India's third largest software exporter Wipro said it would hike salaries across the board this quarter, but did not indicate quantum.
According to Pratik Kumar, corporate vice president, human resources, the salary hike will be given out in February. He added, “The hike will be according to the industry standards.”
Wipro beat estimates with a 19 percent rise in December quarter profit and projected growth as a global economic recovery boosts demand for outsourcing services and eases pressure on fees.
New York-listed Wipro expects its IT services revenue to rise 3.6-5.4 percent in January-March from the preceding quarter to $1.16-$1.18 billion, after it posted a 4.9 percent sequential rise in the latest quarter.
The company also announced that it will hire people from campuses. Some 7,500 people hired previously are expected to join in Q4 and early next quarter.
Last week Tata Consultancy Services also announced that it expects to increase wages in the 2011 financial year.
TCS global head of HR Ajoy Mukherjee said the company has decided to give salary increments during financial year ending March 2011, although the exact quantum of hike is yet to be decided.
“There definitely will be a wage hike but the quantum is not finalised. We are considering three options,” Mukherjee said. While giving the hikes, the company will maintain the salary structure it moved to in FY10, which consists of a quarterly variable component and an annual variable component.
However, the company so far has no plans to increase the salaries of junior recruits.
Monday, January 25, 2010
IT market
IT cos: Pinkslips in '09, attrition in '10
India's top three outsourcing companies are ramping up hiring and increasing pay as global corporations, mainly from the US, send more work offshore to cut costs as they emerge from the downturn.
Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, and Wipro expanded their global workforces by an average of 5.1 per cent last quarter, together adding 16,701 employees, company documents show -- an early sign that the Great Recession may ultimately benefit India as cost-conscious companies outsource more work, just as they did after the dot-com bust.
Also, after about a year of hiring slowdowns, all three companies are sweetening compensation as the fight to hold on to talented employees in India heats up.
Infosys offered its Indian employees an average 8 per cent pay hike in October, their first raise since April 2008, and executives said last week they are considering another raise to combat rising attrition.
“The market is heating up and we want to retain talent,'' human resources director of Infosys Mohandas Pai told reporters.
Infosys last week raised its gross hiring target for the second time this fiscal year, to 24,000 people. Wipro executives said they plan to offer staffers a raise in February.
Tata Consultancy Services has paid out 150 per cent of performance-linked pay -- which normally amounts to 20 to 45 per cent of compensation -- for the last two quarters, and executives say they will raise salaries next quarter, after a year-long wage freeze.
As demand for workers revives, employers have begun to worry about rising staff turnover. Employees who sat tight during the downturn have started to shop around for better jobs and better salaries.
Attrition at Wipro jumped to 13.4 percent last quarter, up from an average of 8.9 percent over the prior three quarters. Attrition at Infosys rose to 11.6 percent last quarter from 10.9 percent the prior quarter. Attrition at TCS has been stable, at around 11.5 percent, though executives say they expect that number to rise.
Indian firms say they are increasing global hiring, including in the US, as they pursue higher-end work like consulting. But US employees remain a fraction of total staff.
TCS, for example, recently finished hiring 250 Americans for its Cincinnati campus, but US employees still account for less than 0.5 per cent of the company's global workforce.
The employment revival in India's outsourcing sector, which counts on the US for about 60 per cent of global sales, comes as unemployment in the US stagnates around 10 per cent -- near a 26-year high.
Inflation-adjusted wages in the US last year fell 1.6 per cent, the biggest decline since 1990.
“When there is a downturn the compulsion to control costs increases,'' said Dipen Shah, an analyst at Mumbai's Kotak Securities. “The demand for offshoring will increase. That will play to the advantage of Indian IT companies.''
He argues that the cost savings from offshoring has helped US companies survive -- and that's good for the American worker.
“You might say jobs in the US are getting displaced by jobs in India, but because of the value provided by Indian companies and lower costs, there are firms who are able to keep their heads above water and continue to employ their existing employees,'' he said.
TCS, Infosys and Wipro, which can do everything from call center management and claims processing to software development and consulting, all reported stronger than expected results for the December quarter.
Revenues and volumes grew, signaling that the cost-cutting imperative of this last, lean year may be over for India's $60 billion software services industry.
Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, and Wipro expanded their global workforces by an average of 5.1 per cent last quarter, together adding 16,701 employees, company documents show -- an early sign that the Great Recession may ultimately benefit India as cost-conscious companies outsource more work, just as they did after the dot-com bust.
Also, after about a year of hiring slowdowns, all three companies are sweetening compensation as the fight to hold on to talented employees in India heats up.
Infosys offered its Indian employees an average 8 per cent pay hike in October, their first raise since April 2008, and executives said last week they are considering another raise to combat rising attrition.
“The market is heating up and we want to retain talent,'' human resources director of Infosys Mohandas Pai told reporters.
