This one is a mixed bag of news for job-seekers in India: While the first part of the news is depressing, the second part generates hope.
As per confirmed numbers coming in, the ‘Big 4’ IT firms in India have reduced their hiring by 76% this fiscal year.
Meanwhile, as per surveys conducted by top recruitment firms, it has been revealed that emerging technologies such as blockchain and AI will trigger new, exciting job opportunities in the IT domain.
How will the IT industry shape up in 2018?
Hiring Down By 76% Across Big 4 IT Firms!
India’s ‘Big 4 IT Firms’: Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, Wipro, and HCL Technologies have reduced their hiring by 76%.
This reduction in jobs has been observed for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2018.
During 2016-17, these 4 big IT firms collectively hired 59,427 employees, which has now reduced to 13,972. Note here, that attrition numbers are also included in this report.
And, senior recruitment officials at these IT companies have confirmed that they are indeed going slow with hiring now. AI and Automation have been ‘blamed’ for the job loss.
Saurabh Govil, president and chief human resources officer of Wipro said,
“There is a greater deal of focus on non-linear methods and automation across the industry,”
Interestingly, revenues of all these four big IT firms are up and increasing. Despite this, recruitment has been massively reduced.
Sample this: TCS, which recently became $100 billion IT services firm, a first from India, reported an increase of 8.6% in revenues for the fiscal year ending March 2018. But their jobs increased by just 2%.
Similarly, Infosys posted a healthy growth of 7.2% in revenues, but the headcount increased by mere 1.1%. Wipro too experienced healthy growth in revenues and profits.
Are these IT firms using automation and AI as an excuse to reduce headcount, and generate more profits by loading existing employees with more work? A serious debate needs to be initiated on this regard.
Blockchain, AI Will Generate New Jobs In 2018!
Meanwhile, a new survey by Experis IT-ManpowerGroup India has generated a new hope for all job-seekers.
As per the report titled IT Employment Outlook Survey for April-September 2018, emerging technologies such as blockchain and AI will trigger new opportunities, and massive jobs can be generated in the next 6 months.
Manmeet Singh, president at Experis IT, ManpowerGroup India said,
“Hiring intentions are slightly higher as businesses strive to keep up effectively with the pace of evolving technologies. Outlook for employment is better, with a lot of opportunities.”
The report has scooped out 5 very hot technologies/domains, which is expected to generate loads of new jobs this year.
These are:
- Big Data & Analytics
- Machine Learning
- Cloud Computing and SaaS
- Mobility
- Global Content Solutions
Out of these, Big Data and Analytics alone is going to contribute 25% of new jobs in this sector. Health and Fintech are among the sectors, where professionals from these niches are in heavy demand.
As per AG Rao, group managing director of ManpowerGroup Services India, reskilling of existing employees is much needed, so are trained professionals in these technologies.
Is the Indian youth prepared for these changes in job sector? Do let us know, by commenting here!