pro. Earlier this year, Ola had made plans to foray into the four-wheeler EV market but then later stated that the project had been delayed and consumers can expect an Ola electric motorcycle before the end of the year.