Wednesday, November 6, 2013

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Top global IT firms have more staff in India than home nations

It's a measure of India's strength in software services and the number of engineers it produces that some of the world's largest IT companies have more employees in India now than in their home countries.

And increasingly, these foreign companies are shifting their consulting base to India, thanks to the talent coming out of the country's business schools.

IBM, the biggest in the business, has been steadily reducing its US employee numbers and has simultaneously increased sharply its Indian ones. The company does not officially break up its employee numbers by geography, but the IBM employee organization Alliance@IBM puts the US figure for 2012 at 91,000, down from 127,000 in 2006. The last time IBM provided figures for India was in 2007, when it said it had 73,000 employees here. Since then, all estimates suggest that the company has added another 50,000 to 60,000 employees, taking the total count to about 1.3 lakh.

That puts the India number at more than 40% of the US figure. It also means — given IBM's global headcount of 4.3 lakh — that one in almost every three IBM employee is in India.

Read more at TimesOfIndia.

Panasonic to cut chip division workforce by half: Reports

Panasonic is set to cut its chip division workforce in half, axing thousands of jobs as the electronics giant overhauls its battered balance sheet after record losses, Japanese media reports said.

The plan to shrink Panasonic's money-losing semiconductor business could also see it sell off some chip manufacturing plants, the leading Nikkei business daily said, without citing sources.

Panasonic, which has chip factories both in Japan and overseas, would axe 7,000 jobs from the unit by March 2015 from a total of 14,000 employees, through an unspecified number of layoffs, early retirements and moving workers to other divisions, the Nikkei said.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

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10 Most Difficult Tech Firms For Interviews

Interviews can be hard for anyone, but several companies tend to make the interview process difficult in order to separate the wheat from the chaff. Technology companies are particularly notorious for making the interviews tough, posing difficult questions to assess how applicants fare on various criteria.

Professional networking website Glassdoor has released the list of companies with the most difficult interview processes. We bring to you the technology with the toughest interviews, as well as details like average span of the interview process and the kind of experience that the interviewees have. Click to find out the 10 tech companies with the most difficult interviews:

1. ThoughtWorks
ThoughtWorks grabbed the top spot among technology companies when it came to the most difficult interview process, with an average difficulty rating of 3.9. Seventy three percent of the interviewees surveyed by Glassdoor reported a positive experience, while 14% had a bad experience.

The typical interview process at ThoughtWorks lasts 43 days, with interviewees giving it an employee satisfaction rating of 4.1 out of 5.

2. Google
Google has an average difficulty rating of 3.6 out of 5, with a typical interview lasting 37 days. Sixty four percent interviewees had a pleasant experience, while 23% had a negative experience, with the company getting an average employee satisfaction rating of 3.3.

3. Hubspot
Software maker HubSpot has an average difficulty rating of 3.5 and employee satisfaction rating of 4.1 out of 5. The interview process takes 20 days on an average and 62% people had a good interview experience, while 27% had a bad one.

4. Avaya
Avaya takes the fourth spot in the list, with average difficulty rating of 3.4 and employee satisfaction score of 2.9. Eighty six percent interviewees had a good experience, while 10% experienced a bad time, with the average process time being 30 days.

5. Microsoft
Software titan Microsoft secured an average difficulty rating of 3.4, while its employee satisfaction score is 3.7. The average interview process lasts 29 days, with 70% respondents having a positive experience and 14% reporting a negative time.

6. Sapient
With an average difficulty rating of 3.4 and employee satisfaction score of 3.8, Sapient takes the sixth spot in the list. Average interview process at Sapient takes 12 days, with 76% respondents having a good experience and 13% having a negative time.

7. Citrix
Citrix grabs the seventh position in the ranking, with an average difficulty score of 3.4 and employee satisfaction rating of 3.8. The overall interview process on an average takes 29 days at the company, and 56% people report a positive experience and 26% have a negative time.

8. Nvidia
Nvidia gets an average difficulty rating of 3.4 and employee satisfaction score of 3.8. The company on an average takes 22 days to complete an interview; 81% people in the survey had a positive experience, while 7% had a bad one.

9. Informatica
Informatica scores 3.4 in terms of average difficulty of the interview and 3.9 in employee satisfaction. In the survey, 83% of the respondents said they had a positive experience, while 11% had a negative time; average length of interviews at the company is 19 days.

10. Facebook
Facebook has a difficulty score of 3.3 in the survey and employee satisfaction rating of 3.9; interview process goes for 30 days on an average. Seventy two percent of the respondents reported a positive experience and 14% had a bad time.

Old list:
Below is  Glassdoor’s list of the 25 Companies That Give the Toughest Job Interviews(as per Aug 2013):

1. McKinsey & Company

2. ThoughtWorks

3. The Boston Consulting Group

4. Gartner

5. Bain & Company

6. Rolls Royce

7. ZS Associates

8. Google

9. Stryker

10. HubSpot

11. Paycom

12. Vistaprint

13. Teach For America

14. Procter & Gamble

15. Avaya

16. Microsoft

17. BlackRock

18. Sapient

19. Citrix

20. Nvidia

21. Informatica

22. Facebook

23. Guidewire

24. Caterpillar

25. Rackspace
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8 hottest IT skills for 2014

Wonder what are the most-sought after IT skills for 2014. ComputerWorld's annual IT skills survey uncovers the skill-sets that IT managers will be looking for in 2014. From 'Networking' to 'Project management', here is a list of the hottest skills that will work in your favour in 2014.

1. Programming/application development
Topping the ComputerWorld's hottest skills for 2014 list is 'programming/application development'. The skill ranked at top position in last year's Hot skills survey too. According to the survey, 49% of respondents said that they plan to hire for this skill in the coming 12 months.

As per the survey, developer and programmer job openings are the most difficult to fill. The hottest specialties within this category are mobile development expertise and experience building secure applications.

2. Help desk/technical support
Ranked at no. 2, help desk/tech support has moved up one position from its last year's ranking. According to the survey, 37% of respondents said that they plan to hire for this skill in the coming 12 months.

The fact that many companies are bringing help-desk functions back in-house is contributing to the rise in demand for this skill, says the report.

3. Networking
Another sought-after IT skill in 2014 will be 'networking', ranked at no. 3 in the survey. As per the study, 31% of respondents said that they plan to hire for this skill in the coming 12 months. 'Networking' ranked at no. 8 in last year's ranking.

The spurt in demand for wireless connectivity is probably behind the interest in networking professionals, claims the survey quoting Scot Melland, CEO of Dice Holdings.

4. Mobile applications and device management
The fourth hottest skill for 2014 is 'mobile applications and device management'. Some 27% of survey respondents said that they plan to hire for this skill in the next 12 months. The increasing proliferation of mobile devices seems to have catapulted the skill to no. 4 from its last year's position of no. 9.

According to the survey, mobile expertise is the third most difficult skill to find, after development and BI/analytics skills.

5. Project management
'Project management' is next on the list of hottest skills for 2014. Some 25% of respondents surveyed said that they plan to hire for this skill in the next 12 months. While project management fell from its no. 2 position of last year, it still continues to be among the highly sought-after skills.

The demand for project managers is second only to that of software developers/engineers, says ComputerWorld report quoting Dice's CEO

6. Database administration
At no. 6 on the list is 'Database Administration'. Some 24% of respondents said that they plan to hire for this skill in coming 12 months. The growing enterprise interest in Big data appears to be fuelling the interest in the demand for 'Database Administration' professionals.

7. Security compliance/governance
Security Compliance/Governance ranks next on the list. Some 21% of respondents surveyed said that they plan to hire for this skill. The growth of ecommerce and increasing cases of malware and cyberattacks globally has led to a sharp rise in the demand for security professionals.

The demand for 'Security Compliance/Governance' professionals is up 23 percent according to the survey.

8. Business intelligence/analytics
Business intelligence/analytics ranks at no. 8 on the list. Some 18% of the respondents said that they plan to hire for this skill in the next 12 months, as per the survey.

One of the fastest-growing skills, the demand for business intelligence/analytics professionals has seen a 100% jump, says the report quoting Dice's Melland. BI professionals are also often reported to command high salaries.

Note: The results are based on the responses of IT executives who responded to ComputerWorld's survey.

Source: ComputerWorld
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US says Infosys blatantly flouted immigration laws

Federal prosecutors have alleged that IT major Infosys indulged in blatant violation of immigration laws by not only bringing its employee inside the country on a visa which does not permit work, but also issuing specific directions to its workers to mislead the immigration officials on their point of entry on their nature of work.

"To circumvent the requirements, limitations, and governmental oversight of the H-1B visa programme, Infosys committed visa fraud by knowingly and unlawfully using B-1 visa holders to perform skilled labour in order to fill positions in the United States for employment that would otherwise be performed by United States citizens or require legitimate H-1B visa holders, the US Attorney, John M Bales said.

Read more at TimesofIndia
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Yahoo laying off 500 under-performing employees: Report

Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer has begun firing as many as 500 under-performing employees, All Things D's Kara Swisher reports. After joining the company in July 2012, Mayer instituted new employee performance reviews one year ago.