Infosys last week raised its gross hiring target for the second time this fiscal year, to 24,000 people. Wipro executives said they plan to offer staffers a raise in February.
Tata Consultancy Services has paid out 150 per cent of performance-linked pay -- which normally amounts to 20 to 45 per cent of compensation -- for the last two quarters, and executives say they will raise salaries next quarter, after a year-long wage freeze.
As demand for workers revives, employers have begun to worry about rising staff turnover. Employees who sat tight during the downturn have started to shop around for better jobs and better salaries.
Attrition at Wipro jumped to 13.4 percent last quarter, up from an average of 8.9 percent over the prior three quarters. Attrition at Infosys rose to 11.6 percent last quarter from 10.9 percent the prior quarter. Attrition at TCS has been stable, at around 11.5 percent, though executives say they expect that number to rise.
Indian firms say they are increasing global hiring, including in the US, as they pursue higher-end work like consulting. But US employees remain a fraction of total staff.
TCS, for example, recently finished hiring 250 Americans for its Cincinnati campus, but US employees still account for less than 0.5 per cent of the company's global workforce.
The employment revival in India's outsourcing sector, which counts on the US for about 60 per cent of global sales, comes as unemployment in the US stagnates around 10 per cent -- near a 26-year high.
Inflation-adjusted wages in the US last year fell 1.6 per cent, the biggest decline since 1990.
“When there is a downturn the compulsion to control costs increases,'' said Dipen Shah, an analyst at Mumbai's Kotak Securities. “The demand for offshoring will increase. That will play to the advantage of Indian IT companies.''
He argues that the cost savings from offshoring has helped US companies survive -- and that's good for the American worker.
“You might say jobs in the US are getting displaced by jobs in India, but because of the value provided by Indian companies and lower costs, there are firms who are able to keep their heads above water and continue to employ their existing employees,'' he said.
TCS, Infosys and Wipro, which can do everything from call center management and claims processing to software development and consulting, all reported stronger than expected results for the December quarter.
Revenues and volumes grew, signaling that the cost-cutting imperative of this last, lean year may be over for India's $60 billion software services industry.
IT market, Layoffs in USA
Xerox to cut 2,500 jobs
Xerox Corp said that it plans to cut some 2,500 jobs, or five percent of its workforce, in a cost-cutting move aimed at saving some $200 million a year.
Xerox, which had 53,600 employees at the end of December, has already slashed 3,500 jobs starting in late 2008.
The latest job cuts were announced by Xerox chief executive Ursula Burns during a presentation of the photocopier company's fourth-quarter results.
Burns said some of the job losses would come in Europe but did not give a figure. She said the restructuring would cost $280 million this year with $30 million related to Xerox's $6.4-billion acquisition of Affiliated Computer Services, the world's largest diversified business outsourcing firm.
Burns said she expected the ACS acquisition to close next month. "Once completed, Xerox will be the world leader in business process and document management," she said.
The Norwalk, Connecticut-based Xerox said net profit rose to $180 million in the fourth quarter from $1 million in the corresponding quarter a year ago.
Revenue declined by three percent to $4.22 billion, better than the $3.92 billion expected by Wall Street analysts.
"We delivered a strong close to a difficult year, with solid operational results that reflect our disciplined approach to generating cash and reducing costs," Burns said in a statement.
"During the fourth quarter, we saw signs of improvement in several areas including developing markets, and we remain quite confident in our strong global competitive position," she said
"However, we believe revenue will continue to be under pressure until there is a more sustainable economic recovery," Burns said.
"To help offset this challenge, we remain focused on cost and expense management and sizing our business to better match current revenue levels."
Xerox, which had 53,600 employees at the end of December, has already slashed 3,500 jobs starting in late 2008.
The latest job cuts were announced by Xerox chief executive Ursula Burns during a presentation of the photocopier company's fourth-quarter results.
Burns said some of the job losses would come in Europe but did not give a figure. She said the restructuring would cost $280 million this year with $30 million related to Xerox's $6.4-billion acquisition of Affiliated Computer Services, the world's largest diversified business outsourcing firm.
Burns said she expected the ACS acquisition to close next month. "Once completed, Xerox will be the world leader in business process and document management," she said.
The Norwalk, Connecticut-based Xerox said net profit rose to $180 million in the fourth quarter from $1 million in the corresponding quarter a year ago.
Revenue declined by three percent to $4.22 billion, better than the $3.92 billion expected by Wall Street analysts.
"We delivered a strong close to a difficult year, with solid operational results that reflect our disciplined approach to generating cash and reducing costs," Burns said in a statement.
"During the fourth quarter, we saw signs of improvement in several areas including developing markets, and we remain quite confident in our strong global competitive position," she said
"However, we believe revenue will continue to be under pressure until there is a more sustainable economic recovery," Burns said.
