This is How Cognizant, Infosys & Others Are Retaining Employees: WFH, More Leaves, Training & More

As the demand for tech professionals bounces back, Information technology (IT) companies can witness the attrition levels go up. To curtail the same, these firms are offering non-financial perks to employees. Beside salary hikes, more leaves, career enhancement paths as well as flexible work environment is being offered as a retention move.

Due to pandemic, people did not leaved their employers as they found it to be risky, however voluntary attrition may rise as hiring has picked up in 2021.

In the December quarter, attrition rate at Infosys Ltd reduced from 15.8% in the year-ago period to 10%. The attrition rate for Cognizant stood at 19%, which though is higher than its peers, but still lower than 21% recorded in the same period 2019.

What Cognizant & Infosys Is Doing

In order to improve employees’ work-life balance, the annual paid leaves were increased from 26 to 36. As a part of retention strategy, Cognizant has offered its employees option such as work from office or home or a combination of both. The combination of both shall depend upon client approvals and security clearances.

As far as digital skills, including internet of things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), experience-driven software engineering, and cloud are concerned firm is focusing on reskilling and upskilling its workforce.

Chairman & MD of Cognizant’s India, Rajesh Nambiar said in last 18 months alone, over 235,000 employees have been reskilled in digital skills. He added that the firm is 100% focused on attracting and retaining the right talent.

Instead of having to change jobs, career progression pathways to help employees grow within the company have been devised by Bengaluru-based Infosys.

Executive VP and HR head, Infosys said that the firm has invested in skill building for the future in digital industry 4.0, 5G, open-source, cloud, edge computing, and so on. The internal learning platform Lex offers learning in any of 36 skills.

He added that in the hybrid work structure, where few shall work from office, few shall work partially remote to those who shall work fully remote.

What LTI is planning?

Several staff-focused initiatives have been implemented by L&T Infotech (LTI) Ltd, a mid-sized IT services firm. This includes ‘LTI Shoshin School’ which is a learning platform which shall help employees discover, measure, and develop their skills. This initiative empowers and complement the ‘My Career My Growth’ programme which is a career progression guide and competency framework through which employees can chalk out their own growth journey.

A five layered hybrid model of work termed as “LTI xFH” has been worked out by LTI. “LTI xFH” is also called as Everything from Home.

Founder & CEO of Han Digital, a talent consulting firm said that companies are exploring various non-financial perks such as RSUs/ESOPs (restricted stock units/employee stock options), sponsorship of higher education, four-day work week, insurance covers, and free daycare/creche facilities.

Hybrid model have been adopted by various organizations as they have comparative advantage that drives inclusive growth, better participation of women.