HR Articles: Dec-13 (Part-21)

For more article, Visit at : www.pmiralumni.co.in Hiring activity for April-13 grows by 5% as compared to March-13: says Naukri Job Speak index The Naukri Job Speak Index brings good news for India Inc in April-13 despite uncertain economic conditions and low GDP growth, the overall hiring activity has moved at a stable rate. The first month of the financial quarter starts on a positive note with the hiring activity index at 1368, 5% higher in Apr 13' compared to Mar-13. Moreover, the index has grown by 15% Y-o-Y when compared to Apr-12. The index has grown across sectors in Apr-13. Interestingly the Insurance sector has witnessed the highest growth after a fall for 3 consecutive months; the sector has grown by 27% in April, 13 when compared with Mar, 13. On the other hand the pharma sector has seen a dip of 6% in the job index for Apr13' when compared to Mar13' however it is still above Feb13' levels. Source : 08-05-13   Naukri.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Indian techies not stealing jobs in US: says study Indian IT firms operating in the US have long maintained that H-1B visas do not lead to outsourcing of jobs or shrink the job market for Americans. But few were willing to listen. A new study by an independent US think-tank has now made the same argument. And Indian IT firms are hoping they would fare much better now. The National Foundation for American Policy study argues that H-1Bs are good for the US economy and the demonization of Indian IT firms is without any merit. An immigration reform bill introduced in the US senate recently proposed to overhaul the H-1B visa system to end its use in outsourcing Americans jobs to cheaper foreign workers. Democrat Senator Richard Durbin, one of the eight co-authors of the bill, said at a recent hearing that Indian firms were misusing these visas to outsource US jobs."An examination of data reveals that the premises on which these new restrictions rest are not supported by facts," said the study released on Wednesday. The study attacks the basic premise of the H-1B-outsourcing argument that foreign workers are cheaper. They are not, and make as much as Americans of the same age and with the same qualifications. US operations of Indian IT firms such as TCS, Infosys and Wipro use H-1B visas. So do Microsoft, IBM, Facebook, Yahoo and other companies. There is a perception that Indian IT firms corner a large chunk of these visas. The US issues 65,000 H-1B visas every year — and around 19% of them went to Indian firms in 2012.But that number has not always been so high."In FY 2012, India-based companies utilised 19.9% of the new H-1B petitions approved," said the study. Source : 02-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan PSU banks stop hiring from B-Schools after court order Public sector banks are now planning to appeal in the Supreme Court against the restriction imposed on hiring from business schools. A recent ruling by the Bombay High Court had said restrained campus recruitment for appointment of officers by Central Bank of India. Mr. M V Tanksale, chairman and managing director, Central Bank of India said his bank will appeal in Supreme Court against the Bombay High Court ruling that restrained the bank from recruiting MBAs through selection at campus. He added that the bank is picking up management graduates from campuses for specialised jobs under autonomy granted by the government, which is their owner. Another top executive with a large public sector bank said while the high court verdict may have been in case of specific bank, it is going to have implications for other public sector banks also. The official added that the issue will be taken up with the Indian Banks Association. Management institutes are the most preferred destination to recruit talent for the special posts in banks. With good talent available aplenty, the banks do not need to scout for talent elsewhere. Hence, banks prefer to go for campus hiring and pick students, especially from finance and marketing/strategy backgrounds."Being listed entities there is expectation to work with private sector efficiency. Public sector entities tend to get the residual talent from management campuses, so for us it is quite a challenge to do a balancing act," a public sector bank official added. Source : 04-05-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan IT hiring slows, but there's plan B for engineering graduates Slump-hit IT firms have their finger on the pause button when it comes to hiring. But engineering graduates have a plan B up their sleeve — teaching as a career and higher studies. Close to 10 lakh students took the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) this year, almost 15 per cent more than the 2012 count. Admission to postgraduate programmes with government scholarships/assistance in engineering colleges, institutes and universities is open to those who qualify through this test. GATE is an all-India examination conducted jointly by the Indian Institute of Science and seven Indian Institutes of Technology. Dr. P.S. Sreejith, Principal of School of Engineering at Cochin University of Science and Technology, said students were scouting for better alternatives after software companies cut back on campus hiring. With the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) making M. Tech compulsory for teaching jobs in engineering colleges, more and more students were opting for it and later applying for faculty positions, he said. Dr. Sreejith said the School of Engineering received around 100 applications for each of its 18 seats for its M. Tech programme this year. Mr. G.P.C. Nayar, president of the Federation of Associations of Management of Unaided Professional Educational Institutions in India, said on an average 100 to 150 candidates apply for a vacancy of Assistant Professor in private engineering colleges these days. He said the number was growing compared to previous years, indicating that engineering graduates seem to have chosen teaching as a safe and secure career option. Mr. Nayar said private managements also offer attractive salary package. An assistant professor can take home around Rs. 32,000 in the beginning. Demand for teachers who retired from government engineering colleges was also high, with managements offering up to Rs. 1.75 lakh for select teachers, he said. Source : 06-05-13   Thehindu   Compiled by Amresh Anjan India services sector see slowest growth in 18 months: HSBC PMI India's services sector grew at its slowest pace in one and half years during the last month, as costs for raw materials, petrol and labour increased considerably, HSBC Services Purchasing Managers' Index survey said today. The pace of hiring by private sector companies was also slowest in seven months, as per a monthly HSBC India survey of services sector managers. However, the executives expressed optimism about improving trends in the coming months, HSBC said. The HSBC India Composite Output Index fell to 50.5 in April from 51.4 in March."The latest reading indicated that activity increased marginally and at the slowest pace since October 2011," it said. Meanwhile, the seasonally adjusted HSBC Business Activity Index declined to 50.7 in April from 51.4 in the previous month. Input prices witnessed further increase in April – the trend continued for the 49th consecutive month -- and cost of raw material, petrol and labour were higher, HSBC noted."The rates of increase in average selling prices were slower at both manufacturers and service providers... Companies operating in the Indian service sector remained optimistic towards output growth in the short term," it added. Even though new businesses placed at services and manufacturing firms in India increased last month, the rates of expansion eased. The manufacturers cited power cuts while service providers mentioned extreme weather and challenging market conditions for such a trend, the report said. Source : 07-05-13   Financialexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan IT companies hiring more local freshers in US Software firms are tweaking their hiring strategy. There has been a steady tightening on overall