Flipkart hired 23k employees in past three months to bolster its supply chain amid pandemic

Flipkart on Tuesday said it has hired 23,000 people across its supply chain, including delivery executives, in the last three months as the e-commerce marketplace strengthens the supply chain to fast deliver products while creating additional employment.

The hiring was done keeping the growing demand for e-commerce services across the country, as people continue to remain indoors to fight the pandemic, which has necessitated a ramp-up of supply chain, the company said in a statement. "All new hires will be covered with our healthcare and wellness initiatives to ensure their safety during these testing times," said Hemant Badri, Senior Vice-President, Supply Chain at Flipkart.

From safety regulations and protocols across its warehouses to driving awareness on COVID safety behaviour, the company is also undertaking training programmes for its direct hires in various aspects of the supply chain. The new hires are being trained virtually via a mix of classroom and digital training to enhance their understanding of the supply chain management.

Flipkart this month announced to boost its grocery supply chain infrastructure to provide its customers safe and seamless access to ordering daily essentials through quick and contactless doorstep delivery. As part of the plan, Flipkart will add over 8 lakh square feet of space through five new fulfilment centres over the next three months.

With this additional infrastructure, the marketplace will bring the ease of online grocery shopping to more users across Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Coimbatore, and Hyderabad. This will also help Flipkart cater to over 73,000 grocery orders per day.

Last month, the e-commerce company ramped up grocery fulfilment centre capacity across Lucknow, Pune, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Patna. It currently serves close to 64,000 orders a day.