Hiring intent for freshers improves 6%, but IT and Media see dip: Teamlease

Hiring trends 2024: re is an increase of 6 per cent in first half (January to June) of 2024 in fresher hiring in India, signalling a positive job market for freshers in India, according to staffing company Teamlease.

As per Career Outlook Report by TeamLease EdTech, 68 per cent of companies are looking to hire in H12024, compared to 62 per cent in same period last year.

The survey covers 526 small, medium, and large companies across 18 industries across India, and is spre across 14 geographical areas including metros, tier-1 and tier-2 cities, reflecting hiring sentiment.

overall hiring intent for all categories of job seekers has also risen marginally to 79.3 per cent, as per 58-page report.

Sectors with highest demand

Top three industries which emerged with highest hiring intent for freshers include startups in e-commerce and technology at 55 per cent, followed by engineering and infrastructure at 53 per cent, and telecommunications at 50 per cent. Hospitality and travel have seen a 4 per cent increase over one-year period.

Speaking on trends, Neeti Sharma, Co-Founder and President of TeamLease EdTech said “It's interesting to see industries like Manufacturing, Engineering & Infrastructure, and Construction and Real Estate prioritising apprenticeship to locate most suitable talents. By proactively hiring degree apprentices, companies can systematically dress persistent skill gaps, nurture specialised talent, and strengn ir talent pipelines tailored to precise industry requirements." 

This bodes well for apprentices as y can 'learn and earn' simultaneously, gaining acemic knowledge and practical work experience, making m highly employable, Sharma ded.

Roles of graphic designers, legal associates, chemical engineers and digital marketing executives are in high demand across industries for freshers, as per report.

In contrast, IT and media-entertainment are seeing an overall decrease in intent to hire freshers. While IT sees a 7 per cent decline over 6-month period of HY2'2023 and HY1'2024, media and entertainment saw a 3 per cent decline in same period.  

City Trends 

Bengaluru emerged as leer in hiring intent at 69 per cent followed by Mumbai at 58 per cent and Chennai at 51 per cent. national capital territory of Delhi is at 45 per cent, up 2 per cent from HY2 2023. 

demand for newer talent is marginally up by 3 per cent, reaching to 68 per cent for Jan-Jun 2024 period.

Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO, TeamLease EdTech, said, “Employers played conservative card for sometime now; hiring h slowed down amidst global turmoil. However, our recent survey reveals employer confidence in India’s growth story." 

Organisations are more confident about ir future paths, which reflects in ir high confidence to recruit fresh talent and strengn ir talent pool, Rooj ded. 

Impact of GenAI

Amid anxiety of AI replacing mundane roles and redundant tasks, report suggests jobs are evolving through human-AI collaboration rar than outright replacemeny of talent. Roles such as software developers, technical writers, legal assistants, market research analysts and graphic designers are expected to be transformed by vent of generative technologies.

Jaideep Kewalramani, He of Employability Business and COO of TeamLease EdTech said, “With generative AI automation set to transform workflows, freshers need to be prepared to collaborate effectively with AI systems.” 

Specialised courses equipping students to leverage generative AI tools and technologies can provide new professionals with requisite knowledge to thrive in this rapidly evolving landscape, he ded.