utilisation from the October-December quarter. Software firms are tweaking their hiring strategy. There has been a steady tightening on overall utilisation from the October-December quarter. Offshore or domestic hiring has seen a significant decrease, while onsite or overseas hiring has risen. The trend now is to hire freshers rather than experienced professionals overseas. Experts attribute this trend to two key factors: cost-cutting and the US Immigration Bill. TCS admitted recently that the US bill was definitely a concern, given the steep rise in sub-contracting costs. It is looking to further improve utilisation even as it lowers its hiring this fiscal. Of course, it is planning to increase hiring of freshers in the US. Ms. Ankita Somani of Angel Broking said "sudden pent-up demand" is also behind "the rise in utilisation". And "sub-contracting costs would rise further if visas become more expensive with the passage of the US Immigration Bill."Like the rest of the IT pack, HCL Technologies has been steadily increasing its utilisation in favour of a 'just-in-time' or need-based hiring. Mid-tier firm Hexaware recently stated that reducing bench size helped them to deliver better-than-expected results. In future, Hexaware will concentrate on're-skilling' employees or training existing employees to take on new roles, rather than hiring professionals from outside. However, Hexaware is also steadily increasing the number of its campus engineers overseas, looking at training them, rather than hire experienced professionals to cater to local demand. Source : 06-05-13   Dnaindia.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Government's hiring policy rotten, no fix in sight Railway Board member Mr. Mahesh Kumar's arrest on charges of attempting to buy his next posting may have surprised many outside the government. Not in the top echelons of India's civil service that has often been a mute spectator to their colleagues pulling strings or paying up for lucrative or important assignments. "It is rare for someone to be caught... They must have been amateurs," a government official, who has helped out colleagues with their appointments and was familiar with the functioning of some middlemen, said. The bitter truth, he insisted, was that a large number of top appointments in public sector undertakings are made for a consideration. There are middlemen so well-entrenched in the bureaucracy that they have held up appointments files for weeks and months if the money has not been paid. Like this public sector bank official who wanted to be appointed chairman. He was in talks with fixers for the post but backed out after the finance minister - unaware of the behind-the-scene manoeuvres - announced at a bank function that he would become the next chairman. A file that should have been cleared in a matter of days, took months. "It would just get stuck at every stage, clarifications were raised but it finally got sorted after some money was paid," the official said. A Central Vigilance Commission official conceded that they had heard of such instances but evidence was hard to come by in such cases of collusive bribery. The official said they had come across a new trend in recent years that did not require the aspirant to have deep pockets. Private companies that deal with the public sector undertaking offer to incur all the expenses. The arrangement is that the new PSU chairman was free to discharge his responsibilities professionally in all other cases except when it relates to this company. The irony is that one of the key reasons for the rot in the system is the desire to promote merit. Source : 05-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Now, talent hunt becomes cheaper Executive search firms in India have witnessed hiring fee drop by 20 to 30% in the last couple of years. Reason? Economic slowdown impacting the job market, intense competition with executive search firms mushrooming and companies focusing on recruitment through internal resources. While top level hiring, which includes CEOs, are still being outsourced by companies to a large extent, the mid-and-junior level hiring are gradually being done in-house to keep costs under check ."Due to the increasing cost pressures and deadlines, most of the leadership decisions are moving in-house. By adopting such practice, companies avoid about 30% to 40% of fees paid to consultancies per hiring," said Mr. S Varadarajan, executive president, human resources (HR), Tata Teleservices.To fight the intensifying competition, instead of charging the traditional one fourth of a candidate's first-year salary, some recruiters are offering 15% or less, dropping extra administrative and reimbursement charge they once commanded. "We are accepting fixed payments as well. Also, companies are getting sensitive about our scotch and wine bills," said a senior executive from a top global search firm. Industry sources said that the market is now predominantly driven by a just a few big headhunting firms unlike a few years ago. Source : 06-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan TCS Q4 hiring dwarfs Wipro and Infosys IT industry leader Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has surged ahead of its rivals Infosys and Wipro on the hiring front, on the back of higher growth, better employee utilisation and a robust client pipeline.TCS' hiring figures for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2013 are miles ahead of its rivals, for the same period, while its attrition is lower than its peers. During Q4FY13, TCS added 20,098 (gross) with a net addition of 12,559 employees. For the same period, Infosys added 8,990 professionals, with a net addition of 1,059. Wipro's IT Services division added 2,907 people in the quarter.TCS has also said it will hire around 45,000 engineers in financial year 2014. According to Ms. Ankita Somani, research analyst for IT and telecom at Angel Broking, "TCS is a growth-focused company, and is very strong in the deal-renewal market. Their utilisation is quite high, and they must be hiring aggressively to meet the demand from the new business coming in. Infosys and Wipro have relatively lower utilisation and a large bench (employees who are not working on projects). "Employee utilisation is the percentage of hours billed, out of the total number of hours available to work on projects. While TCS' utilisation rate tops at around 82 per cent, Infosys is at 71 per cent and Wipro's net utilisation (excluding support) is at 71.7 per cent."TCS' hiring is probably based on a strong order pipeline, and a good number of business enquiries," said Mr. E Balaji, MD and CEO at Randstad India, a HR and staffing firm. But, he added, most of the top IT companies have been hiring from campuses in the hundreds. "For students with good skills and aptitude, there is a lot of choice available," he said. Source : 05-05-13   Mydigitalfc.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Indian workers to be regularised: Saudi Arabia Indian workers who have travelled to Saudi Arabia legally will be allowed to regularise their visa status, get new jobs or to return home if they register voluntarily with the Saudi authorities during the three months grace period announced by the Kingdom, according to officials. This was among the issues discussed at the joint group meeting held this week at the Saudi ministry of labour. The group will continue their discussions next week, said a statement issued from the Indian embassy in Riyadh. The joint group was set up during the discussions between Saudi labour minister Mr. Adel Fakeih and Indian delegation led by overseas affairs minister Mr. Vayalar Ravi in Jeddah on April 28. The Group is mandated to discuss all issues pertaining to the welfare of the Indian community in Saudi Arabia including immediate issues pertaining to implementation of Nitaqat programme and overstaying Indian workers. The 'Nitaqat' law makes it mandatory for local firms to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers. There has been widespread perception that the new policy will lead to denial of job opportunities for a large number of Indians. Over two million Indians are currently working