As per media reports, the job cuts will predominantly affect individuals in management roles.

This restructuring initiative coincides with a slight dip in sales and a revised earnings outlook for the fiscal year ahead. Bill Anderson, CEO, Bayer, clarified during a media briefing on 14 May that nearly two-thirds of the job cuts affected managerial positions across Bayer’s pharmaceuticals, crop science, and consumer health divisions.

Anderson emphasised that this downsizing effort aligns with Bayer’s objective to achieve €500 million ($540 million) in sustainable cost savings by 2024 and €2 billion ($2.16 billion) by 2026.

Since taking the helm at Bayer in June 2023, Anderson has been steering the company away from the ramifications of its $66 billion Monsanto acquisition in 2016.

In January 2024, Anderson introduced a new operational model, termed Dynamic Shared Ownership, aimed at enhancing efficiency and reducing bureaucracy within Bayer. This comprehensive restructuring includes the ongoing workforce cuts scheduled over the next decade, starting from 2025. Since March 2024, Bayer has notably streamlined its executive team to eight members, marking a significant reduction from the previous count of 14.

The announcement follows Bayer’s reported sales of over $14.86 billion for the quarter, reflecting a 4.3 per cent decrease compared to the same period last year. However, when adjusted for currency and portfolio changes, the year-over-year sales decline was a modest 0.6 per cent.

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IBM, Ireland, which is said to be amongst the biggest employers in the country, is reportedly working towards creating advanced software driven by artificial intelligence (AI).

In the last 10 years, Ireland’s labour market has seen a doubling in the number in the number of people employed by multinationals. In fact, 11 per cent of the labour force is working for such multinationals.

The jobs in MNCs were only affected last year for the first time in the last 15 years, due to widespread downsizing by firms in the sector.

Meanwhile, IBM is undergoing significant internal restructuring, as revealed in its recent quarterly conference call with Wall Street analysts. Martin Schroeter, CFO, IBM, revealed an expenditure of $200 million charge for ‘workforce rebalancing’. This exercise reportedly involve shifting and laying off employees, in addition to retraining and reallocating staff to growth areas such as cloud computing and analytics.

In the first week of May, it was hinted that the reorganization will also witness the hiring of over 2,000 incremental resources in mobility practices. Furthermore, it was indicated that there may be a possible shift of almost 1,000 individuals to analytics projects. At the time, IBM had revealed that it was looking at ‘alternative labour models’ to optimise costs. That means, strategies such as hiring of contractors or offshoring jobs could not be ruled out.

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Nike’s $2 billion cost-cutting initiative aims to reduce its workforce by two per cent, and Converse is also affected. The layoffs are not limited to Nike’s Oregon headquarters, where over 700 job cuts are expected, but extend to Converse’s Boston base as well.

In December 2023, the sports brand had revealed its intention to launch a cost-saving initiative that will bring down expenditure by $2 billion in three years’ time. At the time, the company had also revealed that it would be spending about $400 million in severance pay to the impacted employees. Two months later, in February 2024, Nike had revealed its plans to do away with two per cent of its global workforce. That is, it was gearing to axe at least 1,600 jobs. It was also revealed that those working at the Nike stores and distribution centres, as well as the members of the innovation team were expected to be spared.

Converse, renowned for its iconic Chuck Taylor and One Star sneakers, maintains its own product development, supply chain and marketing functions tailored to its business. While it utilises Nike’s technology in its products, it operates independently.

As of last May, Nike boasted a global workforce of nearly 84,000 employees. Converse, contributing about five per cent to Nike’s total sales, remains a significant subsidiary within the Nike portfolio.

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This decision comes in the wake of recent endeavours by Alex Chriss, CEO, PayPal, to streamline operations and reduce expenditures since his appointment to the company last September.

According to Bloomberg, the company aims to trim about 2,500 positions, which translates to roughly nine per cent of its total workforce. Employees across various sectors, including engineering and research and development, are expected to be affected by these changes.