Now, Swisher reports, Mayer is planning to let go any employees who were rated "misses" or "occasionally misses" at least twice during the past five quarters.

Swisher says as many as 500 employees could eventually be effected. She says that some Yahoo employees are already being let go.

Yahoo has many thousands more employees than many industry experts believes it needs to have.

Before Mayer took over Yahoo, top executives there had plans to cut headcount from approximately 15,000 down to 4,000 -- though that would have involved spinning out Yahoo's search business.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/careers/job-trends/Yahoo-laying-off-500-under-performing-employees-Report/articleshow/24980658.cms?intenttarget=no
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India's Best Small & Startup IT Companies To Work For

Bonus, travel allowances, sales commission, incentives all were the talk of the town in job market. Today, the game has completely changed and focus has shifted from monetary view point to complete engagement of the employees in the development of organization and themselves. Workplace recognition and revenue growth are not coincidental and is a reflection of one's belief that treating employees well is a good business. This has become a key driver of innovation in most of the organizations.

Companies are spending heavily for employee training, may it be onsite or offsite training, to provide them a better understanding of their core work functionality. With such huge investments being made on the employees, retaining them are one of the top priorities for any HR. Thus, different companies come up with various HR policies to not only retain them but to keep them motivated at all the touch points possible.
See the list here



Sunday, October 27, 2013

Infosys inducts 12 executives into management team

In perhaps the biggest ever expansion of its leadership team, Infosys has inducted 12 new faces to the executive council (EC). This takes the total strength of its highest decision-making body to 30. With this, the EC's strength has almost doubled since the end of 2012-13, when it had 16 members. In comparison, rival Wipro has 23 members in its management team. As EC members, the new Infosys inductees will be entitled to an allowance of $150,000 each per annum pro rata for the period as member. "We have strengthened our executive council to help us drive focus on key growth areas," the company said.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/careers/job-trends/Infosys-inducts-12-executives-into-management-team/articleshow/24678879.cms
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Wipro to train over 100 foreign interns in India

As the spotlight remains fixed on the issue of onsite hiring for IT firms, Wipro is planning ahead in cultivating teams of local business leaders with an Indian ethos. The company is scaling up its "India gateway" programme, through which it gives campus recruits from the UK, Europe, and Africa an opportunity to spend months at a time in its India campuses.

Launched last year, Wipro says the programme has been more successful than anticipated, and this year, over 100 employees across the world are expected to be working here.

"Going forward, the number of local hires abroad will only increase. Management also has to come from local talent more in the future. Keeping that in mind, we felt it was important to have locals immerse themselves in the culture of the company. Having them train here is a great way to do that," says Sourabh Govil, senior vice president - Human Resources, Wipro.
Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/careers/education/Wipro-to-train-over-100-foreign-interns-in-India/articleshow/24702441.cms

Saturday, August 24, 2013

Educomp starts cost optimisation; cuts 3,500 jobs

Education solutions provider Educomp Solutions today said it has cut 3,500 jobs in the last three months and has also initiated measures to spur growth.

"Educomp has announced a slew of measures aimed at putting the company back on a growth trajectory at a time when market sentiment is adversely impacting bottom lines across industry and has pushed the education sector into negative growth territory," it said in a release.

The plan entails modifications in structure, systems and sales strategies to return the firm to profitability in the current and following fiscal. Within this transformational plan, a series of tactical steps have been identified to fast-track the correction, it added.
Source: IndiaTimes
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US tech giants face uncertain future

Outsiders often think of Silicon Valley as a constantly changing landscape, a place where fortunes rise and fall with the next great idea. Now some of the technology industry's biggest names are finding out that once you fall behind, it is pretty hard to catch up. 

Hewlett-Packard announced several significant personnel changes, along with sharply lower revenue and narrower operating profit margins. It was the latest in a string of disappointing earnings news from big technology companies that has some asking if the industry, after at least five years of growth, is finally slowing down. 
Click here to Read more. 
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Corporates cutting jobs to to save costs: Study

Faced with a tough economic scenario, corporates are cutting jobs and rationalising manpower to save on costs and the situation is likely to get worse in coming days, according to an Assocham study. 

"Alongwith the increasing number of corporates rushing to banks for debt restructuring, scores of them are also being forced to go in for manpower rationalising, reducing the headcount to save costs which they are unable to bear in the face of a difficult economic environment," according to the Assocham report on on Impact of Slowdown on Employment. 

The sad part is the situation is likely to become worse, rather than improve, in the weeks to come and the pain would only increase, it said. 

The companies resorting to rationalisation of manpower belong to sectors like infrastructure, gems and jewellery, educational solutions, realty, non-banking finance companies, especially in the gold-loan segment, media and public relations. 
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/jobs/corporates-cutting-jobs-to-to-save-costs-study/articleshow/21939363.cms
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Adaequare plans to hire 150 professionals by March end

Data engineering and analytics solutions provider Adaequare plans to hire 150 professionals by end of this fiscal. 

The Hyderabad-based company is also looking to acquire small-sized companies with niche tools to drive growth. 

"Adaequare is looking at a good mix of organic and inorganic growth to continue staying ahead of the curve in the Data Engineering and Analytics space. We plan to hire 150 professionals by end of this fiscal," said Raju Bhupati, who has been elevated to the position of COO, said in a statement. 

"We are also looking at acquiring small firms with 30-50 people in areas such as testing. A few firms are on the radar. We are evaluating them," he said.
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Indians third largest immigrant group in US: Study

Indians have emerged as the third-largest immigrant group in the US behind Mexicans and Chinese, with nearly 1.9 million of them living in the country, a new study by an American thinktank has said. 

Indian population in the US has grown to over 150 times its size since 1960, when the slightly more than 12,000 Indian immigrants represented less than 0.5 per cent of the total immigrant population of 9.7 million immigrants, a study by Migration Policy Institute has found. 

Till 2011, Indian-born immigrants accounted for almost five per cent (1.86 million) of America's 40.4 million immigrants. 

Almost one-third of all Indian immigrants resided in just two states- California and New Jersey. More than a quarter of them lived in three major metropolitan areas- New York, Chicago and San Jose. 

Two per cent of all unauthorised immigrants in the United States were also from India. 
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/nri/indians-third-largest-immigrant-group-in-us-study/articleshow/22003774.cms
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Dell may lay off 1,000 employees in Mohali

About 1,000 employees of American multinational Dell may lose their jobs in India over the next six months as the Texas-based computer hardware, software and services provider plans a significant rightsizing exercise for its international services business here, according to sources with knowledge of the development.

Sources say the company is planning to shut down its international services operations in Mohali which employs about 1,300 people. When contacted, a Dell spokesperson said the company does not comment on rumours or speculation. 
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/careers/job-trends/Dell-may-lay-off-1000-employees-in-Mohali/articleshow/21995694.cms

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

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Tata Technologies inks MoU with BITS Pilani

Tata Technologies inked an agreement with Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani, to design and implement specialised educational programmes for skill development of engineering professionals, students and faculty.

Tata Technologies would support the existing Birla Institute of Technology and Science (BITS) industry interface programmes, while the latter would run specialised programmes created with expert industry perspective and inputs from Tata Technologies, according to a release.

This will lead to specific degrees of BITS through its off-campus Work Integrated Learning Programmes (WILP), it added. 

LinkedIn study reveals why people hate their jobs

More or less everyone has a grudge or two against their job. LinkedIn has brought out some reasons as to why employees may be hating their job, the Huffington Post reported. A recent study by Dale Carnegie Training showed that nearly 75% of workers are not fully engaged at their jobs.

One of the major reasons is that an employee's friends are having an amazing experience at another company, which makes them envious. The transparency of employee benefits and perks at other companies can sometimes lead them to dream about working elsewhere.

Another reason could be that the workers believe that he/she is not valued.

A person also feels dissatisfied with his/her job if they find no room for advancement. Many workers feel stuck in their company, which often leads to job hopping.

Being paid less than what is deserve also leaves employee disenchanted with their work.

Rules can also ruin a team, as it becomes frustrating when an employee is not able their own decisions.

The passion's also vanishes sometimes, as there is a huge difference between living to work and working to live.

One of the primary reasons why people hate their job is that their boss sucks. Poor management can make even the most passionate and well-paid workers hate their job.

Indian techies bag first prize at Microsoft competition

Software giant Microsoft today said it has awarded India's Y-Nots the first prize in the Windows Azure Challenge at the 11th annual Microsoft Imagine Cup.

Imagine Cup is a competition for student technologists to create innovative projects and ultimately bring those ideas to market.

The winners were announced at the Imagine Cup Awards ceremony in St Petersburg, which was attended by over 800 students, judges, awards partners, among others. The ceremony was the culmination of a four-day competition, it said in a release.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

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India's 5 Best Tech Companies To Work For

A hefty paycheck and huge employee compensation won’t necessarily define the ‘desirability’ of a company in India’s star-studded IT sector. Being one of the most sought after fields by grads, these companies always hold something special to retain talents. From amazing work culture to perks, let’s check out what makes these 5 IT companies the best places to work for in India based on a survey by The Great Place To Work Institute.

