Infosys, India’s second-largest IT services firm, announced plans to hire between 15,000 and 20,000 freshers in the current financial year (FY25). This hiring surge comes despite a consistent decline in headcount over the past six quarters. The recruitment will encompass both on-campus and off-campus efforts, as confirmed by Jayesh Sanghrajka, CFO of Infosys, during a media briefing following the company’s latest financial results.
Sanghrajka noted that with a utilisation rate of 85.3%, Infosys has minimal room for further employee deployment. “We will look at hiring 15,000-20,000 freshers this year based on our growth projections. This will be a combination of both on-campus and off-campus recruitment,” he stated.
The company’s total headcount decreased by 1,908 employees in the first quarter of FY25, bringing the total to 315,332 at the end of June. Year-on-year, the headcount has declined by 20,962 employees. Despite these reductions, Infosys has managed to onboard most of the freshers whose joining had been delayed.
Infosys’ announcement aligns with hiring targets set by its peers. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the largest IT services firm by revenue in India, has set a hiring target of 40,000 freshers for FY25. In the first quarter, TCS onboarded 11,000 freshers, despite having experienced a decline in headcount over the previous three quarters. As of the end of Q1FY25, TCS reported a headcount of 606,998, marking an increase of 5,452 employees in that quarter.
Similarly, HCLTech, India’s third-largest IT services company, plans to hire 10,000 freshers in FY25. Although HCLTech’s headcount fell by over 8,000 employees, this was primarily due to the termination of its joint venture with State Street.
Attrition rates remain a concern across the industry. Infosys reported an attrition rate of 12.7% for Q1FY25, a slight increase from 12.6% in the previous quarter but a decrease from 17.3% year-on-year. TCS’s attrition rate stood at 12.1%, while HCLTech’s attrition rate rose to 12.8% from 12.4% in the previous quarter.