The move follows a challenging period for PayPal, marked by declining revenue, share performance, and a more than 20 per cent drop in shares over the past year. This downturn prompted the company to adjust its full-year forecast for adjusted operating margin.

This announcement echoes a similar initiative from nearly a year ago, when PayPal disclosed plans to downsize by approximately 2,000 employees, constituting around seven per cent of its workforce. The online payments firm attributed this decision to the challenging macroeconomic environment it was battling at the time.

Despite these workforce adjustments, PayPal remains committed to its expansion efforts. The company, which owns popular platforms such as Venmo, Xoom and Honey, has pledged to introduce new products and revamp its checkout process to bolster competitiveness in the market.

The ongoing developments at PayPal underscore the evolving landscape of the tech industry, where adaptability and strategic restructuring are essential to remain relevant and drive growth.

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This decision, described as the “toughest chapter” in the studio’s history, comes amidst global challenges faced throughout the past year. According to a recent X (formerly Twitter) post, Mighty Kingdom aims to “rightsize” its operations in response to ongoing economic difficulties. The move is also a part of the company ensuring sustainability for the future.

Staff members have been notified of these changes, prompting many to begin searching for new employment opportunities.

David Yin, CEO, Mighty Kingdom, expressed deep regret over the decision, emphasising the exhaustive exploration of alternatives to mitigate the layoffs. Despite the somber news, the studio remains committed to delivering engaging gaming experiences, both with current titles and future projects.

Moreover, in a gesture of support, Mighty Kingdom has compiled a list of affected staff and their skills to aid in their job search.

The timing of these layoffs coincides with broader challenges facing the global games industry, marked by reduced investment opportunities and tighter budgets. Those able to offer employment opportunities are encouraged to consider the talents of the displaced Mighty Kingdom employees.

Mighty Kingdom games are available in India through various platforms or digital- distribution platforms such as Steam, mobile app stores such as Google Play Store and Apple App Store, and console platforms such as PlayStation Store or Xbox Live. Some of their popular titles include “Shopkins: Chef Club,” “LEGO Friends: Heartlake Rush,” and “Disney Crossy Road.”

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During a post-earnings conference call after the company’s Q4FY24 earnings declaration, R Shankar Raman, chief financial officer, L&T, elaborated that despite a slowdown in international order inflow witnessed in the fourth quarter of 2023-24 and anticipated sluggishness in domestic orders for the initial two quarters of 2024-25, L&T remains steadfast in its hiring initiatives. This decision is to ensure the smooth execution of its growing order book, valued at Rs 475,809 crore by the end of 31 March, 2024.

He emphasised that since about 38 per cent of L&T’s order book comprises international contracts, the company is poised to expand its global workforce further.

On 8 May, L&T disclosed its Q4 results, reporting a consolidated net profit of Rs 4,396 crore for the quarter ending March 2024. This figure reflects a 10 per cent increase compared to Rs 3,987 crore recorded in the corresponding period last year and Rs 3,621 crore in the same quarter of 2022-23.

Recently, Santosh Rai was appointed the new head-human resources, Larsen & Toubro Precision Engineering and Systems IC. He will be based out of Mumbai, Maharashtra. Known to be a meticulous, highly energetic and committed HR person, Rai’s 24 years of experience will stand him in good stead in this new role.

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The announcement came during a Townhall session led by Nitya Sharma, CEO, and co-founder, Simpl, this Wednesday, 8 May, at 9 am, as per media reports. Reports also disclosed that some employees were even disconnected from their Slack accounts before the Townhall commenced.

The layoffs, which included personnel from diverse verticals, notably impacted high-ranking employees as well. Although promises of severance were made, the exact terms remain undisclosed.

Addressing the situation, Ashish Kulshrestha, head-corporate communications, Simpl, stated, “As an organisation committed to creating a shared value for our merchants, and millions of customers across the country, we have undertaken a series of measures to improve operational efficiencies, reduce fixed and overhead costs, along with taking the difficult decision of letting go of some of our talented employees. These efforts are enabling us to accelerate our journey towards profitability and build a fiscally prudent organisation. We have laid out a comprehensive growth plan while having a razor sharp focus on profitability in order to advance our mission of enabling e-commerce and Direct-to-Customer merchants to provide enhanced convenience to their customers.” He further stated, “With the continued efforts around improving business efficiencies, we are expecting to be profitable by mid-2025.”