#5 NetApp India
Business Description: NetApp provides integrated data storage solutions that enable customers to leverage virtualization, cloud computing and storage efficiency to improve their business
Location: Bangalore
Employees: 2,011
Gender Ratio: 1:4.22

NetApp is yet another company like Google, whose international facilities are well known for the best work culture. The company has a cross-functional team of employees called the Global Workforce Council (GWC) which keeps an eye on the talent issues globally. This council makes recommendations to the executive staff.

The NetApp office in India has ‘Wall Of Fame,’ which recognizes the employees who have filed a patent, awarded patent or recognized in any other way.

#4 SAS Institute – India
Business Description: Data warehousing solutions, BI solutions, analytical solutions, visual analytics engine, consulting services, customer support services, sales, marketing & alliances
Location: Mumbai
Employees: 593
Gender Ratio: 1:3.39

SAS might be the only company using ‘Optimum Reach’ model to train its candidates. More than 60 percent of the workforce is senior talent and hence anybody who had spent more than three years in the company will train the juniors.

#3 Tavant Technologies
Business Description: IT solutions
Location: Bangalore
Employees: 689
Gender Ratio: 1:2.7

Tavant Technologies is an IT Services and Solutions company founded by four Indians, after quitting Amazon. The company headquartered in California has its India headquarters in Bangalore.
Tavant has been recognized globally for its innovative solutions, people practices, growth and for its contribution to the open source forum.

According to Economic Times, the company has an interesting work culture. It allows employees to applaud for the work of others irrespective of team or geography.

#2 Intel
Business Description: Microprocessors, chipsets, motherboards, adaptors for desktops, laptops
Location: Bangalore
Employees: 3,472
Gender Ratio: 1:3.9

Intel, the world’s biggest chip maker is ranked second in the list of best IT companies to work for in India. The interview process in the company is not merely focuses on the knowledge part but also checks whether the candidate is a perfect fit.

According to Economic Times, there is a strict rule followed in Intel, which is ‘a new hire should never feel isolated.’

#1 Google India
Business Description: Search, YouTube, Gmail, apps, mobile, enterprise, social
Location: Bangalore
Employees: 1,503
Gender Ratio (F/M): 1:1.21

The Indian wing of international search giant Google, clocked in first on the list of best IT workplaces. Globally, Google is best known for its work culture, employee perks and the generous pay.

According to Google, the engineers at Bangalore office have worked on Ads, Enterprise, Geo and News products, search infrastructure and products for users in emerging markets.

Google’s Map Maker is a product of the Bangalore facility. Adding to the Bangalore, Google has offices in Hyderabad and Gurgaon.

Credits: http://www.siliconindia.com/news/technology/Indias-5-Best-Tech-Companies-To-Work-For-nid-149591-cid-2.html

Apple hiring smartwatch talent

Sources claim Apple is looking for help in getting its first wearable technology device ready for a 2014 launch. An article in the Financial Times claims that Apple has been encountering "hard engineering problems that they're unable to solve" and as a result is set to start recruiting new blood with wearable technology experience in order to get the so-called ‘iWatch' project back on track. According to sources quoted by the publication, Apple is aiming to get the product out by the end of 2014.

Most rumors surrounding the highly-buzzed device have pointed to a 2013 launch date as have similar reports focused on Apple's closest competitors, i.e., Microsoft, Samsung, Google and, to a lesser extent, LG, all of which have been officially or unofficially confirmed as developing similar devices for a 2013 launch.

If the report turns out to be accurate -- and the FT has a pretty good track record, being one of the first publications to report on iTunes radio and the obstacles it was encountering -- Apple will also have the benefits of seeing what the competition is up to and tweaking its device to suit. However, with the current rate of consumer technological advances, the wearable computing may already be mainstream by the time the iWatch launches.
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BlackBerry plans more layoffs, fired U.S. sales chief: report

The ailing smartphone maker is eyeing additional layoffs beyond the 5,000 announced during its previous fiscal year, says The Wall Street Journal. BlackBerry is eyeing another round of layoffs as part of its ongoing restructuring, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Citing "people familiar with the matter," the Journal said Wednesday that the job cuts would affect middle management across the sales and support divisions. The new layoffs would come on top of the 5,000 cuts planned during the company's last fiscal year.

One person already hit by a job loss is Richard Piasentin, BlackBerry's vice president of sales in the U.S. The Journal's sources say the U.S. sales chief was fired in June. A BlackBerry spokesman confirmed Piasentin's departure to the Journal but declined to comment about any layoffs.

How to prepare for a video job interview

Discussing your qualifications for a new job via a video interview sounds easy enough and even appealing. No worrying if your palms are clammy when you shake hands, since you won't be shaking hands. You don't have to travel farther than your own home. As long as you look presentable from the waist up, you could even skip a shower and interview in sweatpants.

But interviewing over video and doing it well can take more preparation than an in-person meeting. After all, if you are not looking at the camera properly, you may come off as distracted or unhinged. If the video set-up is poor, you appear technically incompetent. Your smudged walls or home office clutter may suggest things you do not wish to convey about your work habits.

Read more @ http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/jobs/how-to-prepare-for-a-video-job-interview/articleshow/20929438.cms
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Firms target social, professional networking sites for hires

Companies are increasingly tapping the social and professional networking websites to find right talent in India and abroad, says a new survey.

Further, more than half of the talent acquisition leaders in India surveyed by professional networking site LinkedIn are planning to hire more people in 2013 than last year.

The findings are based on 'LinkedIn Recruiting Trends' survey that covered 3,300 talent acquisition leaders across 19 countries. From India, there were about 274 respondents.

"Since 2011, there has been a 20 per cent increase in recruiters considering social and professional networks as a key source to find quality talent; at 41 per cent in 2013 compared to 21 per cent in 2011," LinkedIn said today.

Globally, one of the key trends in the eyes of recruiters is that social professional networks are increasingly impacting quality of hire.

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/jobs/firms-target-social-professional-networking-sites-for-hires/articleshow/20987048.cms
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Infy, iGate others in queue for Rs. 1,00,000-cr govt IT contracts

While visa restrictions and business slowdown pose challenges in their traditional strongholds, such US and Europe, upcoming mega government projects seem to offer a degree of comfort for the Indian IT companies.

Indian IT service companies TCS, Infosys, HCL, Wipro, Tech Mahindra and iGate and multinational companies such as IBM, Accenture, HP and Dell are vying for a sizable pie of various e-governance projects, the total cost of which would run into anywhere between Rs. 80,000 crore and Rs. 1,00,000 crore.

“For Indian IT industry, the government continues to be the major source of business,” said CN Raghupathi, vice-president, India business, Infosys. “With various e-governance initiatives at its nascent stage, the opportunity is enormous.”

“The rollout of Aadhar itself provides a lot of opportunities,” said Apporva Ruparel, head, India business, iGate. “There are 17 categories of direct cash subsidy… to be rolled out in 643 districts. In value terms this would throw up a huge number.”

Apart from Aadhar, various Central and state e-governance projects, such as digitisation of land records, implementation of smart-grids in electricity distribution companies and the computerisation of state treasuries will result in sizable contracts.

Tamil Nadu has finished bidding process for computerisation of its state tax department. Other states including Maharashtra are soon expected to come up with bids. For the smart-grid implementation, eight bids are underway.

All this does not necessarily mean a smooth flow of business for IT companies. "There is a fair degree of unpredictability as these are government projects," said a senior executive, who wished to be not identified.

The government is expected to play a major role in the future of the Indian IT market.

India’s IT market is expected to grow from $10.3 billion (Rs 61,800 crore) in 2012-13 to $13.4 billion (Rs 80,400 crore) this year, and to touch $20 billion (Rs 120,000 crore) by 2020.

Source: http://www.hindustantimes.com/business-news/SectorsBPOs/Infy-iGate-others-in-queue-for-Rs-1-00-000-cr-govt-IT-contracts/Article1-1092418.aspx
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iGate Gets 5-Year $100M Outsourcing Order from US MetLife

Outsourcing services company iGate Corp. (IGTE) Tuesday said it has received a five-year contract worth more than $100 million to offer information technology infrastructure solutions to U.S. life insurer MetLife Inc. (MET).

As part of the deal, iGate said in a statement, it will manage the IT systems of the U.S. company and provide applications support and enterprise network services. iGate is U.S.-based and listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market, employing 28,000 people, mainly in India.

Some parts of the contract were previously managed by a major U.S. IT services company and one of the top Indian outsourcing companies, Sanjay Tugnait, executive vice president and head of sales for North America at iGate, told the Wall Street Journal.

iGate, which already has a 10-year outsourcing partnership with MetLife, said the deal will be based on a business model where the company charges the client using an outcome-based pricing approach.

It's Official; Tech Mahindra Completes Merger of Satyam

Once a darling of the Indian IT sector and the stock market, the scam-hit erstwhile Satyam has formally ceased to exist as an individual entity by formally merging with Tech Mahindra.

