Manage staff expectations amid growth slowdown

Hyderabad: As growth rate slows down, Indian IT companies need to learn how to manage expectations of their employees, says a senior industry figure as he pitched for retraining of staff, in the era of rapid technology transition. When growth rate slows down, one has to manage the expectations of the employees within the company, former CEO of Bengaluru-headquartered IT major, Infosys, Kris Gopalakrishnan said.

“The number of promotions will come down because there are no openings at higher levels. So, you have to set expectations properly,” he said. Secondly, the former President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), said, technology was transitioning and, so, employees will have to be retrained.

“One, the company must invest in retraining employees, and two, employees must invest time in learning. So, these are stressful situations for both employees as well as leadership in the companies,” Gopalakrishnan said. Last month, Indian IT industry body Nasscom projected software export growth in 2017-18 at 7-8 per cent in constant currency, down from 8.6 per cent in the previous fiscal. The industry would add 130,000-150,000 jobs in the current financial year, it had forecast.

Gopalakrishnan, the Chairman of Axilor Ventures, an early stage startup accelerator and venture fund, rejected suggestions that there is job-crisis in the Indian IT sector. “Even Nasscom has projected this sector will add one lakh-plus jobs this year also. Yes, growth rate has come down, recruitment numbers are lower but it’s still positive and the industry is still recruiting people,” he said.