in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi government was implementing the Nitaqat law to cut unemployment in the country. The Joint Group also discussed re-employment of those overstaying Indian workers in Saudi by availing the facilities offered by the ministry of labour including services of the newly set up mega-recruiting companies, the statement said. Source : 04-05-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Cyber crimes mostly insider jobs In an increasingly-wired networked business environment, the threat from within the organisation is more than from outside to business firms, who in any case are facing increasing challenges of cyber crimes and corporate espionage. If these were not enough, employees are committing security breaches, albeit innocuously by posting or sharing business-sensitive information on social media websites, according to a report by consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), India. The report titled "Invading privacy: Cyber crimes on the rise" authored by PwC India Executive Director Mr. Sivarama Krishnan said, "In most cases, breaches by insiders are committed by individuals who are motivated by greed, selfishness, or antagonism towards the management leaking confidential information outside the organisation." Citing a 2011 report "PwC Economic Crime Survey 2011 India", it said that 60 per cent organisations were of the view that perpetrators were among their own staff and 36 per cent were outsiders. "It's either collusion or unconscious involvement, which accentuates the case for awareness and stricter control," Mr. Krishnan said. In a world marked by fierce competition and increasing uncertainties, keeping tab on rivals has gone digital, the report said, adding: "Corporate spying is prevalent in sectors such as electronics and infrastructure, which are considered more vulnerable to fraudulent practices." It identified intellectual property, e-files, databases, and product-sensitive reports as susceptible to the challenge and said that the trend spans sectors from IT, BPO, FMCG, banking and telecom. Extrapolating cyber crime statistics, the report said that such crimes registered under the Information Technology Act are expected to up from 2,636 in FY2013 from 1,791 in 2011.Bring your own device (BYOD), the latest buzz in IT companies, is an emerging security menace, as it represents the "weakest link" in mobile device security, Mr. Krishna said. Source : 07-05-13   Deccanherald.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan 22 MBAs from Narsee Monjee to lose their jobs for forging admission test Twenty two management graduates from the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS), Mumbai will lose their jobs at various companies and also face charges in forgery. An IBN report said that according to the crime branch these 22 graduates took the help of imposters to clear their entrance tests for getting admission into NMIMS. The Mumbai Police had earlier arrested six persons in connection with the case. A Hindu report further mentioned that during the admission process, the institute authorities found discrepancies between the photograph taken at the time of writing the NMAT (the entrance test) and the photographs on the personal interview application form of a few students, following which the institute lodged a complaint with the Joint Commissioner of Police, Mumbai. Source : 30-11-99   Firstpost.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan More AIIMS doctors taking VRS for private sector jobs As senior doctors from All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) continue to join exodus from the venerated institute, AIIMS does not seem to be a dream destination of every doctor and medical professional any longer. This year, already three more doctors have taken voluntary retirement to join private hospital. Dr. Suneeta Mittal, head of department of obstetrics and gynaecology, who initiated the in-vitro fertilisation and embryo transfer facility at AIIMS, took voluntary retirement after serving for several years at AIIMS. Also, joining the list are Dr B. Mohanty, associate professor of radiotherapy, and Dr Vinod Raina of medical oncology. It is learnt that all three of them are set to join Fortis healthcare. As senior doctors leave, the problem of shortage of personnel has only got more acute. According to the recent estimates by the Union health ministry out of the total sanctioned strength of doctors at AIIMS which is 823, only 507 (65 per cent) are in position. The number of scientists at AIIMS too remains paltry. Of the total 119 sanctioned strength of scientists at the premier institute only, 36 are in position. However, the health ministry does not consider leaving of doctors as brain drain. In his recent reply in the Lok Sabha, Union health minister Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad said, "Only 15 doctors have left the institution on personal grounds in the last three years. The percentage of doctors is so small and negligible that it cannot be termed as brain drain." Source : 07-05-13   Asianage.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan US unemployment rate drops to 4-year low The U.S. economy showed last month why it remains the envy of industrialized nations: In the face of tax increases and federal spending cuts, employers added a solid 165,000 jobs in April - and the unemployment rate dropped to a four-year low of 7.5 per cent. The job growth in April - and far more jobs added in February and March than anyone thought - sent a reassuring sign that the U.S. job market is improving. Coming after a poor jobs report for March, the figures the government issued Friday helped ease fears that hiring might be slumping for a fourth straight year. The Labour Department revised up its estimate of job gains in February and March by a combined 114,000. It now says employers added 332,000 jobs in February and 138,000 in March. The economy has created an average of 208,000 jobs a month from November through April - above the 138,000 added in the previous six months."This is a good report," said Mr. John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo. "There's a lot of strength... It's good for the economy. It's good for people's income." The stronger job growth suggests that the federal budget cutting "does not mean recession," Mr. Silvia said. "It does not mean a dramatic slowdown." Stock prices soared in response. The Dow was up 164 points in early afternoon trading and briefly touched 15,000 for the first time. The unemployment rate has fallen 0.4 percentage point since the start of the year, though it remains high. The Federal Reserve has said it plans to keep short-term interest rates at record lows at least until unemployment falls to 6.5 percent. Source : 03-05-13   Businesstoday.intoday.in   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Job seekers throng employment exchanges as economy sputters The number of job seekers registering with employment exchanges in India has risen over 11% in 2012 in comparison with the previous year, as economic growth fell to its lowest in a decade forcing employers to cut flab or freeze hiring to stay competitive. While slowdown could be a major factor, labour secretary Mr. M Sarangi told FE that modernisation of employment exchanges in states like Maharashtra, Haryana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu along with special schemes like unemployment allowance announced by Uttar Pradesh may have increased the enrolment. Perceiving the importance of boosting jobs, the government has introduced a Bill in Parliament to revamp employment exchanges to help freshers get placed easily as per their skill sets, said Mr. Sarangi. Though employment exchanges had in recent decades lost their relevance as most openings have come up in the private sector, and that too based on contracts. But due to the latest moves, the number of registrations at employment exchanges have risen to 4.47 crore at the end of January 2013 from 4.02 crore in 2011, according to the latest data available with the labour ministry. Source : 03-05-13   Financialexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