To support the departing employees, the company has also announced severance packages including 2 months of salary with 15 days of salary for every year spent at Simpl, as well as extended medical insurance and outplacement services.

This recent decision by Simpl mirrors a similar move made in April of the previous year, when the company laid off over 150 employees, attributing it to over-hiring driven by assumptions of increased e-commerce demand due to the pandemic. During that period, Sharma addressed the staff through a letter, taking responsibility for the decision and acknowledging its repercussions, especially amidst economic uncertainties. He assured affected employees of a severance package, healthcare benefits, as well as outplacement and counselling support to assist them during this transition.

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During the call, IBM’s CFO, Martin Schroeter disclosed a $200 million charge for what the company terms ‘workforce rebalancing’. This corporate jargon is a veil for actions that involve shifting and shedding employees, a process that includes layoffs but also encompasses retraining and reallocating staff to growth areas such as cloud computing and analytics.

Schroeter hinted at the magnitude of this reorganisation, mentioning the hiring of over 2,000 incremental resources in mobility practices. Furthermore, he indicated a possible shift of nearly 1,000 individuals to analytics projects.

However, the term ‘incremental resources’ lacks clarity, leaving room for interpretation whether these are new hires or contractors.

Moreover, IBM is exploring ‘alternative labour models’ to optimise costs. That means, a likelihood of various strategies such as hiring contractors or offshoring jobs. Despite repeated inquiries for clarification, IBM has yet to offer specifics on these methods.

This financial maneuvering is part of a broader effort by IBM to enhance its competitiveness and adapt to changing market demands. However, the exact extent of layoffs remains unclear, as the $200 million charge provides no concrete indication of the number of affected employees.

Schroeter indicated that IBM plans to continue its Restructuring efforts into the third quarter, maintaining a similar expenditure on “workforce rebalancing”. This announcement follows reports from IBM employees about layoffs within their business units, though the company has refrained from commenting on these claims.

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In 2022, Cognizant brought on board 1,32,000 employees, while Capgemini recruited 1,40,789, excluding acquisitions. However, in 2023, Cognizant’s hires plummeted to just over 60,000, and Capgemini’s dropped to around 61,182. This indicates a decline of 72,000 for Cognizant and 79,607 for Capgemini from the previous year.

The trend extends to other major Indian IT players such as Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, and Wipro, which collectively saw their headcount shrink by approximately 70,000 by the end of the financial year on 31 March. Macro uncertainties and the belief that advancements in technologies such as generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) may lessen the need for fresh hires could be contributing factors.

The pandemic-induced over-hiring in the tech industry may also be playing a role in the decline.

To streamline its operations and corporate functions, Cognizant launched a programme in Q2 2023, incurring employee separation costs of $115 million and $114 million in facility exit and other expenses throughout the year.

By the end of March 2024, Cognizant’s headcount dropped by 7,100 to 3,44,400, with around 2,50,000 employees based in India. Similarly, Capgemini Group’s total headcount fell to 3,37,200, marking a six per cent decrease from the previous year.

Information Technology roles are expected to remain dominant, but recruitment in non-IT sectors is also projected to see significant activity. Nonetheless, recruiters foresee attrition rates staying below 15 per cent from January to June 2024, showing a slight improvement from previous quarters.

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The company made a net addition of 1,535 to its workforce through the year and has not stopped investing in team expansion. The company did post an increase in revenue from operations of 8.1 per cent compared to the same time last year. Its revenue rose to Rs 905 crore in the fourth quarter of FY24. However, its profit after tax dropped 2.3 per cent year-on-year (YoY), to Rs 196 crore. The operating margins fell by 100 basis points in the fourth quarter of FY24 reaching 28.8 per cent.

