BENGALURU: The top four IT service providers in India have combined to add less than 5,000 employees in the third quarter of FY2023. The hiring spree began in the second quarter, when the four companies added 28,836 people, about half of what they added in the first quarter.
But the third quarter has taken a significant turn for the worse. In fact, TCS And wipro Both saw declines in net headcount. With TCS downgrading by 2,197, Wipro’s headcount has declined by around 500.
InfosysHCL’s employee strength increased by about 1,600, HCL’s employee strength increased by 2,945.
When asked about the situation, Wipro CEO Thierry Delaporte told TOI that in the first quarter, the company had brought in a lot of talent from outside, and also hired a record number of freshers. The shortfall now, he said, is a reflection of macro-economic uncertainty.
He added that the fresher index – the number of freshers in the company’s projects – is very healthy now. “We have improved the fresher index quarter on quarter. It matters to me and I want to invest in freshers. There was not a huge fresher culture inside Wipro. We have grown exponentially in the last few quarters and the investments are paying off,” he said.
IT consultant Pareek Jain Compares the hiring slowdown in the IT sector during the financial crisis of 2008-2009, when many of these companies saw a slump in business for a few quarters. While Infosys and TCS saw a slowdown in the June quarter of 2009 compared to the previous quarter, HCL hired less than 200 during the same period. Jain Told. In March 2009, there was a decrease in the number of employees of HCL as compared to December 2008.
“The muted numbers this quarter are an improvement on the over-hiring earlier. Big IT companies were hiring last year and it continued in the first two quarters of this year as well. There were two reasons for this – first, post-pandemic high demand for both digital work and cost-takeout deals; Second, higher attrition as talent was moving to startups and global tech firms. Now, both the factors are softening,” said Jain.
Phil FershtCEO of HFS Research, said there is a willingness among IT companies not to hire new employees at inflated pay points in a slowing economy. “Leaders want to get the most out of their resources and don’t keep adding new employees, where quality isn’t always good, and wages are very high. The cost of replacing employees is 40% higher, so the new mantra is ‘ Invest in your best’,” Farsh said.
ray wang, CEO of US IT advisory Constellation Research, said that layoffs are a worldwide phenomenon. “This is partly a reflection of constraints on customer budgets,” he said.
But the third quarter has taken a significant turn for the worse. In fact, TCS And wipro Both saw declines in net headcount. With TCS downgrading by 2,197, Wipro’s headcount has declined by around 500.
InfosysHCL’s employee strength increased by about 1,600, HCL’s employee strength increased by 2,945.
When asked about the situation, Wipro CEO Thierry Delaporte told TOI that in the first quarter, the company had brought in a lot of talent from outside, and also hired a record number of freshers. The shortfall now, he said, is a reflection of macro-economic uncertainty.
He added that the fresher index – the number of freshers in the company’s projects – is very healthy now. “We have improved the fresher index quarter on quarter. It matters to me and I want to invest in freshers. There was not a huge fresher culture inside Wipro. We have grown exponentially in the last few quarters and the investments are paying off,” he said.
IT consultant Pareek Jain Compares the hiring slowdown in the IT sector during the financial crisis of 2008-2009, when many of these companies saw a slump in business for a few quarters. While Infosys and TCS saw a slowdown in the June quarter of 2009 compared to the previous quarter, HCL hired less than 200 during the same period. Jain Told. In March 2009, there was a decrease in the number of employees of HCL as compared to December 2008.
“The muted numbers this quarter are an improvement on the over-hiring earlier. Big IT companies were hiring last year and it continued in the first two quarters of this year as well. There were two reasons for this – first, post-pandemic high demand for both digital work and cost-takeout deals; Second, higher attrition as talent was moving to startups and global tech firms. Now, both the factors are softening,” said Jain.
Phil FershtCEO of HFS Research, said there is a willingness among IT companies not to hire new employees at inflated pay points in a slowing economy. “Leaders want to get the most out of their resources and don’t keep adding new employees, where quality isn’t always good, and wages are very high. The cost of replacing employees is 40% higher, so the new mantra is ‘ Invest in your best’,” Farsh said.
ray wang, CEO of US IT advisory Constellation Research, said that layoffs are a worldwide phenomenon. “This is partly a reflection of constraints on customer budgets,” he said.