Global capability centres (GCCs) and small to mid-size information technology services companies are going to lead tech hiring in 2025, with large IT firms likely to slow down recruitment, according to research and recruitment services companies.
"There is an increased focus on productivity and cost optimisation. Entry-level employees typically require one to two years to start peaking in productivity," said Ratna Gupta, senior partner at executive search firm ABC Consultants. Mid-to-senior leadership hiring will continue to be prioritised over large-scale fresher intakes in the first half of the next fiscal year starting April, according to experts. "IT services are being cautious at hiring as the employability of a lot of freshers remains questionable," said Michael Page India regional director Pranshu Upadhyay.
Though at one end entry-level talent is available at higher volumes at a lower price tag, "productivity is increasingly becoming a key matrix", he said. He predicted hiring to be "slightly positive" with year-on-year growth of 8-12%. There is, however, an increase in demand for top tech-savvy talent, driven by the GCCs being set up or expanded by multinationals. "This (demand by GCCs) is reflected in increasing attrition rates seen at IT service majors over the past three quarters," said Gupta.
Companies are watching the performance and productivity right from the get-go, said another expert."Over the last 12-18 months, we have observed mixed signals when it comes to hiring trends among IT services companies in India," said Randstad Digital India managing director Milind Shah.
In the last quarter ended December 31, while companies like Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys posted growth in hiring, HCLTech, Wipro and Cognizant reported a decline.
From small to large IT companies, however, hiring for niche and specialised talent continues to grow, experts said.
Gross hiring for generalised roles - both attrition refills and new hires - dropped around 8-10% in 2024, according to Randstad. "We expect IT services companies in India to ramp up their hiring efforts in 2025, particularly for specialised tech roles in AI, ML, data analytics and cloud technologies," said Shah.
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Though at one end entry-level talent is available at higher volumes at a lower price tag, "productivity is increasingly becoming a key matrix", he said. He predicted hiring to be "slightly positive" with year-on-year growth of 8-12%. There is, however, an increase in demand for top tech-savvy talent, driven by the GCCs being set up or expanded by multinationals. "This (demand by GCCs) is reflected in increasing attrition rates seen at IT service majors over the past three quarters," said Gupta.
Companies are watching the performance and productivity right from the get-go, said another expert."Over the last 12-18 months, we have observed mixed signals when it comes to hiring trends among IT services companies in India," said Randstad Digital India managing director Milind Shah.
In the last quarter ended December 31, while companies like Tech Mahindra, Tata Consultancy Services and Infosys posted growth in hiring, HCLTech, Wipro and Cognizant reported a decline.
From small to large IT companies, however, hiring for niche and specialised talent continues to grow, experts said.
Gross hiring for generalised roles - both attrition refills and new hires - dropped around 8-10% in 2024, according to Randstad. "We expect IT services companies in India to ramp up their hiring efforts in 2025, particularly for specialised tech roles in AI, ML, data analytics and cloud technologies," said Shah.
