58% Indian Tech Talent Prefer Remote Work Even At Lesser Salary

Uplers, a hiring platform that connects top Indian tech and digital talents with global remote opportunities, commissioned Kaizen Market Research, an independent market research firm specialising in data-driven insights, for conducting an extensive survey encompassing hundreds of tech and digital talent, offering valuable insights into their job search preferences related to remote vs in-office, startup vs MNCs, or higher salary vs better benefits.

It is interesting to see that while 58 per cent of talent prefer remote work even at a lesser salary, the preference significantly increases to 70 per cent for the same salary level, and 95 per cent at a higher salary. 

When it comes to understanding the preferences for working in a global startup with direct client interactions versus working with MNCs with no client interaction, a whopping 60 per cent of respondents preferred the first option. Moreover, 62 per cent of talent prefer to work in global startups which utilise their niche skills versus large MNCs offering a role in less preferred tech skills. Interestingly, when faced with a choice between similar salaries, 51 per cent of talent opt for roles at global start-up companies over positions within well-established Indian corporations, while 70.4 per cent of mid-level (3-6 years) and senior (7-12 years) exhibits a clear preference for remote work opportunities.

Further deep dive into understanding the preferred mode of work revealed that 64 per cent of talent with 7-12 years of work experience already currently working remotely prefer continuing working in remote setup, whereas 49 per cent of those currently working in-office setup would prefer working remotely.

“As a leading hiring platform, we entrusted Kaizen Market Research with the task of conducting this study to uncover the preferences of Indian tech and digital talent." stated Dhaivat Mehta, VP of Brand and Marketing at Uplers. “We are a brand that is most responsive to both client and talent needs. And these talent preference insights hold immense value for us to shape our value proposition but also for our global clients to help them better harness India's rich talent pool and cultivate a future-ready, globally competitive workforce.” he added.

"We conducted an extensive primary study across 24 Indian cities. The exercise included both quantitative and qualitative research. The data collection method was a primary survey, with one-to-one interactions. There was a stratified random sampling used to identify the respondents and a statistical analysis was executed to understand the behavior of Indian tech and digital talent pertaining to their preference and priorities towards career path, learning and development, and job opportunities. The survey consisted of diversified respondents on the basis of their demographic profile like gender, age group, income group, and education. The other classification of respondents was on the basis of area of work, like technology or digital, existing employer type like Indian start-up to global corporates, existing place of work like remote work, hybrid work, or in-office work, and other psychographic-related classification. We have some amazing insights which will be of value to multiple stakeholders" said Chirag Mehta, Director at Kaizen Market Research.