Its journey saw a fraud bringing down the company's valuation by over 95 per cent within weeks, while a subsequent revival brought in an over 10-fold surge from the dumps.

Still, it is the remains of this once scam-hit company on which its saviour Tech Mahindra will bank upon significantly to move up the ladders of the Indian IT sector charts, say industry experts.
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IT industry will grow 13-14%: Som Mittal

Software industry body Nasscom expects the country's information technology (IT) services sector to grow 13-14 per cent in the current financial year and to touch $225 billion (Rs 13.22 lakh crore) by 2020. Speaking to reporters after addressing Nasscom's EmergeOut Conclave here, the industry body's president, Som Mittal, said the sector had been growing at a compound annual growth rate of 12-13 per cent till two years earlier, and reaching the $225 billion target was not impossible.

The first main driver will be new geographies. At present, the US, the UK and other European markets contribute to around 90 per cent of the total business, while other markets, including India, China and Latin America, contribute the rest.

"Only three per cent of the business we do in China and Japan, which shows there is plenty of opportunities in those markets," said Mittal. Many small companies have now started focussing only on these markets. "Our estimate is that around 20 per cent of the business would come from new geographies by 2020," said Mittal.
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Infosys eyes IT, BPO arms of European companies

Infosys is looking to acquire technology and back-office services arms of European companies as they open up to the idea of outsourcing such work with an eye on cutting costs. The deals that Infosys is chasing could give it committed business worth $40- $250 million (Rs 240 crore-Rs 1,500 crore) over three to five years, the Europe head of India's second-largest software firm said. Such transactions typically involve upfront payment for buying the facilities of corporations as well as taking over their employees.

"There are quite a few opportunities we are participating in. For clients, it is about cost-optimisation but at the same time they don't want employees to be impacted," said InfosysBSE -0.01 % board member BG Srinivas, who also heads the financial services business division. "We are open to rebadging employees because we are continuing to invest in Europe."

Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/euro-trail-infosys-eyes-it-bpo-arms-of-european-companies/articleshow/21076918.cms
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Wipro BPO win Best Project with Organizational Impact Award

Wipro  Ltd., a leading Global Information Technology, Consulting and Outsourcing company announced that the American Society for Quality (ASQ) has recognized Wipro BPO for a Six Sigma Project implemented for a customer. The project was recognized by ASQ and voted on by attendees of the 2013 World Conference on Quality and Improvement as Best Project with 'Organizational Impact' at the International Team Excellence Awards, Indianapolis, USA.

The awards recognize and commend the impact of quality on customer relationships. The finalists of the "International Team Excellence Awards" comprised of 32 teams from across the world and global organizations spanning industries including Automobiles, Manufacturing, Pharmaceuticals, Financial Services & Insurance, Telecom, Military, Energy, Housing and ITeS.

Thursday, July 11, 2013

HCL Technologies may lay off over 100 employees in Finland

Noida-based HCL Technologies may lay off some employees in Finland. These employees are among those who were servicing phone maker Nokia from its on-shore centres.

The company had entered into a long-term agreement with the Finnish mobile phone manufacturer for a global IT infrastructure management outsourcing services in January.

“There could be some lay offs. We will take around six weeks to decide and comply with all the formalities under the European law,” a HCL Technology official told Business Line on request of anonymity.

An official statement from the company said “Any change to requirements in client projects is essentially a matter of discussion between HCL, its client(s) and unions where needed. We do not respond to speculation on such matters.”

According to sources, the lay off numbers may be little more than 100. The company did not give the total number of employees working across Finland.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) was also part of the service agreement with Nokia. This was part of the phone maker’s plans to cut over 1,000 IT jobs, including 820 employees who were transferred to HCL and TCS. Earlier this month, TCS had said it may lay off around 290 employees working for Nokia.

Source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/info-tech/hcl-technologies-may-lay-off-over-100-employees-in-finland/article4860732.ece?ref=wl_industry-and-economy
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NAB culling IT jobs: Australia

NATIONAL Australia Bank has been urged to be more transparent with redundancy figures amongst technology workers with unions confirming more than 90 jobs have been affected.

The Australian yesterday reported that NAB staff sources and management were at odds with the number of technology roles impacted by a move to outsource IT testing to Infosys.

NAB said 26 people have been made redundant but some affected staff say it's about 95 workers.

The cuts have affected all parts of the group, including its wealth management arm MLC.

Finance Sector Union national assistant secretary Geoff Derrick said: "we have heard from our members that their work is being outsourced (to Infosys) and probably offshored".

Mr Derrick said more than 90 people are affected but "not all in one go", a view shared by affected employees who spoke to The Australian.

NAB workers have been conducting "knowledge transfer" sessions with Infosys and they would be let go once that was completed, he said.

Mr Derrick said the union was having difficulty getting a straight answer from NAB on whether local jobs would be sent overseas.
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Telstra to outsource 170 jobs to Infosys

Telstra will outsource the roles of 170 full-time staff and 90 contractors from one of its fastest-growing business units to India, with Indian supplier ­Infosys understood to be picking up the work.

The redundancies from Telstra’s network applications and services division announced on Tuesday are the latest in a series of staff cuts at the telecommunications giant. In May, it indicated plans to overhaul its 15,000-strong internal operations divisions.

The NAS division, which generated $636 million in revenues in the half-year ending December 31, 2012, sells services such as cloud computing and video conferencing. It is Telstra’s fastest-growing segment with plans to increase the business in Asia.

Source: BRW

Rise in H-1B must for US economy: 100 IT CEOs

More than 100 top American CEOs from technology sector, including those from Facebook, Google and Microsoft, have appealed to the Senate to approve the comprehensive immigration bill, which they said will open a new path to the country's innovation and economic strength.

In a letter to all members of the Senate, the CEOs said they strongly believe the reforms in the bill, that impact high skilled immigration including key improvements in the availability of both green cards and H-1B visas, will help address the national talent shortage in the near-term.

In addition, it will also create a long-term pipeline of American workers through establishing a much-needed new fund for science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education, including computer science education, said the letter from more than 100 executives from the technology sector and leading innovation advocacy organisations.

The comprehensive immigration bill (S.744) will also protect and better prepare American workers, and enable employers and entrepreneurs of all sizes in every state to recruit and retain the world's best talent, the letter said.

"Senate approval of S.744 is essential for our economy to continue to foster innovation and invigorate many US business sectors through an educated and highly skilled workforce of domestic and foreign-born talent," it said.

Read More at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/outsourcing/Rise-in-H-1B-must-for-US-economy-100-IT-CEOs/articleshow/20712406.cms

Worried Indian IT companies hope for softer version of Immigration bill

The US Senate has approved a bill which could result in adverse consequences for India's information technology industry, but software companies are hoping that the final version will not be too harsh for them.

In a clear sign that the last word on the issue has not been said, there was good news for Indian IT from the lower chamber of Congress - the House of Representatives' judiciary committee approved an immigration bill focussed on high-skilled workers that is favourable to the software industry.

The bill was passed on Thursday with support from Republicans, hours after the Senate approved a bipartisan immigration reform bill with provisions to make temporary work visas harder and costlier to obtain.

A bill becomes law after it is passed by the House, the Senate and is signed by the president.
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Zensar in acquisition talks with two US firms

Outsourcing services provider Zensar Technologies is in acquisition talks with at least two US-based companies to boost its offerings in its largest export market.

A deal could cost Zensar between $20 million and $50 million, its chief executive officer, Ganesh Natarajan, said in a phone interview from the company's headquarters in Pune.

The Indian company, being advised by boutique financial advisory firm The Chesapeake Group, is talking to firms specializing in either managing large, complex computer networks or providing business software management consultancy, he said.

A possible acquisition could add 150-200 local staff in the computer networks area, or about 60-70 consultants specializing in the use of business management software from SAP, Natarajan said.

"We've been at it in the last four months... if we get the right fit, we can certainly do it during this year," he said.
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Australia's new visa restrictions to hurt Indian IT companies

Australia has followed the United States and Canada in tightening up its work visa programme, hurting Indian IT firms who now cannot place workers using the visas at client sites and must advertise in Australia to prove there is a genuine skill shortage.

Nomura expects the new rules to affect Indian IT companies' time and materials contracts and increase the amount of planning and time taken to obtain a visa. The companies will have to justify the number the number of visas required and provide workers on the visas with employment terms and conditions similar to those offered to Australian workers.

Infosys and Satyam, owned by Tech Mahindra, have the highest exposure to Australia, with about 8-9% of invoices coming from the continent, Nomura analyst Ashwin Mehta said in a note to clients.

Tata Consultancy Services has also been dragged into a visa row in Australia. A former employee was quoted by a local TV channel ABC as saying that TCS abused that country's work-visa scheme by not making an honest attempt to hire qualified local citizens, and instead bringing in Indian engineers on visa. TCS said those allegations were "completely false and inaccurate" and that it was fully compliant with the visa rules. 