 

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HR Articles: Dec-13 (Part-20)

For more article, Visit at : www.pmiralumni.co.in

H-1B visa: Why is India quiet on US protectionism?

India finds itself without friends on Capitol Hill in the US when it needs them most, as its companies appear to be in imminent danger of copping the worst of the immigration reform bill. A US senator accused Indian IT giants with big US operations - Infosys, TCS and Wipro - of misusing H-1B visas, needed for highly-skilled foreign workers."H-1B visas are not going to Microsoft; they're going to these firms, largely in India, who are finding workers, engineers, who will work at low wages in the US," said Senator Richard Durbin, at a senate hearing on Monday. He had listed out "these firms" as Infosys, Wipro and Tata. But the senator's views on these issues are known and, therefore, no one was surprised. "What got me was the lack of support for India there - no one defended them," said a US official who did not want to be named. Microsoft's Mr. Brad Smith, a witness at the hearing, said: "I personally think it's important that we both recognise the need for these firms to evolve their business model."Infosys, TCS and Wipro are among the top recipients of H-1B firms every year - 5,600, 7,469 and 4,304 respectively in 2012. There is an annual cap of 65,000 on these visas. These firms are expected to be hit hard by a comprehensive reform bill authored by Senator Durbin and seven other senators - called the Gang of Eight - under discussion. The bill argues that American jobs are being shipped abroad, and proposes to make it harder and more expensive for heavy H-1B users to bring in workers."Information technology services would be disadvantaged by such changes," Ms. Nirupama Rao, India's ambassador to the US, wrote in a recent op-ed in USA Today.TCS, Infosys, and Wipro did not offer any comments. Industry body Nasscom felt that the debate was being twisted out of context. "The Indian IT companies operating in the US follow all processes as mandated for the H-1B visa system," said Mr. Som Mittal, president Nasscom."The issue of skilled workers travelling for short duration is unfortunately being linked to the larger debate on immigration. It does not take into account the contribution of the Indian IT industry to the United States economy. The industry has added significantly to the US competitiveness ... and to the community," Mr. Mittal said.

Source : 24-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

HSBC to cut about 2,000 UK jobs under revamp

HSBC, Europe's biggest bank, is set to cut about 2,000 jobs in Britain on Thursday as part of its drive to slash costs and boost profitability in the face of a changing banking landscape, a person familiar with the matter said. The cuts are part of chief executive Mr. Stuart Gulliver's global revamp to cut 30,000 jobs by the end of 2013, and to streamline the bank for changes in UK regulation, people familiar with the matter said.

Source : 24-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Mr. Nikesh Arora highest paid at Google with $46.7 mn

Indian-born Mr. Nikesh Arora, the head of Google's business operations, leads the pack of highest paid employees at the search engine giant with a compensation package value at $46.7 million (Rs 255 crore) last year, according to regulatory filings on Wednesday. Mr. Arora, a graduate of the Banaras Hindu University Institute of Technology at Varanasi, is the fourth ranking in the organisation after co-founder and CEO Mr. Larry Page, executive chairman Mr. Eric Schmidt and co-founder Mr. Sergey Brin. He also serves on the board of India's Bharti Airtel Ltd. The calculation by the Associated Press counts salary, bonuses, perks and stock and options awarded to each executive. Mr. Page and his long-time partner Mr. Brin limited their salaries to $1 apiece last year, while four other top executives received combined compensation packages totalling more than $124 million. The breakdown disclosed consists mostly of stock awards that could ultimately be worth more or less money, depending on how Google's stock price fares in the future.

Source : 26-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

US jobless claims register surprising fall

The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell last week by a surprisingly large 16,000, offering reassurance that the bottom is not falling out of the labour market despite signs of slower growth in March and April, the US labour department said.

Source : 26-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Spanish unemployment rate at record 27.16%

Spain's unemployment rate climbed to a new record of 27.16% in the first quarter of 2013, official data showed on Thursday, as a deep recession sparked by the collapse of a property bubble ravages the euro zone's fourth-largest economy. The jobless rate jumped from 26.02% in the previous quarter. The number of unemployed climbed by 237,400 people to 6.2 million, the National Statistics Institute said. Spain, once the motor of job creation in the 17-nation single currency area is in a double dip recession, having yet to recover from the collapse in 2008 of a labour-intensive property boom in 2008 which had allowed economic growth to outpace the European union's for more than a decade. The Spanish economy contracted by 1.37% last year, the second worst yearly slump since 1970, and the government forecasts it will shrink again by between 1.0% and 1.5% this year. Spain's jobless rate fell to an almost 30-year low of 7.95% in the second quarter of 2007 at the peak of an economic boom that allowed the country to create more than half the new jobs in the euro zone between 2002 and 2005. But the jobless rate has risen steadily every quarter since as the country's housing market collapsed

Source : 26-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Government mulls linking bank staff wages to performance

State-owned banks, which employ over 800,000 people, could move towards performance-based pay soon, a move that would put them on the same platform as their private sector peers, while helping keep costs under check. A committee headed by Mr. Anil Khandelwal, former chairman and managing director of Bank of Baroda, which had looked into outdated human resource practices at public sector banks, had proposed that salaries be linked to performance. The committee submitted its report two years ago. This suggestion could now become part of the new wage structure. Talks have already started between banking unions and IBA on wage revision. In 2009, when the last pay revision was announced, public sector bank employees got a 17.5% hike, with retrospective effect from November 1, 2007.While Indian Banks' Association is in favour of bringing uniform compensation culture among private and public sector banks, banking unions are opposed to moving to a performance-based pay structure. About 30% of the staff in government banks would retire by this year. "Talent crunch is a major factor and until we look into the HR policies, it would be difficult for us to attract talent, especially in this competitive environment," a senior executive at large public sector bank, who did not wish to be identified, told Hindustan Times. The attrition rate in state-owned banks has also increased significantly in the last few years, with a large number of banks coming up in the private sector space and offering substantially more attractive pay packages. The Khandelwal Committee report noted that there was an acute shortage of talent in PSU banks, and fresh graduates were reluctant to join a government bank as they failed to provide concrete career growth path to their employees. The report also underlined that instead of the present industry-level arrangement, wage decisions should percolate to the bank level. At present there are 26 public sector banks in India.

Source : 25-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Ms. Archana Bhargava is new CMD of United Bank

United Bank of India (UBI), on Wednesday, said Ms. Archana Bhargava has been appointed Chairman and Managing Director of the bank. "Ms. Archana Bhargava, Executive Director, Canara Bank, has been appointed ... as Chairman & Managing Director of the bank with effect from the date of her taking over the charge till February 20, 2015, or until further orders, whichever is earlier," United Bank of India said in a filing on the BSE.

