Infosys, Wipro, HCLTech & TCS Witness Workforce Decline In 2nd Quarter
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, HCLTech and Wipro, reported a workforce decline of 21, 213 in the second quarter, primarily due to a slowdown in hiring, a focus on better utilisation and the use of the existing pool of trained freshers on projects, amid rising demand uncertainty.
With the exception of HCLTech, which lost 2,299 people in the September quarter, the other three companies experienced the largest drop in workforce in the 5,000-plus category.
All four corporations collectively shed roughly 39,000 people in the first half of FY24. This represents a significant decrease in headcount when compared to the first half of previous fiscal year, when similar organisations added 81,650 personnel.
According to TCS chief human resource officer Milind Lakkad, the IT giant has been actively investing in acquiring new talent for roughly 18 months and it is now paying off. He noted during the business's Q2 earnings conference with analysts that there appears to be a net reduction as the company recalibrates hiring while attrition rates continue to fall.
Amit Choudhary, chief operating officer of Wipro, stated that his business is focusing on operational efficiency because its utilisation has increased by over 470 basis points in the last four quarters, reaching 84.5 per cent in Q2.
According to Infosys chief financial officer Nilanjan Roy, the business hired ahead of demand, and with the theme of improved utilisation in play, there is more headroom to work.
HCLTech is also avoiding new hires for the time being, while it is on track to meet its fresher addition targets, which is helping to enhance profitability, according to chief executive officer C Vijayakumar.
TCS expects to hire 40,000 new employees in FY24, whereas HCLTech expects to hire 10,000 new employees. As of the first half of FY24, HCLTech had hired approximately 5,200 new employees.
