90% Indian CEOs expect to hire similar or more than they did in 2021: Nasscom CEO Survey

The hiring momentum remains bullish as 90% of Indian tech chief executive officers (CEOs) expect to hire similar or more than what they hired in 2021, according to the Nasscom Tech CEO Survey 2022 that gathered responses from C-suite executives belonging to large, medium and small size IT firms, global capability centres (GCCs), and startups.   

Digital talent is likely to constitute up to 50% of new hires, the survey said. 60% of CEOs expect at least half of the workforce to return to office in 2022.   

Adoption of a ‘people-first employee-centric’ approach on the back of talent crunch will be one of the key human resource strategies this year. Digital transformation and exploring additional revenue streams will also be among key strategic focus areas. The key differentiators for success are innovation and partnerships/alliances with startups, academia, customers, the survey said.   

In terms of outlook, 70% Indian tech enterprises expect the tech industry to grow at a rate similar to 2021 levels. 75% CEOs project a healthy uptick in average deal pipeline (surpassing 10%) in 2022 while 57% CEOs expect to increase R&D spend by over 10% this year as compared to 2021. Banking, financial services & insurance (BFSI), manufacturing, healthcare, and retail/e-commerce are the top sectors driving technology growth, the survey said.   

Cloud continues to be the top-most tech priority for CEOs as hybrid/remote work model and home-schooling become mainstream. This is followed by technologies like big data analytics and artificial intelligence/machine learning/natural language processing that help in cost mitigation and improving customer service. As cyber risks multiply by 3x post-pandemic, cybersecurity is maintaining its position as one of the foremost tech priorities.