Tackling Talent Exodus in Indian IT Sector: TeamLease Digital

One of the leading tech staffing firms, TeamLease Digital, has today launched its ‘Talent Exodus Report’, pertaining to the IT industry. The report ‘Brain Drain: Tackling the Great Talent Exodus’ is a comprehensive guide to increasing retention rates in the IT sector, highlighting the reasons for talent exodus, consequences of dysfunctional turnover, and possible ways and strategies to reduce quitting.

Basis the survey findings, TeamLease Digital iterates that there is a huge misconception with the sentiment in the candidate market, that a salary increase would improve performance and boost job satisfaction. While employees’ needs and priorities have changed, such as the desire for flexibility, career growth and employee value proposition. They are re-evaluating their careers based on these aspects and quitting their well-cushioned jobs in the mid-way. The alarming figures reveal that the flexible structure has heightened the choice.

Sharing his views, Mr Sunil Chemmankotil, Chief Executive Officer, TeamLease Digital, said, “The Indian IT sector has witnessed tremendous growth in the last decade. It has recorded 15.5% growth, which is the fastest in more than a decade and touched $227 billion, creating additional 5.5 lac jobs in FY22 alone. However, with the global pandemic disrupting the IT hiring chain, there is evidence of a reverse trend which indicates that retaining a business-critical talent has undergone a great change in the last two years. The survey indicates that 57% of IT professionals would not consider returning to the IT services sector in the future. With the usual demand for salary hikes and other benefits, the main attraction for employees in their new jobs is ‘Great Reflection’ on the internal policies and external factors that should be relooked at by employers as we are viewing great changes in the employees’ feelings about work and life.”

“Organizations’ strategic hiring plans must contain goals towards their employees and their betterment. This ultimately translates into soul searching over whether an employee feels valued in his/her work or merely creates outcomes and value to benefit others. A fundamental change in the employment value proposition leads to deeper employee-employer relationships, a strong sense of owning and purpose-driven work,” he adds.

 The Talent Exodus Report is a result of the study that highlights 6 elements and 5 strategic suggestions to resolve the mass talent exodus that most IT companies are struggling with. The report is also intended to be a source of market information that helps organisations step up and fundamentally reexamine their business operating model to break the chain of mass exodus and inspire long-term talent growth, management and retention.

India’s $227 bn industry spurred global companies to bolster investments in services, ranging from cloud computing, digital payment infrastructure, cyber security, etc. The sector contributed 9% to the national GDP and accounted for 51% of services exports. The sector also added a total of 4.5 lac freshers in the current financial year which is the highest addition in a single year. Of this, 2 lac employees were women.