By Pranav Mukul
Copyright indiatimes
Rakesh Ranjan, former chief executive of Eternal-owned food delivery platform Zomato, has joined Allen Online, the digital arm of test preparation company Allen Career Institute, said people aware of the development.Allen Career Institute, backed by James Murdoch and Uday Shankar’s Bodhi Tree Systems, had last appointed former Meta executive Abha Maheshwari as CEO of Allen Online in 2023. Maheshwari announced last month that she was exiting her role at Allen Online.Ranjan, who now takes charge at the edtech unit, had led Zomato’s core food delivery operations for two years before being succeeded by Aditya Mangla. He stepped down from his role in April and formally exited the Gurgaon-based company earlier this month.Allen Career Institute entered the edtech market in April 2022 with the launch of Allen Online, at a time when companies such as Byju’s and Unacademy dominated the segment. The move came a month after Allen raised $600 million from Bodhi Tree Systems, in what was one of the largest funding rounds for an Indian education services firm.Confirming Ranjan’s appointment, Allen Career Institute CEO Nitin Kukreja said, “Rakesh has repeatedly scaled new-age technology businesses and solved complex problems. With him leading Allen Online, we will continue to be the gold standard for educational outcomes nationwide, combining 37 years of pedagogical excellence with next-generation, AI-powered technology.”Founded in 1988 by Rajesh Maheshwari with just eight students, Kota-based Allen Career Institute currently runs more than 300 coaching centres across 65 cities including Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Bhopal, Gwalior, Chandigarh and Indore. It offers classroom courses, distance learning, online tests and study material across levels, with programmes for competitive exams such as NEET, AIIMS, JEE Main and JEE Advanced.Allen Online, based in Bengaluru, is its digital-first subsidiary.Commenting on his new role, Ranjan said, “At Allen, we are building on decades of proven pedagogy and success stories to bring personalised, reliable and high-quality learning experiences to millions of learners. The goal is not just to widen access but to ensure every student, regardless of background or geography, has the opportunity to realise their potential.”Before being named CEO of Zomato’s food delivery vertical, Ranjan headed new initiatives at the company.