Source : 25-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Mr. Dmitry Shukov to take over as SSTL CEO from Mr. Vsevolod Rozanov

Sistema Shyam TeleServices Ltd (SSTL), which operates CDMA-based mobile telecom services under the MTS brand in India, on Wednesday, said Mr. Dmitry Shukov will be its new CEO and will assume charge from June 1. Mr. Vsevolod Rozanov, the current president and CEO of the company, will be shifted to the parent company Sistema JSFC at a senior position. "The details of Mr. Vsevolod's new role will be announced by Sistema JSFC after completion of all due corporate procedures," said a statement issued by the company. At the helm of SSTL since October 2008, Mr. Rozanov is credited for setting up the company's green field operations in India, implementing data-centric voice enabled strategy, developing MTS India brand, and successfully navigating a series of challenging legal and regulatory issues. Mr. Shukov, the new CEO is an MTS veteran and was previously the CEO of MTS Turkmenistan and MTS Uzbekistan. "Mr. Shukov has a wealth of operational experience, business acumen, and inspirational leadership needed to spearhead SSTL's growth," said Mr. Mikhail Shamolin, president, Sistema JSFC.

Source : 25-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Management graduates at FMS bag annual package of Rs.60 lakh

An annual salary package of Rs. 60 lakh is what a student at the Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi University, has got this year. According to the annual placement report released on Sunday, out of 216 students in the batch, five opted out of placements and 46 had secured pre-placement offers. Of the remaining 165 students, 155 got placed this year. The management institute did not disclose the names of the students who get placed. While FMS has said the year has been satisfactory despite a "gloomy economic scenario", the highest package in both the domestic and the international sector has seen a drop this year. Last year the highest domestic package was Rs. 32 lakh per annum. This year, the figure has come down to Rs. 26.8 lakh. The international package, which was Rs. 70 lakh per annum last year, has reportedly come down to Rs. 60 lakh this year. The median salary, however, has seen an increase of 14% this year and has increased to 16 lakh per annum. This year 93 companies participated in the placement process. Out of these 31 were new recruiters. The highest number of students has been placed in the sales and marketing (39%) followed by consulting and general management (27%) and banking, financial services and insurance (21%). "With the number of offers in consulting increasing steadily over the past few years, this year saw the largest ever participation in this domain at FMS. Some of the coveted firms who hired from FMS were The Boston Consulting Group, Accenture Management Consulting, Deloitte, Capgemini, Ernst & Young and Bain Capability Centre," the placement report read. "Capgemini Management Consulting was the largest recruiter with 12 offers. General management roles were amongst the most sought after on campus this year.

Source : 29-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Panel to resolve Saudi job law issue

India and Saudi Arabia have agreed to set up a joint working group to address "all immediate problems" facing the Indian community including issues related to overstaying Indian workers and the Kingdom's new labour policy. The decision to form the joint working group was taken during the meeting held between the Indian delegation, led by Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Mr. Vayalar Ravi and Saudi Arabia's Minister of Labour Mr. Adel Fakieh. The two sides agreed that the first meeting of this joint group will be held on May 1, a statement released by the Indian embassy in Riyadh said. The visit is aimed at exchanging views with the Saudi leadership on the welfare of the Indian community in the context of its Nitaqat programme, the statement said. The visit also aimed at briefing the Indian community in Saudi Arabia on the specific steps that the Indian government has taken for the rehabilitation of the returning Indians and addressing their concern in this regard. "We had met the Indian community workers before my meeting with the Saudi authorities. We will be meeting the community again on Monday and in Riyadh on Tuesday. The delegation understood the issues and took it up with the Saudi leadership appropriately. "The issues include implementation of Nitaqat programme and also regularising the status of overstaying workers and their return to India," the statement quoted the Minister as saying. The Indian delegation has also conveyed its concern over the Nitaqat programme. Minister of State for External Affairs E Ahamed and adviser to Prime Minister Mr. T K A Nair were also part of the delegation. The 'Nitaqat' law makes it mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers. There has been widespread perception that the new policy will lead to denial of job opportunities for a large number of Indians working there.

Source : 30-04-13   Deccanherald.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Tata Steel to shut UK technology centres, job cuts expected

Steel giant Tata Steel has reportedly warned the British government that it plans to shut down two research and development facilities in the country and shift them overseas including to India, resulting in 300-400 job cuts in the UK. In a move that will be seen as a major blow to Britain's already struggling industrial base, the company plans to close its technology centres on Teesside, in the north-east of England, and in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, over the next 18 months. A source told 'The Sunday Times' that Tata Steel may then shift this research to the Netherlands and India, resulting in 300-400 job cuts in the UK. In November last year, the company had revealed plans to restructure its British business, which is expected to lead to 12 site closures and 900 job losses. Its Europe operations have been hit by a combination of high energy costs, falling demand and plummeting steel prices, which have fallen by 5 per cent in the past month. Demand has slumped 30 per cent since 2007, largely as a result of China's slowing growth rate putting the brakes on its appetite for the metal. The European steel operations of Tata, a result of its acquisition of Corus back in 2007 for an estimated 6.7 billion pounds, is believed to be operating with towering debts of 3.4 billion pounds. Tata Steel employs around 19,000 workers in Britain and controls 46 per cent of the domestic market. Despite the tough environment, it has invested hundreds of millions of pounds in the British operations, including 185 million pounds on a new blast furnace at Port Talbot in South Wales — the company's prime asset in the UK. Its other large plant in Scunthorpe produces flat-steel products, used mainly in the construction and infrastructure markets. Tata has previously dismissed talk of selling some of its British assets but it is believed the company may seek a partner to invest in its Lincolnshire plant.

Source : 28-04-13   Thehindu.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Job fraud cases haunt automobile sector

The automobile sector has been seeing increasing incidents of recruitment fraud in recent quarters, according to human resource personnel. Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) and Bajaj Auto have noted a rise in these incidents. "While a decade ago, these used to be isolated incidents of a handful of unsuspecting individuals being defrauded by miscreants, today, the scale at which fraudsters operate is a serious concern," a spokesman for Tata Motors, which has reported 200 such cases in the last two years, told Business Standard. The way these individuals operate is distinct. Job-seekers are sent an email or an SMS wherein the name of a prominent auto company is used. These fraudsters ask for payment by cash or cheque to an account. They register domain IDs which sound similar to the ones used by organisations of repute, emailing thousands of unsuspecting job seekers, who could be fresh out of college or from Tier-II or Tier-III cities, or rural areas, inviting applications with security deposits. "In one such case, a malefactor claiming to be an agent of the organisation met an innocent job seeker and demanded money for permanent appointment. The agent was never seen again by the job seeker. As incidence of fraud get more organised and established, fraudsters have progressed to using the names of company officials, making the entire experience of a job search so real and genuine. They have communication formats, too, to make them appear real, with the use of registered trademarks," said the Tata Motors spokesperson.

