July 29, 2025

India's largest IT companies are making significant changes to their hiring strategies, with fresher hiring seeing a steep decline. Recent data indicates that the top five firms—TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCLTech, and Tech Mahindra—together added only 4,787 employees in the June quarter, a stark contrast to over 50,000 hires seen two years prior. TCS led the hiring with 6,071 new recruits, while Infosys brought in 210, and the remaining companies reduced their staff, with Tech Mahindra alone shedding 1,111 positions. This trend suggests that the demand for new graduates is dwindling as companies pivot towards hiring experienced professionals equipped with specialized skills in areas like artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and cybersecurity. The hiring landscape has dramatically shifted, moving away from traditional methods that emphasized mass recruitment of freshers. Historically, these firms hired over 53,000 people in the June quarter of FY21. However, this number decreased to nearly 60,000 in FY22, followed by a further drop to around 22,000 last year. Today's technological advancements, particularly AI, have automated numerous entry-level tasks, leading to a decrease in the requirement for fresh graduates. Industry experts suggest that the IT labor market is now increasingly prioritizing lateral hires with specific expertise. Ramkumar Ramamoorthy, a partner at tech advisory firm Catalincs, emphasized that conventional hiring metrics like net additions are failing to capture the actual growth in the IT sector. He mentioned that there is a pressing need for India to rethink its higher education system to promote skills that are highly relevant in today's digital landscape, such as creativity and interdisciplinary problem-solving. Due to the current hiring environment, fresh graduates face more competition for fewer available positions. Many companies are hiring in spurts, primarily linked to securing large-scale digital projects that necessitate specialized skill sets. Consequently, fresh graduates may find limited opportunities for on-campus placements, signaling a need for adaptability in their career expectations. In summary, the IT industry's hiring dynamics reflect a significant shift towards experienced talent in specialized areas, making it imperative for fresh graduates to enhance their skill sets and explore alternative pathways for career advancement in a rapidly changing job market.

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Tags: It hiring, Freshers, Ai, Cloud, Cybersecurity, Job market,