Quess Corp published the ‘Apprentice Skill Trends Report’ on Monday which highlighted that the Indian IT sector is moving towards hiring more apprentices in stead of full time employees. According to the report, there has been a more than 250 per cent annual increase in apprentice headcount in the IT/ITES space.
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Moreover, about 79 per cent of employers in IT/ITES industries foresee an increase in apprentice intake in the coming months.
Why is the IT industry hiring more apprentices?
The report highlights that this spike in hiring in the IT/ITES industry has been steadily growing month-on-month as the industry prioritises apprenticeship engagement for its potential to lower the cost of its workforce, create a talented pool, and cultivate staff loyalty and retention.
Girija S, Vice President, Quess Corp explained, “The IT space in India has seen a drop in headcount and fresher intake due to global tensions. However, apprentice hiring has picked up substantially in the past year across the IT segment, with newer roles emerging that did not perhaps exist a year ago. This is a trend observed across both metro and Tier-2 cities, which is encouraging to see.”
Trends across the BFSI sector
Furthermore, as per the report, the BFSI and IT/ITES sectors were the top industries employing apprentices in the past year, considering the high return on investment (ROI) amidst ongoing uncertainties and global turmoil. Interestingly, 75 per cent of apprentices engaged in BFSI and IT sectors complete training and are considered for full-time employment, ranking much higher when compared to other industries.
“Apprentice hiring in BFSI is also flourishing with the expansion of NBFCs. However, the scope for apprentice skilling and job creation in IT/BFSI sectors is unprecedented, and we expect the creation of approximately 5 million jobs by 2025,” the VP added.
As per the report, within the industry, key roles that stand out with maximum demand from recruiters include IT Support, BPO Executive, Voice/Data Entry Operator, and Associate CRM.
Roles that are in demand
Also, roles such as Embedded systems engineer/ Design Engineer are also high in demand, along with DevOps Engineer, Data Engineer, and Blockchain Developers. Android/IOS Developers, AR VR Technicians, Cybersecurity Engineers, and Unity 3D Developers are a few additional roles that have seen significant traction from recruiters in 2023.
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In the BFSI space, roles such as microfinance, credit procurement, debit recovery, and back-office executives are in high demand.
Which cities and states are hiring most?
In 2023, cities that paved the way for apprentice hiring include Coimbatore, Hyderabad, and Pune. It is very encouraging to see a rise in apprenticeship adoption across Coimbatore, being a Tier-2 city. Other metros such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, and Ahmedabad saw a considerable spike in apprentice hiring.
In terms of states, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Telangana top the apprenticeship engagement chart. On the other hand, cities such as Lucknow, Chandigarh, and Kolkata saw the least traction when it came to apprentice hiring.
What are the salary trends?
Currently, more than 9 lakh youth who are apprentices are in the age group of 23-26 years. As per the Quess report, employers in the IT/ITES sector are likely to pay between 11k-75k to apprentices between the ages 20-24 years. However, the stipend pay for other sectors differs depending on educational qualifications.
Interestingly, in the current landscape of apprentice hiring, registration of women candidates has seen nearly a seven-fold increase in the last five years, from 22,427 in 2018-19 to 1.48 lakh in FY 2022-23.
Male candidates vs female candidates
According to the Quess report, over half (51 per cent) of employers have no gender preferences when it comes to apprentice hiring on an overall basis. However, employer preference of male vis-à-vis female candidates was skewed in 2023 (33 per cent & 15 per cent respectively) compared to the previous year (29 per cent and 20 per cent respectively).
City trends indicate that in Kochi, employers prefer females (30 per cent) more than males (26 per cent). However, male candidates are preferred most in Kolkata (44 per cent) and Lucknow (39 per cent).
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Additionally, 63 per cent of the employers in Mumbai, 59 per cent in Nagpur, and 56 per cent Hyderabad have no specific gender preference in apprentice engagement.
Methodology
This report is based on Quess Corp’s operations data, which maps demand and supply in the talent ecosystem for apprentice hiring. This report focuses on trends observed in the year 2023.