Source : 29-04-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Tech freshers' pay caught in 4-year time warp

India's $108-billion IT industry is among the country's largest organised private sector employers, but the bottom of the sector's pyramid appears to have little to cheer about. While the overall wage hike in the IT sector has dropped to single digits of late, the salaries of freshers, who are typically engineering graduates and form the largest chunk of recruits, has remained stagnant in the past three to four years. Experts say this trend is likely to prolong as firms navigate a difficult business environment. Staffing companies point out that in the current market, on average, a fresher in the software services industry draws a salary in the range of R2.75-3.5 lakh per annum when compared to R2.75-3.3 lakh offered during 2008-09. Thanks to increasing margin pressure, demand-supply imbalance, declining business volumes and rising training costs, pay packages at the entry level have not seen an upward swing in the recent past. This is at a time when prices in the country have grown by more than 8% in each of these years. TV Mohandas Pai, chairman, Manipal Global Education and former director at Infosys, opined that the freshers' salary is likely to remain at the same level for some more years due to the demand-supply mismatch. "The hiring numbers by IT companies has come down due to their slowing growth but the number of graduating engineers has been increasing," he said. The IT industry absorbs around 250,000 engineering graduates every year but the annual output is around 600,000 students, giving them lesser bargaining power in a market-driven economy.

Source : 29-04-13   Indianexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

Slowdown clouds hover over IT recruitment

Mr. Ajoy Mukherjee's human resource team at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) might have less resumes to wade through this hiring season. Reason: Attrition has dropped in the past year and joining rates of freshers have gone up to around 75 per cent from 70 per cent earlier."Given the macro business environment and our retention strategy, there is a drop," says Mr. Mukherjee, who is the HR head and Vice-President, TCS. Information technology (IT) companies across the board say engineering graduates this year are readily accepting job offers unlike past years when they were far choosier. Engineering institutes say the glut in the market, a bleak economy, drying up of job offers and a changing business mix have turned the tide in favour of the IT companies. The changing business mix of IT companies has meant incremental growth from analytics, consulting, IMS, BPO, etc, each of which requires employees with different skill profiles. A professor from SRM University, from where most IT companies have been hiring, agrees: "We see changes in the hiring pattern in the days to come. More and more engineers would also be absorbed by IT companies if they are good in mathematics and statistics. Computational skills would be more important than language skills. This will mean institutes will also tinker with the syllabus, as market forces will influence it." On campuses, IT companies, which were the biggest hirers, recruiting in bulk, have either picked up a fourth of their usual requirements or been absent. Engineering institutions say there has been a nearly 40 per cent dip in recruitment and 30 per cent dip in the number of companies coming for recruitment.

Source : 29-04-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

About 42% faculty positions in IITs vacant: says Mr. Shashi Tharoor

In the 16 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), approximately 42% faculty positions in the IITs are vacant, said Mr. Shashi Tharoor, Minister of State for Human Resource Development. Further, almost half of faculty positions in National Institutes of Technology (NITs) are vacant. Giving this information in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today, Mr. Tharoor said that to mitigate current shortages, these institutes are engaging faculty on contract and visiting faculty. He said that the main reason for these shortages is that while the minimum qualification for faculty recruitment in these institutes is a Ph.D, many of the students after completion of their B.Tech/ M.Tech programmes, get placements in companies/ corporations and do not opt for the teaching profession. There are 16 IITs and 30 NITs in the country at present. The IITs plan suitable strategies to attract and retain quality faculty members, said Mr.Tharoor. "To achieve this, IITs will do year-round open advertisements, holding of selection committee meetings through video conferencing, invitation to alumni, scientists, faculty from India and abroad to reach out to potential candidates, advertisements in international journals to attract the attention of professionals abroad, and introducing young faculty award, etc," he said. The government has decided to allow faculty working under the Central Government or Central Autonomous Bodies, to join the newly set up Central Education Institutes on long-term deputation, for a period of 10-years. The institutes are also free to appoint Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) to permanent faculty position.

Source : 29-04-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

 

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HR Articles: Dec-13 (Part-19)