"To help offset this challenge, we remain focused on cost and expense management and sizing our business to better match current revenue levels."
Satyam
Satyam to offer pay hikes, bonus
Mahindra Satyam is expected to offer pay hikes and bonus from January. The Hyderabad-based IT services provider, which is in the process of reinstating its accounts, had concluded its annual appraisals in December.
Staff in the S and T bands got pay hikes whereas employees of other higher levels like BI and I were offered associate stock option plans and promotions, according to an official who did not wish to be identified.
The increments ranged between 5% and 20% based on performance for the S band of employees where as T band employees were given 6-7% across-the-board hike.
The S band employees belong to the junior level while the T band people has over two years’ experience.
This apart, the company is said to have offered bonus of 20% of salary to staff across all levels of around 20%. The bonus will be paid at the end of this month.
“We strongly feel that hikes should help bridge some of the concerns and expectations and we have launched quite a few non-monetary and career development initiatives to enrich skills and competencies of our associates. The reinstatement of performance related variable pay along with the salary corrections across levels, has given the necessary confidence to our associates,” said Mukund Menon, head of business HR relations worldwide, Mahindra Satyam.
Employees whom ET spoke to across the bands said it’s getting challenging for the company since there were many exits which was affecting existing business.
However, the company, on its part, is engaged in hiring fresh graduates and also calling back employees from the virtual pool, as attrition seems to be a concern.
Staff in the S and T bands got pay hikes whereas employees of other higher levels like BI and I were offered associate stock option plans and promotions, according to an official who did not wish to be identified.
The increments ranged between 5% and 20% based on performance for the S band of employees where as T band employees were given 6-7% across-the-board hike.
The S band employees belong to the junior level while the T band people has over two years’ experience.
This apart, the company is said to have offered bonus of 20% of salary to staff across all levels of around 20%. The bonus will be paid at the end of this month.
“We strongly feel that hikes should help bridge some of the concerns and expectations and we have launched quite a few non-monetary and career development initiatives to enrich skills and competencies of our associates. The reinstatement of performance related variable pay along with the salary corrections across levels, has given the necessary confidence to our associates,” said Mukund Menon, head of business HR relations worldwide, Mahindra Satyam.
Employees whom ET spoke to across the bands said it’s getting challenging for the company since there were many exits which was affecting existing business.
However, the company, on its part, is engaged in hiring fresh graduates and also calling back employees from the virtual pool, as attrition seems to be a concern.
IT market, Wipro
Wipro to cut jobs in Finland
Wipro Ltd, India's No. 3 software exporter, said that it is planning to restructure some part of its Finland operations and the move could impact a maximum of 85 people.
The company's IT unit, which employs 300 people in Finland, will start a consultation process with the staff representatives as part of the restructuring of its telecom research and development operations there.
"After carefully considering all possible options, the company has decided to enter into a negotiation process with the employees given the challenging industry situation in telecom R&D," it said in a statement.
The company's IT unit, which employs 300 people in Finland, will start a consultation process with the staff representatives as part of the restructuring of its telecom research and development operations there.
"After carefully considering all possible options, the company has decided to enter into a negotiation process with the employees given the challenging industry situation in telecom R&D," it said in a statement.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Infosys, new openings
Infy’s Orissa project to create 5,000 jobs
IT major Infosys would soon set up its second project in Orissa at an investment of Rs 300 crore, official sources said. Infosys's plan for the state was announced by its director (human resource) TV Mohandas Pai after meeting the chief minister Naveen Patnaik here last evening.
While as many as 3,000 IT professionals were now busy working at the first Infosys project in the state, he said about 5,000 workers would get placement in its second project.
The second project would come up at IT valley on the side of the National Highway No-5 between the state capital and Khurda town.
Work on the second project would start soon, Pai said. The state government had agreed to provide required water and power to the second project.
The IT major was presently exporting software products worth Rs 850 crore per annum from its existing project in the state, he said.
Pai and Patnaik also discussed on mid-day-meal (MDM) project of Akshya Patra, presently being given to 61,000 students in Puri and Nayagarh district. The number of beneficiaries of the MDM programme was targetted to touch 2.5 lakh in next two years, they said.
While as many as 3,000 IT professionals were now busy working at the first Infosys project in the state, he said about 5,000 workers would get placement in its second project.
The second project would come up at IT valley on the side of the National Highway No-5 between the state capital and Khurda town.
Work on the second project would start soon, Pai said. The state government had agreed to provide required water and power to the second project.
The IT major was presently exporting software products worth Rs 850 crore per annum from its existing project in the state, he said.
Pai and Patnaik also discussed on mid-day-meal (MDM) project of Akshya Patra, presently being given to 61,000 students in Puri and Nayagarh district. The number of beneficiaries of the MDM programme was targetted to touch 2.5 lakh in next two years, they said.
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