Scaling Up Online Education

In his current role as the CEO - India of Asia’s higher edtech major, upGrad, Arjun Mohan is currently managing a team of more than 1,000 people to deliver high-impact revenue results, aligned with the company’s ambition of making upGrad a global leader in the higher education space emerging from India. Mohan states, “I have always been passionate about businesses that have the power to transform the world, and education is one such sector which has deep-rooted consequences for an individual and by extension, their families and dependants.” Mohan wants to work towards solving challenges faced by society at large by making education accessible to all.

When upGrad began in 2015, online education was less well-known and did not attract widespread attention and learners. Market acceptability and finding the best acquisition channel were some of the major challenges the edtech had to overcome. “In online learning, we always have to give attention to certain challenges that learners may face such as being focused and maintaining self-discipline through online training modules” adds Mohan. To address this, upGrad introduced mentorship sessions with regular feedback and discussion forums that opened a dialogue between learners and the company.

In his current role, Mohan’s efforts have been instrumental in helping the company cross the 2 million mark of total registered learners in 2021 within just eight months after clocking 1 million through the LifeLongLearning programme portfolio.

Mohan has tripled the sales team and built an efficient workforce to deliver high-impact financial results which led to upGrad crossing the $210 million Annual Revenue Run Rate in September 2021.

The learner success rate increased with learners making most of their course, with career advancements ranging from 180 per cent to 450 per cent, also crossing the annual CTC threshold of more than Rs 1 crore and many job offers during an economic slowdown.

Moreover, Mohan has steered the expansion plans at upGrad, ensuring that we move to global markets, with emphasis on best-in-class courses, leadership, and acquisitions.

upGrad has always followed through to their commitment of driving career outcomes and has observed more than 100 per cent year-on-year growth while also expanding the product portfolio and university network.”

Vasudha Mukherjee

BW Reporters The author works with BW Education