For more article, Visit at : www.pmiralumni.co.in Microsoft most attractive employer in India: Survey IT and software major Microsoft has emerged as India's most attractive employer for the third straight year in 2013, according to a survey by HR service firm Randstad. The company was followed by Hewlett Packard and Google India in the second and third positions, respectively. Others in the top 10 most attractive employer list included —IBM (4th), ONGC (5th), Sony (6th), Larsen & Toubro (7th), Steel Authority of India (8th), SBI (9th) and Tata Consultancy Services (10th). Special recognition awards were also given to Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) in the energy sector, Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) in the manufacturing sector and Larsen & Toubro in the infrastructure sector. The survey further noted that in a market like India, where there is high attrition, employer branding is very important as it provides an advantage to attract and retain top talent. "In the current competitive business environment, attracting and retaining the right talent is vital to organisation success. We are extremely happy to see an increase in Indian companies focusing on Employer Branding," Randstad India Chairman Mr. Paul Van De Kerkhof said. According to the survey that covered 7,000 respondents, the Indian workforce prefers competitive salary and job security. Compared to last year, there is a significant increase in the importance given to salary and employee benefits and this has become the most important factor for potential employees, followed by job security."The findings show a preference for competitive salary and high job security, and these are in line with current market sentiments," Randstad India MD & CEO Mr. E Balaji said. Besides, competitive salary and job security, the other factors that featured in the top five are pleasant working atmosphere, work-life balance and career progression opportunities."Understanding the pulse of what the workforce wants is the best route to building a strong employer brand and remain an attractive employer," Mr Balaji added. Source : 20-04-13   Thehindu.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Hiring activity slowing among IT firms FY2014 may be looking a brighter growth year than FY2013 for IT firms, but hiring activity especially among freshers/trainees, doesn't seem to be in sync with it. Several top companies like Infosys, Wipro and HCL Tech who gave offers to engineering students last year have deferred joining dates. A trend among IT firms was to hire en-masse from engineering colleges and then send offer letters to the selected candidates depending on the work load. But now candidates who have already been selected have had to wait for six months to a year to get their joining dates. India's top software services exporter Tata Consultancy Services recently said it is confident of beating NASSCOM's FY14 growth guidance of 12-14 percent and will hire 45,000 employees on a gross basis. But this is lower than the over 50,000 employees it had guided to hire in FY13 and 70,000 gross employees it added in FY12. According to Ambit Capital, which surveyed 30 tier-II engineering colleges, a primary scouting place for IT firms, there has been a slowdown in campus recruitments."Our survey results confirm that campus hiring has declined significantly during the 2012-13 placement season. Some of the colleges surveyed have seen a 50-70 percent decline in the number of offers as well as a decline in the number of companies visiting their campus," said analysts Mr. Ankur Rudra and Mr. Nitin Jain in a recent report. Automation is certainly one reason for the decline in hiring. More and more systems and processes are now being automated and that means lesser number of software developers and testers are needed. Source : 24-04-13   Moneycontrol.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Air India pilots merrily violate dress code Airline crew the world over are known for their impeccable bearing and spotless uniforms, but not so our Maharaja's pilots. Many pilots of national carrier Air India (AI) have been brazenly flouting the operational manual considered the rule book for crew. Male pilots of AI are not permitted to sport long hair or beards, but many sport pony tails, beards and stubbles. Some even wear ear studs on duty, which is banned as per rules. "Individuality in uniform is not permitted, but some AI pilots wear their uniform any way they desire. So you have some pilots wearing black ties and others who wear the company-issued blue ties," a Delhi-based pilot said. Other airlines take the common uniform so seriously that their female cabin crew are required to wear the same type of ear studs. "The attire of many pilots occupying business class seats while travelling as staff on duty leaves much to be desired. They share the premium cabin space with business and industry leaders and create a bad impression. This was one of the reasons pilots were barred from travelling on business class in 2009," said a senior Mumbai-based captain. This privilege was later restored. While AI did not respond to an email from HT, a senior official said that the airline had very stringent rules — though they were not enforced. "When the operations manual is so specific it even mentions which side of the shirt one shall wear the identity card, how can one say we lack strict norms? The problem is implementation."The AI manual says it is the responsibility of commanders "to ensure strict observance of the regulations". However, this is not done, a pilot said. The aviation ministry now plans a stricter implementation of manual rules. "Apart from being staff of AI, crew members represent India in foreign countries. There should, therefore, be no room for criticism or unfavourable comparison with crew of other international operators in the manner of wearing uniforms," the manual says. Source : 19-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Puma names former Adidas man as new CEO German sportswear giant Puma on Thursday named Mr.Bjoern Gulden, a former professional footballer and top manager at rival Adidas, as its new chief executive. Source : 19-04-13   Hindustan Times   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Mr. Kenichiro Yomura is Nissan India chief Japanese auto maker Nissan today announced rejig of top management in India with Mr.Kenichiro Yomura being appointed as President. The company said it has also appointed Hyundai's former national head for dealer development, Mr. Ajay Raghuvanshi, as Vice President — Business Management and would be responsible for supporting pricing, marketing, sales and operations. Mr. Yomura, who is the Managing Director and CEO of the company's arm Nissan Motor India, will now oversee the company's overall functioning in the country, including manufacturing and research and division. "The appointment marks a significant change in Nissan's senior management structure in India as Mr. Yomura will hold responsibility for manufacturing, research & development and joint venture businesses," the company said in a statement. This will accelerate strategic decision making and streamline operational efficiency to help achieve the company's objective of securing 10 per cent market share in 2016. "Mr.Yomura, who will report to Mr. Toru Hasegawa, Corporate Vice President for Africa, Middle East and India — will concurrently hold the position of Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer for Nissan Motor India," the company said. He will be based at the company's Chennai headquarters. In this expanded role, Mr. Yomura will be responsible for developing strategies to maximise Nissan's business performance, managing product introduction and significantly increasing the presence and accessibility of the Nissan brand through continuing network expansion, it added. He has over three decades of experience in the automobile industry. He has held various roles within Nissan across numerous functions, including public relations, government affairs, and sales planning and marketing in the US, China, Japan and the Middle East. Source : 16-04-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Tata 'delighted' with AirAsia hiring response Tata group chairman emeritus Mr. Ratan Tata said he was delighted with the response that AirAsia India received to hiring of flight attendants, interviews for which were held in Chennai."Delighted with fantastic response to AirAsia hiring of flight attendants. Great opportunity for young Indians. Makes me feel very proud," Mr. Tata tweeted. AirAsia India is the Indian arm of the AirAsia Group. The budget carrier has established AirAsia India, a 49:30:21 joint venture between AirAsia, Tata Sons and Telstra Tradeplace of Indian investor Arun Bhatia. As many as 3,500 candidates reportedly appeared for the cabin crew interviews for the 100 available positions. Interviews for India-based captains and first officers would be held in Bangalore and applications would be accepted till April 19. Source : 16-04-13   Hindustantimes.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Move to curb BIZ visas will impact INDO-US ties: USIBC Industry body US India Business Council has expressed concerns over proposals such as imposing restrictions on US business and work visas being considered by a group of Senators, saying that these provisions would hit Indian companies and thwart the Indian-American trade relationship. Source : 16-04-13   Hindustantimes.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Mercedes India appoints new sales, marketing heads Luxury car maker Mercedes Benz India on Monday said it has appointed Mr. Boris Fitz and Mr.Santosh Iyer as heads of its sales and marketing divisions, respectively, effective next month. The appointments come in the wake of marketing & sales director Mr.Debashis Mitra resigning from the company last month. Source : 16-04-13   Hindustantimes.