Indians Are Workaholic, Checks Work Emails On Vacations Too

Indian professionals are workaholic and check work related emails on their vacations too, according to a latest survey conducted by travel portal, reports Times Of India. The survey carried out by TripAdvisor on what the professionals do when they are on a vacation trip has come up with quite a surprising results. Among the top three things in the must-do list were eating out at popular restaurants in the city (78 percent), visiting local tourist spots (75 percent), catching up with friends in that city (66 percent). And surprisingly, Indians preferred friends over relatives, to hangout out with, on their travel. The survey was conducted among 1500 actively employed professionals of whom over 75 percent travel often or occasionally for work.

Another find is that, Indian professionals are most addicted to work with a whopping 82 percent admitted to checking work e-mails while on vacation.
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Best Job Search Websites In India

There are many websites in India that caters to the people in need for a job. They do more than just provide a database of job listings to search however. Many of them host your résumé and try to make it as visible as possible to employers looking for the perfect staff. Some even take advantage of social networking to get your foot in the door. So which one will you select? To help you out, here is the compilation of 7 best websites that differ from others on the very base of credibility.

Robert Hellmann, the author of Your Social Media Job Search, in an interview with Forbes, recommends that your job hunt consist of 80 percent personal networking, 10 percent talking to headhunters, and only that last 10 percent for online searches and applications.

Read on to know the list as compiled by PCMag.

#7 Glassdoor
Glassdoor is a free jobs and careers community that offers the world an inside look at jobs and companies. The site offers "employee-generated content" – anonymous salaries, company reviews, interview questions and more – all posted by employees, job seekers and sometimes the companies themselves. Now with nearly 3 million salaries and reviews, you have all the information you might need to make your next career decision.

With Glassdoor's proprietary JobScope technology, job seekers have a new way to browse job listings and get instant, in-depth details for any job listing. It also offers detailed information about specific jobs at specific companies – all free.

#6 Simply Hired
“Looking for a job shouldn't be a full-time job! That's why we built the biggest, smartest job search engine on the web. We search thousands of job sites and companies, so you don't have to,” the site states. Besides making things easy, Simply Hired also connects your social networks with job search. Its “Who Do I Know” feature allows you to discover your friends and personal connections at each company alongside your job search results.

Similar in look and feel to Indeed, Simply Hired pulls listings from thousands of sites across the Web, including job boards, company career sites, newspapers, non-profit organizations, government sites, and more. Creating an account allows you to name, save, and manage searches; manage email alerts; revisit jobs you've already viewed; rate and save notes about jobs you've viewed; and block specific companies or sites from showing up in your searches. Simply Hired's frequently updated blog offers excellent advice for job seekers.

#5 LinkedIn
This largest network of professionals in the world sure is a place to hunt for a job. As a LinkedIn member, you'll join 225 million other professionals who are sharing connections, ideas, and opportunities. So your profile is essentially your résumé, listing all your work experience and skills, and connecting you with contacts. Employers can list jobs on the site to recruit the best candidates, the listings are available for you to search, and of course, it's a great site for investigating potential employers. Some companies will let you apply with nothing more than your LinkedIn profile. If you see one of your LinkedIn connections is LinkedIn with someone at a company you're applying to, you can ask them to introduce you. LinkedIn's ability to connect you to others in your field (and beyond) makes it arguably the strongest job search weapon in your arsenal.

#4 Craigslist
The site hosts local classifieds and forums - community moderated, and largely free.Jobs, housing, goods, services, romance, local activities, advice - just about anything really. Though you can't sign up for email updates or post your résumé—but Craigslist certainly has plenty of jobs to offer and it specializes in finding openings in your vicinity. Listings aren't pulled in from other aggregator sites; they're all individually posted by employers. Jobs categories can be pretty broad though, so the downside is you may have to look harder to find that perfect position.

#3 Monster
It is the oldest of all job search engines in the world, and was launched almost 20 years ago. Internationally known and highly regarded, it lists hourly, part-time, and full-time jobs in practically every career field. But it's more than just a search site; Monster also provides tons of articles with advice for getting the most out of your job search, your résumé, interviews, and your career. The privacy feature that blocks specific companies from seeing your résumé is a lifesaver if you don't want your current employer to know you're looking for a new job. Monster is also the owner of the BeKnown service/app for Facebook, which puts your job search front and center on the world's biggest social network.

#2 CareerBuilder
CareerBuilder is one of the India's fastest growing online job site. It has more than 23 million unique visitors a month. It reaches top job seekers across India, including: Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Chennai, Calcutta, and Hyderabad. It is based on the motto “Employee-Driven. Customer-Focused.”

You can store up to five résumés and cover letters publicly or privately, and create up to five personal search agents to receive emailed job listings daily or weekly. If you're unsure about where to start, upload your résumé to CareerBuilder and the site will scan it and match jobs according to your experience. If you don't have a résumé, simply search for jobs within CareerBuilder and the site will recommend positions based on your experience.

#1 Indeed
Indeed is top job site in the world, with over 80 million unique visitors and 1.5 billion job searches per month. Indeed is available in more than 50 countries and 26 languages, covering 94 percent of global GDP. It is based on one motto “One Search. All Jobs.”

The site is totally free to join and has listings aggregated from thousands of company websites and job boards across all fields. If you're not sure where to start, Indeed has tips to help. You don't even have to keep revisiting the site; it will help you set up searches that arrive in your inbox, or you can paste a URL for search results into an RSS reader for a constant feed.
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Why it's not business as usual at HCL Tech

HCL Technologies is running an internal campaign whose goal is to bring the mindsets of the company's top executives in line with the fundamental changes in the global technology outsourcing market.

Called Reset, the initiative is meant to drive home the message that it is not business as usual and that organizations such as HCL Technologies must acknowledge and be able to respond to clients who are no more looking for discrete technology components, but want technology to deliver concrete business value.
Read More at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/software-services/Why-its-not-business-as-usual-at-HCL-Tech/articleshow/20999537.cms 
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Why Infosys is losing momentum in every vertical

Infosys's overall revenues dropped below that of Cognizant last year. But what must be worrying the IT company more is its loss of momentum in almost every vertical. And in both its flagship verticals - BFSI (banking , financial services & insurance ) and manufacturing - its rank has dropped.

In BFSI, Infosys's revenue in the March quarter of fiscal 2011 was $571.9 million and this grew modestly to $657 million in March 2013. But Cognizant's revenue grew from $570 million to $855 million in the same period , pushing Infosys to No. 3 in that space. In fact, Cognizant surpassed Infosys in this vertical in the June quarter of fiscal 2012.

Read more at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/software-services/Why-Infosys-is-losing-momentum-in-every-vertical/articleshow/20938410.cms
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India, China to have most software developers by 2019

According to the recently released Evans Data Worldwide Developer Population and Demographics Study, the total developer population worldwide is expected to increase to 26.4 million by 2019, up from 18.2 million today.

The strongest growth is expected in the APAC region with India and China leading all countries in expected developer population growth.

Russia is also expected to provide strong growth and dominate the Eastern European region. Slower growth is predicted for North America and Eastern Europe, while Latin America is expected to continue on a moderate growth cycle.

"APAC has shown the strongest growth for several years," said Janel Garvin, CEO of Evans Data. "India is, of course, the main powerhouse that's driving such a strong surge in developers in that region, but China is also starting to come online and we expect that once it hits its potential China will become a rival to India on sheer numbers of developers," added Garvin.

The Worldwide Developer Population and Demographics Study is the result of exhaustive secondary research from respected sources including the World Bank data center, CIA World Factbook, US Census, Mobile World Congress, International Monetary Fund, National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER), and numerous other regional and country-specific sources.

These data inputs are combined in a proprietary computer model to forecast population growth in the coming years. Additionally, Evans' Global Development survey is over-layered on the population model to predict number of developers using a particular platform or language or adopting a particular technology.
Source: http://www.ciol.com/ciol/features/191456/india-china-software-developers-2019
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Wipro BPO rated among top global F&A service providers

Software services major Wipro today said its BPO has been rated among the top global Finance and Accounting (F&A) service providers by analyst firm HfS Research.

Wipro BPO has been positioned among the top worldwide Finance and Accounting service providers by HfS Research in its "Blueprint Report on Finance and Accounting BPO", authored by analysts Phil Fersht and Brian Dubiel, the company said in a release.

The report credits Wipro for its long standing reputation for delivering BPO competency particularly in F&A, price competitiveness and solution flexibility along with experience in providing end-to-end support for F&A services.

It also mentions the company's strong passion and capabilities in developing technology platforms to support BPO prowess.

Wipro in a release said: "The report ratings are based on a broad range of stakeholders with specific weightings derived from 1,355 crowd-sourced responses that include buyers, service providers, industry influencers (sourcing advisors), sourcing executive council members and analysts.
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Jobs fair and unemployment info sessions planned for laid-off IBM workers

The state is offering more unemployment information sessions and now a job fair for laid-off workers from IBM and other Vermont businesses. All events will be held at the Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center in South Burlington.

The Rapid Response unemployment information sessions are scheduled back-to-back for Thursday: two morning sessions from 9 to 10:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. to noon. Workshops will include resume writing, interviewing skills and information on financial restructuring after a layoff, according to a news release from the Vermont Department of Labor.

