Only 45% job seekers employable in Indian IT-tech sector amid skill crunch

With the widening skill gap in the Indian IT industry, only 45 per cent of job-seeking graduates seem employable and 1.55 lakh freshers are likely to be recruited in the IT/tech sector in FY24 versus 2.3 lakh in FY23, a report showed on Tuesday.

With approximately 1.5 million engineering graduates actively seeking IT/Tech roles, muted market sentiments and intensified skills evaluation mechanisms have created a turbulent landscape. The Indian IT industry is set to hire 10 per cent of engineering graduates in FY 2023-24, according to TeamLease Digital's report.

As major IT companies freeze fresher intake, alternate sectors are opening up demand. Global capability centers (GCCs) and non-tech sectors like BFSI, communication, media and technology, retail and consumer business, life sciences and healthcare, engineering research and development, and energy and resources, have expanded entry-level hiring, the report mentioned.

“A united front can be forged through the collaborative efforts of the industry, academia, and government, leading to relevant programmes and curricula being designed. Government initiatives play a pivotal role in supporting skill development and research projects aimed at tackling industry-specific challenges,” said Krishna Vij, Business Head, TeamLease Digital.

The findings revealed that companies are looking for a combination of soft skills like communication, problem-solving, teamwork, emotional intelligence etc. and hard skills, which involves technical proficiency in programming languages, software development methodologies, cloud computing, and data analytics. In the current educational landscape, it is imperative for institutions to prioritise the integration of industry-specific training programs into their curriculum, emphasised the report.