Bengaluru is not just conducive for startups but also the best city when it comes to fresher salaries. According to a report released by talent platform foundit (formerly Monster APAC & ME) on Thursday, Bengaluru is the top location for fresher hiring with the highest salary packages.
The city’s share is the highest at 12.4 per cent in job postings for freshers, followed by Mumbai at 12.1 per cent. Notably, fresher hiring was highest in tier I cities of India – Delhi/NCR (9 per cent share), Pune (8 per cent share), Chennai (7 per cent share) and Hyderabad (7 per cent share).
The garden city is also the best paying at Rs 5.06 lakh per annum (LPA), followed by Delhi NCR at Rs 4.48 LPA and Mumbai at Rs 4.25 LPA.
“The number of IT services providers, Global Capability Centers (GCCs) and startups in Bengaluru is significantly higher compared to Delhi and Mumbai. These companies have a well-established practice of hiring freshers compared to the other sectors, said Aditya Narayan Mishra, Chief Executive Officer, CIEL HR. “Though companies in manufacturing, EPC, consumer goods, BFSI and pharma have similar practices, the numbers they hire compared to their overall headcount is less and the salary levels in many of these firms are less than what we see in the sectors of startups, GCCs and IT Services. Hence, as an overall impact, the salary levels of freshers in Bangalore appear higher than that in Mumbai and NCR, he added.
According to Sekhar Garisa, CEO, foundit, “job postings by startups have been driven by increased hiring across metros, while robust hiring has also been noted for remote roles. Bengaluru (33 per cent) accounts for the highest share of startup jobs while Delhi, Mumbai and Pune also hosted notable demand trends.”
Despite the sea of layoffs that have been reported, especially across Indian IT, the overall hiring demand among startups has noted a strong 19 per cent growth this April 2023 compared to the previous year.
The data also revealed that demand for freshers has increased by 4 per cent over the last six months.
“Industries now prefer fresher candidates, especially in tech. But there might be some positions that require a certain level of experience to handle the responsibilities effectively. This can be particularly important for positions with tight deadlines or immediate project requirements. Recruiters may prioritise candidates with relevant industry experience or specific expertise to fulfill these requirements,” Garisa explained.
Across segments, the recruitment/staffing industry (22 per cent share) held the highest demand share for entry-level professionals. Others include IT/software services (19 per cent), BPO/ITES (10 per cent), education (5 per cent) and healthcare (4 per cent).
Amidst current economic uncertainties and tech disruptions in the market, the need for freshers to upskill and tune their digital skills in line with the industry is more pertinent than ever. As for skills, recruiters in Indian IT are particularly on the hunt for tech talent adept in skills related to cloud computing, data science, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity. However, soft skills, communication, problem-solving abilities, and critical thinking abilities are also considered important.
Back to the pre-Covid normal
Companies have been struggling to bring back employees to offices after allowing their workforces to work from home in the last three years. Consequently, an overwhelming majority of job postings for freshers across industries were for in-office roles (92 per cent), and only a few industries continue to embrace remote and hybrid work models with a 4.2 per cent share of hybrid and 3.8 per cent of work-from-home job postings.