An Employer and Training Provider Job Fair is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Monday. A list of employers planning to attend was not available as of publication time; booths will include employers, training service providers, financial advisers and health care program representatives.

Read more at: http://vtdigger.org/2013/07/10/jobs-fair-and-unemployment-info-sessions-planned-for-laid-off-ibm-workers/#sthash.scoGMQLX.dpuf
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IBM’s new Morocco centre to create 400 jobs

IBM has announced a new Global Delivery Center in Casablanca that will create up to 400 IT roles in Morocco over the next three years.

The center will enable IBM to deliver a range of innovative technology services to clients in Morocco and across French-speaking Africa. It will also offer IBM clients in the region high value application development, application maintenance and systems integration services.

It will address the increasing demand for flexible software capability to harness the benefits of emerging technologies such as big data, cloud and mobile. IBM is working closely with the Moroccan government and local universities, and the Center is expected to help stimulate economic activity in the country.

Microsoft headed for big management shake-up?

Microsoft will unveil its biggest management reorganization in at least five years, to better compete in a world of mobile devices and web-based services, according to the technology blog AllThingsD.

The changes will shift the duties and responsibilities of many top Microsoft executives and are intended to eliminate overlap within the 98,000-employee company, AllThingsD reported on Monday, citing anonymous sources.

A new cloud computing and business-focused products unit would be headed by Satya Nadella, who currently oversees Microsoft's server business, according to a Bloomberg report last week. Julie Larson-Green, the current co-head of Microsoft's Windows operating system business, will lead the company's hardware efforts, including the Xbox video game console and the Surface tablets, Bloomberg said.
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IBM, Jet Airways sign 10-year call centre deal

IT giant IBM will manage the customer call centre, including providing improved analytics capabilities and a 'refreshed' IT infrastructure, for Jet Airways, India's second-largest airline by passengers carried, the two companies announced.

Under the 10-year contract, IBM will provide contact centre and back-office services for the airline's 11 lines of business such as domestic and international reservations, Jet Privilege program, cargo, refunds and helpdesk services. The arrangement is an extension of their three-year relationship under which Jet says the IBM helped transform its core IT Infrastructure.

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

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Wipro wins large technology outsourcing contract worth Rs 2,900 crore from Citigroup

Wipro has won a large technology outsourcing contract, potentially valued at close to $ 500 million (Rs 2,900 crore) from Citigroup, according to people familiar with the development.

The large contract comes at a time when such multi-hundred-million dollar technology contracts have become few and far between. Large corporations in the United States and Europe have been cautious on technology spending and following a practice of breaking up outsourced contracts into smaller projects, which are given out to multiple service providers.

Rupee depreciation: Indian IT cos like Infosys, TCS and Wipro finally have something to cheer about

The Indian technology sector, hobbled by concerns over the US immigration bill, margin pressure due to rising employee and visa cost, lower growth, and deprecation of the rupee, may finally have something to cheer.

The rupee has depreciated 9.87%, or Rs 5.35, against the dollar since April this year. According to analysts, this might translate into gains in operating profit by 100 to 250 basis points for the Indian technology companies.

Former employees say TCS abused Australia visa

Former employees have accused Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) of abusing Australia's migrant worker visa designed to import talent to fill skills shortages.

According to a report Friday by the Australian Broadcast Corporation (ABC), TCS, which is India's biggest outsourcer by revenues, flouted rules outlined under the 457 visa scheme and imported cheap, foreign workers without first attempting to recruit local talent.

An anonymous former TCS employee told the ABC that if the Indian company needed a new developer, they would not perform the required step to advertise for an Australian worker. "We just contacted the local area manager and he would send a developer on the next plane from Mumbai," the employee said.

TCS, which holds multi-million dollar contracts with Australia's biggest companies, refused to comment on the allegations.

Another former employee of TCS, Hasan Mahboob, said the 457 visa scheme was overused.

"I'd certainly seen heavy use of 457 visa, starting from the very top management-level people, ro relationship managers, account managers, service delivery managers, project managers, program managers, and business analysts--all of which I question should be done by 457 visa," Mahboob said.

Sources:
http://www.zdnet.com/in/former-employees-say-tcs-abused-australia-visa-7000017191/
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-06-20/workers-accuse-indian-it-giant-of-457-visa-abuse/4769482

HCL Tech gains after multi-year engagement with Vestas Wind Systems

Vestas is a global leader in manufacturing, selling, installing, and servicing of wind turbine power-plants.

HCL will provide application development and management and IT-consultancy services to applications run by Vestas as part of this engagement. The services will be delivered to Vestas primarily from India, but also from the Philippines and across locations in Denmark. Besides cost reduction, Vestas IT expects to gain increased flexibility in terms of skills, scale, knowledge and experience and achieve higher quality by using the HCL's best in class processes and services.

Expanding the H1B Foreign Work Visa Quota Would Help Small Businesses Most

A sweeping immigration reform bill was introduced to the Senate in April, and legislators are poised to begin debate over one of the most contentious issues in the country.

Besides the most important issue of illegal immigration, another key provision of the bill is the expansion in the number of H1B temporary work visas for workers with college degrees or in skilled occupations from the current cap of 65,000 a year to 110,000.

As is true of illegal immigration, the issue of legal work immigration is contentious, with many voices supporting the plan to expand the number of H1B visas granted each year, and many others opposing it.

Read more at http://www.minyanville.com/business-news/politics-and-regulation/articles/Expanding-the-H1B-Foreign-Work-Visa/6/12/2013/id/50294#ixzz2XBNPHkqy
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Narayana Murthy effect: Infosys plans high salary for top performers

Infosys is drawing up plans to tilt the scales in favour of top performers, part of efforts to revitalise the workforce after NR Narayana Murthy returned as its chairman on June 1.

According to company executives briefed about Murthy's thinking, the emphasis on employee performance as a vital differentiator is linked to a broader effort to revive a culture of meritocracy in the company that has underperformed the industry for two years. "The differential between high-performers and non-performers will increase. Variable pay will be one mechanism through which this will be achieved," said a person aware of Murthy's plans.

Murthy, 66, returned as executive chairman of Infosys following a request from the company's board, which was under pressure from investors and analysts fretting about the company's troubles. Infosys grew at half the pace of the broader industry in 2012-13 and has admitted that it will lag rivals this year too.

At present, employees with the top ratings receive 50-90% of their variable salary while the lowest-rated ones get only up to 30%. Typically, 10-25% of an executive's compensation can be variable, depending on seniority.

Besides individual performance, the relative performance of the business unit also becomes a key deciding factor.

1.4 crore people joined workforce as on Jan 2012

India added nearly 1.4 crore people to the workforce as on January 2012, up 3 per cent from the same month in 2010, official data showed on Thursday.

"...the workforce at the all-India level, was about 45.9 crore as on January 1, 2010 (NSS 66th round) which increased to 47.29 crore on January 1, 2012 (NSS 68th round), indicating a growth of about 1.39 crore of the workforce at the all-India level between 66th round and 68th round," a release by National Sample Survey Office said today.

The NSSO data was based on 68th round survey conducted during July 2011-June 2012, it said. Of the 47.29 crore people employed, 23.46 crore were rural males, 10.18 crore rural females, 10.92 crore urban males and 2.73 crore urban female, it said.
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Google voted best workplace in India, followed by Intel and American Express

Flying in from all corners of the country, braving monsoon rains and traffic jams in Mumbai, the HR chiefs and CEOs of leading companies queued up at a suburban hotel last Friday, with one question in mind: How had they fared in the coveted list- India's Best Companies To Work For.

Given that India Inc is in the throes of a slowdown, talent management has become crucial as industries marshal resources against the tough times. So this year's The Economic Times and The Great Place To Work Institute study had special importance. For some years, the study has provided the industry with a much-needed barometer to judge how companies fare on the people front.

The 2013 study, one of the largest in the world, covered 550 companies spanning 22 industries, surveying 98,998 employees. So it was but natural for the 60 CEOs and some 300 HR chiefs to wait with bated breath as the list was read out. In the end it was Google which once again took the top honour of being the best workplace in India.
Source: EconomicTimes
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Firms seek grads who can think fast, work in teams

They can get good grades, earn a diploma and breeze through that campus rite of spring, the job interview. But college graduates still might not land a decent job.

The world's top employers are pickier than ever. And they want to see more than high marks and the right degree.

They want graduates with so-called soft skills _ those who can work well in teams, write and speak with clarity, adapt quickly to changes in technology and business conditions and interact with colleagues from different countries and cultures.

``Soft skills tend to differentiate good college graduates from exceptional college graduates,'' says Joseph Krok, university research liaison at Britain's Rolls-Royce.

To find out what employers are seeking from university graduates around the world, The Associated Press talked to dozens of corporate recruiters, university career counselors, economists and students. What's clear is that companies increasingly want skills that don't show up in a college transcript or a sit-down interview.

``What the employers want is a well-rounded student,'' says Jean Manning-Clark, director of the Colorado School of Mines' career center. ``The ones that get 10 to 12 job offers are the ones who have strong soft skills.''