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Infosys to tilt salaries towards fixed pay Infosys hasn't decided on giving a pay rise in FY14, but it is working on a strategy to help its employees get more salary without actually increasing their salary base. The Bangalore-based information technology (IT) services company has said it is looking at introducing a new compensation structure for its employees worldwide. In it, the component of fixed salaries will be higher, which will reduce the uncertainties associated with variable salaries. "We have always been extremely innovative on the compensation front. Last year, though the environment was very tough, we had given a compensation increase. One of the things which we are looking at for a while is to restructure the salary so that we balance the variable and the fixed salary," Infosys' CEO & MD Mr. S D Shibulal told Business Standard. The variable component constitutes as much as 50 per cent of the total pay package of senior executives at Infosys. However, in case of the junior- and middle-level professionals, it accounts for 20 per cent of their gross salary, according to company insiders. There is always an element of uncertainty in the variable component, as it is linked to the revenue growth and the operating margin of the company. In the quarter ended March 31, Infosys' attrition went up to 16.3 per cent, one of the highest in the recent past. The firm's attrition was 15.1 per cent the previous quarter. Infosys, however, said it was yet to take a decision on giving annual wage rise to employees. Source : 13-04-13   Business-standard.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Don't blame brain for bad decision If a person makes the wrong choice, Princeton University research says it might be the information rather than the brain's decision-making process that is to blame. Making decisions involves a gradual accumulation of facts that support one choice or another. Researchers said erroneous decisions tend to arise from errors, or 'noise,' in the information coming into the brain. Findings address a fundamental question among about whether bad decisions result from noise in the external information or sensory input or because the brain made mistakes when tallying that information. The Princeton research, however, separated sensory inputs from the internal mental process to show that the former can be noisy while the latter is remarkably reliable. The internal mental process was perfectly noiseless. All of the imperfections came from noise in the sensory processes. The research subjects — four college-age volunteers and 19 lab rats — listened to streams of randomly timed clicks coming into both the left ear and the right ear. After listening to a stream, the subjects had to choose the side from which more clicks originated. Source : 17-04-13   Hindustantimes.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan The 'C' words bosses like to hear When it comes to using certain words around the boss, there are some that should be avoided and others we must use. A survey found managers were after workers who could walk the talk when it came to four key areas — critical thinking, communication, collaboration and creativity. More than half reported their staff were just average in these areas and needed to up the ante in order to get ahead and get noticed. More than three quarters of those questioned also said these were the skills workers needed to be able to "keep up with the fast pace of change in business in order to compete on a global level". Younger workers would be more likely to have these skills. Source : 17-04-13   Hindustantimes.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Bank jobs — Crack the exam, select your posting If clearing a bank exam is good enough, imagine being offered a chance to indicate your order of preference — of both the bank and the State/Union Territory you would like to work in. The Institute of Banking Personnel Selection (IBPS), the autonomous body which is in charge of conducting the Common Written Test on behalf of the participating organisations (the banks), has sent a communication to this effect to those who have cleared the CWE for clerical cadre. The communication gives details of the vacancies in different banks, State-wise and category-wise, thus making it easier for the candidate to submit his/her options. The notification further states that depending on the State-wise vacancies, the successful candidates will be allotted in one of the participating banks in order of merit-cum-preference or keeping in view the Government guidelines on reservation policy and administrative convenience. While stating thus, it does point out that the indication of preference would not constitute offer of appointment either by the IBPS or the participating banks, besides letting the candidates know that 'any request for change in allotment would not be entertained'. Barring SBI, almost all the major public sector banks recruit based on the CWE, and they include: Allahabad Bank, Andhra Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Bank of Maharashtra etc. Source : 22-04-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Tata Consultancy Services aims to hire 45,000 in India IT major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which is confident of beating Nasscom estimate of 12-14 per cent industry growth this fiscal, today said it plans to increase campus recruitment in the US. However, the quantum of hiring is likely to remain the same as that of the past financial year, said the Mumbai-based company, which announced its results yesterday. "Last fiscal, we had hired 1,600 people in the US of which 100-150 were through campus recruitment. The hiring number for this year will remain similar but we want to increase campus hiring," TCS Executive Vice-President and Head of Global Human Resources Mr. Ajoy Mukherjee told reporters during a post-earnings media round-table. "In domestic hiring, the top software company is trying to maintain a 60:40 ratio (60% trainees and 40% laterals)," Mr. Mukherjee said, adding that future recruitment will depend on the growth of business. Justifying the drop in in-take target for FY14, which at 45,000 is less than the last fiscal, he attributed this to higher retention rate. "We had the best retention rate in the last 27 quarters at 82 per cent. We would like to take it up to 85 per cent this year."Constant engagement with employees, challenging job opportunities and compensation were the main reasons for such a high retention rate, Mr. Mukherjee maintained. Source : 18-04-13   Financialexpress.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan 94% of Indian businesses plan to hire in 2013: says survey by Regus Global Business India Inc seems to be optimistic about its hiring intentions for 2013 as 94 per cent of businesses are planning to increase their headcount, according to a survey. The survey conducted by workplace solutions provider Regus among more than 26,000 businesses in nearly 100 nations, including India, revealed that most of the recruitment is expected in the sales and marketing segments. The Regus global business confidence index for India stood at 137 points in April, suggesting a stable score. However, it has slipped four points since October 2012. 94 per cent of Indian businesses are planning to increase or maintain their headcount in 2013," the survey noted. Globally, 85 per cent of businesses surveyed are planning to increase or maintain their headcount in 2013. The robust hiring intentions of Indian employers could be attributed to higher revenues and increased profit reported by Indian companies in the past one year. The survey noted that nearly two-fifths (39 per cent) of businesses plan to increase their headcount by more than five per cent. Interestingly, 67 per cent of respondents are planning to recruit employees in the sales and marketing verticals and 49 per cent in operational staff. "Companies feel it's the right time to go out there and sell. These results suggest that sales and marketing professional will be in high demand in the coming months," Regus Vice-President (South Asia) Mr. Madhusudan Thakur said. "Businesses need to consider how to recruit and retain the best in the field, ensuring they can remain competitive in their market," he added. The survey said 63 per cent of Indian businesses reported a rise in revenues and 54 per cent posted increased profits over the past 12 months. Source : 15-04-13   Thehindubusinessline.com   Compiled by Amresh Anjan Overseas assignment can fastrack promotions: Mercer Employees with international experience have a higher chance of being promoted at work, according to 39 per cent of the participants in Mercer's Worldwide International Assignments Policies and Practices Report. This is despite the fact that few companies have expatriate programmes management tools to evaluate their performance during international assignments, the report reveals. The report, based on responses from over 700 companies worldwide across sectors such as financial services, mining, energy, telecommunications, retail, trade, engineering goods, manufacturing also suggests that the average percentage of women bagging international assignment has increased by 13 per cent, just three per cent higher than two years ago. The report reveals that global employee mobility in the short and long –term is expected to increase in 2013. Over 70 per cent of companies expect to increase short-term assignments in 2013. The report showed that 55 per cent of companies expect to increase long-term assignments and highlighted that, for the last two years there has been an increase in the overall numbers of international assignments. China, the US, Brazil, the U.K and Australia are the priority destinations in their respective regions for expatriates. Source : 19-04-13   The India Express   Compiled by Amresh Anjan

 

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