And companies are going to ever-greater lengths to identify the students who have the right mix of skills by observing them in role-playing exercises to see how they handle pressure and get along with others, relying more on applicants who have already proved themselves in internships and co-op jobs in which students work while attending school, and organizing contests that reveal how students solve problems and handle deadline pressure.

``It used to be that the interview itself was where you made or broke your chances with a company,'' says Dan Black, head of campus recruiting in the Americas for the accounting and consulting firm Ernst & Young. ``Now the assessment is a much longer and broader process.''
Read More at : EconomicTimes
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47% graduates in India are unemployable for any job: Report

At least 47% of graduates in India are not employable for any industry role, according the latest report by employability solutions firm Aspiring Minds.

The report is based on a pan-India study of 60,000 graduates across colleges.

According to the report, 47% graduates are not employable in any sector of the knowledge economy. The employability of graduates varies from 2.59% in functional roles such as accounting to 15.88% in sales-related roles and 21.37% for roles in the business process outsourcing (BPO/ITeS) sector.

A significant proportion of graduates, nearly 47%, were found not employable in any sector, given their lack of proficiency in English and cognitive skills.

Since a graduation degree is considered a pathway to a job in the knowledge economy, substantive intervention at the school and college level is needed to improve basic skills of students. A renewed focus on vocational training should be re-emphasised, said the report.

The employability varies from role to role based on varying degrees of proficiency required in language and cognitive skills.

For an analyst's role, close to 84% graduates were found to lack the right levels in cognitive ability, while 90% graduates did not have the required proficiency in English communication. As a result, less than 3% of India's graduates remain unemployable across different job profiles. These numbers change dramatically for a teaching role or a sales or support role in the industry.

Over 40% employable graduates are beyond the top 30% colleges and have no way to signal their employability to potential recruiters.

41% of graduates employable in accounting roles hail from colleges beyond the top 30% colleges, whereas for the IT services sector this percentage is 36%.

Despite being employable, these students have no way to signal their employability to recruiters who end up recruiting only from reputed colleges and universities.

"This study is a first of its kind for three-year degree graduates across India evaluating employability for major roles being offered by industry. The alarming statistics of nearly half of the country's graduates not being employable in the knowledge economy needs great attention with interventions at both the school and higher education levels," Varun Aggarwal, co-founder, Aspiring Minds said in a statement.
Source: Aspiring Minds

Friday, June 21, 2013

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16 Indian companies in emerging top 100 software vendors list

As many as 16 Indian companies have made it to the list of top 100 software vendors in the emerging markets, commanding a combined revenue of $797 million, says a PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report.

The latest PwC global 100 software leaders report also says that in terms of revenue, India was ranked fifth among the emerging markets in 2011.

In terms of software revenue among emerging markets China topped the list with $2,738 million, followed by Israel $1,174 million (2nd), Russia $1,015 million (3rd), Brazil $945 million (4th) and India $797 million (5th).

Meanwhile, Geodesic was ranked 14 on the list of software services revenue, followed by OnMobile (21), Subex (26), Infosys (27), TCS (29), FT India (35) and Tally Solutions (39).

Among other Indian firms, Cranes Software was placed in the 44th position in the list, followed by 3i Infotech (60), Newgen Software (62), Ramco Systems (64), Persistent (65), KLG Systel (71), Polaris Software (72), Educomp Solutions (85) and Teledata Technology (89).

"Emerging markets are poised to play an increasingly pivotal role in the global software industry. Focus on innovation, growing talent pool and government support are just some of the advantages of this market segment," the report said.

Meanwhile, the number of software product firms has grown over the last decade from a little over 100 in 2000 to nearly 2,400 in 2013, it said.

According to the industry body NASSCOM, the revenue from the software product segment currently stands at $2.2 billion and is expected to reach $10 billion by 2020.

The PwC report noted that software-as-a-service is gaining traction. Moreover, industry consolidation and increasing globalisation are also transforming the software sector.

"The Indian IT industry has been primarily identified with software services and this focus has relegated the software products segment to the background. However, of late, we are seeing a change in the fortunes of this segment due to significant growth," PwC India Leader Technology Sanjay Dhawan said.

Emerging technologies such as Social media, Mobility, Analytics and Cloud (SMAC) are driving the growth in the software product segment and helping it move to the next level, Dhawan added.
Source: PWC Report
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15 best-paying companies for software engineers

Wonder which are the best paying companies for software engineers? Online jobs and career community Glassdoor’s recent survey claims to reveal just that. The figures collated by Business Insider ranks companies on the basis of the average base salary of their software engineers. Here are the top 15 companies from the list.
  1. Juniper Networks: Juniper Networks makes networking equipment, security products and network operating system. The company offers average base salary of $128,378 to its software engineers, says the survey, the highest in the industry.
  2. Google: Google is a tech titan that is known throughout the world for products like Search, Android, Gmail, Nexus smartphones and tablets, Picasa and online advertising platforms. Software engineers working at the company are paid average base salary of $124,520, according to the Glassdoor survey.
  3. Twitter: Twitter is the microblogging website where users can type messages with only 140 characters; the company claims to have over 500 million registered users. Software engineers earn average base salary of $120,768 at the company, says the survey.
  4. Facebook: Facebook is the biggest social network in the world and has over a billion registered users. As per the Glassdoor survey, the company pays $118,857 as average base salary to software engineers.
  5. Apple: Founded by Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, Apple is a US technology company that makes gadgets like iPhone, iPad, iPod, Mac series of computers etc. Software engineers earn average base salary of $118,192 at the company, the survey shows.
  6. LinkedIn: LinkedIn is the most popular professional networking website in the world, with over 200 million active users across the world. As per respondents in the Glassdoor survey, average base salary of software engineers at the company is $116,375.
  7. Brocade Communications: Brocade Communications is a US technology company that offers data and storage networking products, such as LAN and Wi-Fi switches, routers, network security appliances etc. The company pays average base salary of $111,858 to its software engineers, the survey reveals.
  8. eBay: eBay is one of the biggest online marketplaces where retailers as well as individuals can sell their goods to consumers; it also operates an online auction platform on its website. According to the Glassdoor survey, average base salary of software engineers at eBay is $108,461.
  9. Bloomberg LP: Bloomberg LP, which is well known for its media publications, takes care of data acquisition, distribution and management of enterprises. Software engineers working in the technology arm of the company earn $108,430 as average base salary.
  10. Zynga: Zynga is a social game making company that is best known for hits like Farmville and CityVille that took Facebook by storm. The software engineers employed at the company take home average base salary of $107,242.
  11. PayPal: A unit of online retailer eBay, PayPal is the world’s biggest online payment company. The Glassdoor survey reveals that software engineers at the company are paid average base salary of $106,920.
  12. VMWare: Palo Alto, California- based VMWare makes cloud and virtualisation software and services. According to respondents in the Glassdoor survey, the company’s software engineers get average base salary of $106,568.
  13. Oracle: Oracle, the third biggest software maker in the world, makes database management systems, computer hardware system as well as ERP, CRM and SCM software. The average base salary of software engineers at Oracle is $105,660, as per the survey.
  14. Nvidia: Nvidia is a Santa Clara, California-based company that manufacturers system-on-chips and graphic processing units for mobile devices. The Glassdoor survey says it pays an average base salary of $104,717 to its software engineers.
  15. Microsoft: Microsoft is the biggest software company in the world, best known for its Windows operating system for computers. Other Microsoft products include Surface tablets, Xbox gaming console and Windows Phone mobile operating system. The company offers its engineers average base salary of $103,563, according to the survey.


Source: GlassDoor

Thursday, June 20, 2013

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Mid-tier IT companies Tech Mahindra, MindTree may raise salaries by 7-12%

Mid-tier IT firms such as Tech Mahindra and MindTree may raise salaries by 7-12% this fiscal to ensure they do not lose talent to top players TCS, Infosys and Wipro, according to HR service providers.

The larger players have announced wage hikes ranging between 6% and 10% for this fiscal.

"Current environment is challenging and companies are looking at preserving their bottomline. Despite that, keeping employees' interest in mind, organizations have given hikes ranging from 8-12%, which is a good development."

"In general, we can expect 7-12% hikes for employees working with mid-tier IT companies," Randstad India president (staffing) and director (marketing) Aditya Narayan Mishra told. He added that as the demand for IT services increases in the coming quarters, one can expect above-average hikes.

Last week, Infosys said its employees in India will get on an average 8% increase, while Wipro said it has raised salaries by 6-8%. Onsite employees have seen salaries going up by 2-3%. India's largest software services exporter Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has increased wages by 8-10% in India and 2-4% for overseas workforce. HCL Technologies has started its appraisal process and is expected to make an announcement by July-end. Most Indian IT firms give increments around April or May.

"IT sector has been fairly conservative in terms of pay hike. We recently did a survey, where we asked some of our customers on increments this year and almost 46-47% of the respondents said they are looking at wage hikes between 6-15%," HeadHonchos.com CEO Uday Sodhi said.

IT firms are also looking at the global economic scenario, which still has not been very promising and it plays an important role in determining the hike percentage, he added.
Source: TimesofIndia
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What is keeping India's engineers unemployed

Somewhere between a fifth to a third of the million students graduating out of India's engineering colleges run the risk of being unemployed. Others will take jobs well below their technical qualifications in a market where there are few jobs for India's overflowing technical talent pool. Beset by a flood of institutes (offering a varying degree of education) and a shrinking market for their skills, India's engineers are struggling to subsist in an extremely challenging market.

According to multiple estimates, India trains around 1.5 million engineers, which is more than the US and China combined. However, two key industries hiring these engineers -- information technology and manufacturing -- are actually hiring fewer people than before.

For example, India's IT industry, a sponge for 50-75% of these engineers will hire 50,000 fewer people this year, according to Nasscom. Manufacturing, too, is facing a similar stasis, say HR consultants and skills evaluation firms.

According to data from AICTE, the regulator for technical education in India, there were 1,511 engineering colleges across India, graduating over 550,000 students back in 2006-07. Fuelled by fast growth, especially in the $110 billion outsourcing market, a raft of new colleges sprung up -- since then, the number of colleges and graduates have doubled.

Read More @ TimesOfIndia

Zynga to cut 30 jobs in India

Online gaming company Zynga is laying off at least 30 of its over 400 employees in India as part of a global restructuring. Globally, Zynga , creator of the once wildly popular FarmVille and City-Ville games, is laying off 520 employees, about 18% of its 3,000-strong workforce.

Zynga had not responded to a mail sent by TOI at the time of going to print, but company founder Mark Pincus's letter to employees said the layoff impact would be felt across every group in the company. The word in Zynga India is that at least 6% of the employees here would be impacted. Zynga's Bangalore centre, started in 2010, has rapidly expanded to become the company's second largest operation in the world, after its San Francisco centre. It started as a centre doing core R&D for the company. A year later started a studio that now manages multiple games, developing new content and creating new features for them.

On his first visit to India in April this year, Pincus had said India had been "a terrific investment and experience for us" . That experience and the lower costs may be the reason why the layoffs in India are limited, compared to the global cuts.
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Wipro wins deal worth $500m from Citigroup

Wipro is said to have won a $500-million (Rs 2,900 crore) outsourcing contract from Citigroup. The win will come as a boost for the Bangalore-based company that has been going through a lean patch.

Wipro will provide application development and maintenance, and infrastructure services for Citi's global operations. The five-year engagement requires Wipro to set up an offshore delivery centre in Bangalore, said sources familiar with the development. When TOI contacted Wipro, the company said it does not comment on market speculation. Citi too declined to comment on what they call market speculation.

Citigroup had called for bids for a $1 billion IT contract. TCS, HCL, Infosys, Wipro and Cognizant were said to have put in bids along with IBM, Accenture, Dell and others for this contract. Citi already has large outsourcing deals going with TCS and Wipro. Wipro had acquired Citi Technology Services for $127 million in 2008. Wipro and Citibank had signed an agreement to take over the operations and management of Citi's data centre in Meerbusch, Germany, a suburb of Dusseldorf, in 2010. Wipro had intended to use the site to support other outsourcing clients too. The Meerbusch centre was Wipro's first data centre facility in Europe and enabled the company to offer a full portfolio of infrastructure management solutions to its global clients. TCS had won a $505 million outsourcing contract from Citigroup to handle their core back office processes and customer transactions in 2008.
Source: TimesOfIndia
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H-1B visa: Silicon Valley intensifies lobbying on US immigration bill

Eager to secure more visas for skilled foreign workers, tech companies have stepped up their lobbying this week in support of a comprehensive US immigration reform bill.

Human resources executives from Adobe, Broadcom, Intel, Motorola Solutions and other corporations met with dozens of lawmakers and senior advisers on Wednesday from the congressional committees in charge of immigration laws. They also spoke to a wide array of Democratic and Republican senators including some on-the-fence Republicans, such as Mark Kirk of Illinois and Rob Portman of Ohio, and some who have voiced opposition, including Mike Lee of Utah.

Lawmakers who favor the bill "have been urging us to work with them to make sure that the bill gets passed with the highest number of votes possible," said Robert Hoffman, senior vice president with the Information Technology Industry Council trade group.
Source:EconomicTimes

Finding good job not easy for skilled migrants in Australia: Study

Securing a suitable employment can be a long, difficult and disappointing process for migrants coming to Australia, who often take up jobs that are low-paid and not commensurate to their skills, according to a new study led by an Indian-origin psychology professor.

At the time of being surveyed, over 50 per cent of the participants were unemployed, said the study by the University of Western Sydney (UWS).

While some participants (seven per cent) had secured jobs prior to their arrival, approximately 42 per cent reported spending between 1-6 months looking for jobs and others (23 per cent) reported spending 7-12 months or more than one year (26 per cent) job-searching.

The study report titled 'Apply Apply Negative Reply: Understanding Job-Seeking Experiences of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Job-Seekers in Australia' was led by Renu Narchal from the School of Social Sciences and Psychology.
Source: EconomicTimes
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Cisco to open new centre in Israel

US technology giant Cisco plans to open a new research and development center in Israel, the company's CEO John Chambers said during his meeting with Israel's Minister of Finance Yair Lapid.

The new centre is expected to offer 100 jobs, to be added to about 2,000 employees already working at Cisco center in Israel, reported Xinhua.

Chambers on Tuesday said the new project, whose main focus is information security, would be based on knowledge accumulated at NDS, an Israeli hi-tech company acquired last year by Cisco for $5 billion.
Source: CIOL

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

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TCS non-Indian employee number crosses 21,000

Tata Consultancy Services, India's largest IT services company has more that doubled the number of its non-Indian employees during the last three years.

According to the company, as on 31 March 2013, it had 21,282 non-Indians on its rolls belonging to 118 nationalities. This is an increase of about 20% over the previous years. In 2009-10, the company employed 9,536 foreign nationals.

The company said the highest number of its non-Indian employees are Britishers with a share of close to 19% followed by Americans at 15.4%. About 10% of its non-Indian employees are from China where TCS has a strong presence, the Mumbai-based company said in its annual report for 2012-13.

TCS also said that the company has improved the ratio of women in its total workforce to 32.40% at the end of FY13 as compared to 31.60% as on March 31, 2012. "Our progressive policies and customised programmes such as executive education programme for women in mid-management, interactive forums and women discussion circles address the aspirations and needs of our women employees," it added in the report.
Source: Business-Standard
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Big data to create 4.4 mn jobs by 2015

Worldwide IT spending is forecast to surpass $3.7 trillion in 2013, a 3.8 per cent increase from 2012 projected spending of $3.6 trillion, but it is the outlook for big data that is creating much excitement, according to Gartner.

"By 2015, 4.4 million IT jobs globally will be created to support big data, generating 1.9 million IT jobs in the United States," said Peter Sondergaard, senior vice president, Gartner and global head of Research. "In addition, every big data-related role in the US will create employment for three people outside of IT, so over the next four years a total of 6 million jobs in the US will be generated by the information economy."

"But there is a challenge. There is not enough talent in the industry. Our public and private education systems are failing us. Therefore, only one-third of the IT jobs will be filled. Data experts will be a scarce, valuable commodity," Sondergaard said. "IT leaders will need immediate focus on how their organization develops and attracts the skills required. These jobs will be needed to grow your business. These jobs are the future of the new information economy."
Source: CIOL
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27 percent Indian staff set to switch jobs

Globally, the number of workers taking flight is expected to reach 161.7 million in 2014 - a 12.9 per cent increase in people leaving compared to 2012, says a Hay Group study.

Over the next five years, 49 million more employees as compared to 2012 are going to leave their current employers and switch jobs, global management consultancy, Hay Group's new research, in association with the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), has revealed.
As far as India is concerned, it finds itself in the eye of the storm, with a predicted employee turnover of 26.9 per cent (in the organized sector) in 2013 - the highest attrition rate globally.

The study, Preparing for Take-Off, covers 700 million employees in 19 countries worldwide and is based on a unique Hay Group macroeconomic model that analyzes the main factors affecting employee turnover across the globe, stated a release.
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TCS, HCL among front-runners for Pepsi outsourcing contract

Contract, held by HP, up for renewal later this year; may be split and handed out to more than one service provider. Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) and HCL Technologies Ltd are among the front-runners to win an outsourcing contract from PepsiCo Inc. valued at about $500 million (around Rs.2,925 crore today), according to two people familiar with the development.

The contract, held by Hewlett-Packard Co. (HP), will be up for renewal later this year. It is likely to be split and handed out to more than one service provider mostly for handling infrastructure management services, the two people said, requesting anonymity as they are not authorized to discuss these details.

Pepsi had signed the contract with HP, the world’s largest computer firm, in 2006 for a total value of $100 million for managing its information technology (IT) and data centre operations, according to outsourcing advisory firm Everest Group. Pepsi also has outsourcing agreements with International Business Machines Corp., or IBM, which runs the finance and administration processes of the soft drink maker’s Indian arm.
Source: LiveMint

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