In FY23 it had hired over 2,000 freshers. The exact number of hires for this financial year is yet to be officially revealed though. However, it is sure to focus on growth without reducing margins.

It is pertinent to mention here that the dividend declared by Tata Elxsi for the latest financial year is the highest ever, of Rs 70 per share. That means it will be a payout of Rs 436 crore toward dividends, which is more than 50 per cent of its net profit for the entire year, which was Rs 792 crore.

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The focus of these cuts will primarily be on back-office roles within the company’s headquarters, with plans to implement them through voluntary retirement schemes. This proposed reduction would be the largest since the fallout from the 2015 accounting scandal.

The move is anticipated to incur a loss of about 100 billion yen ($646 million), covering expenses such as special retirement packages and outplacement services. This restructuring is part of Toshiba’s attempt to streamline its operations by consolidating its energy, infrastructure, devices, and IT divisions into its main headquarters, aiming for greater efficiency and synergy.

Following the company’s delisting from the Tokyo Stock Exchange in December, it has faced a substantial pressure to stabilise its financial position. Hence, Toshiba is not only concentrating on immediate financial convalescence but also on long-term strategic expansion.

The company recently inaugurated a new research and development centre to propel new technologies forward.

Toshiba Corporation is a Japanese multinational conglomerate headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It was founded in 1875 and has since grown into one of the world’s largest manufacturers of electronics, semiconductors, home appliances, and infrastructure systems. The company has a diverse range of products and services, including laptops, televisions, air conditioners, refrigerators, washing machines, nuclear power plants, medical equipment, and industrial machinery.

In recent years, Toshiba has faced various challenges, including financial difficulties and corporate governance issues. This has led to restructuring efforts and strategic changes within the company, such as selling off certain business units and focusing on core areas.

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The British company’s gross revenue in India has gone up to $686 million in the financial year 2023, which is a significant increased from the $477 million of financial year 2022. The Considering that it began operating a decade ago, with a revenue of merely $2 million, it has come a long way in the past ten years.

The British company is also looking to add talent to its information technology (IT) support and customer operations teams.

Vinod Nair is the president of Noventiq India, and he will be playing a huge role in building the strength and capability of the firm here. As per media reports, Nair had indicated that the company’s main focus this financial year is to expand tech and sales teams by 20 per cent each.

Recently, the digital transformation and cybersecurity-solutions firm appointed Jerry Letter as chief financial officer and head of corporate development. He reports to Herve Tessler, CEO, Noventiq.

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Although the media reports nearly 35,000 new hires, the company has yet to confirm this figure. Nonetheless, with a steadfast focus on operational expansion and heightened production, the company is primed to meet the escalating demand for iPhones in India and beyond.

Amidst this hiring spree, Tata Technologies is engaged in discussions with Pegatron, a Taiwan-based Apple contract manufacturer, regarding the potential acquisition of Pegatron’s facility near Chennai. If this happens, Tata Technologies’ iPhone- manufacturing capabilities will be further enhanced.

The company recently set up 4.0 Skilling Centres in Telanga, to provide skill-development training to students. These Industry 4.0 technology centres, offering job-oriented training, reportedly cost the company at least Rs 1,500 crore.

The need to introduce modern technology and courses in the industrial training institutes (ITIs) across the state was felt, so that the youth become more employable in the rapidly-changing tech landscape. This need will be fulfilled with the help of the Tata Technologies centres, which will offer courses in industrial automation, electric vehicles (EV) mechanics, robotics manufacturing, advanced CNC machine technology, basic designing and so on at the ITIs.

About one lakh students benefited from this collaboration between Tata Tech and Telangana government.

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As per a Moneycontrol report, the Tata Group is looking for Taiwanese professionals— including equipment engineers, yield engineers and automation engineers—with at least five years of experience. Candidates with up to 16 years of working experience in various roles in this field will also be picked up. Tata Electronics will also be hiring electric and mechanical troubleshooters, for which technicians with diplomas will also be considered.

After training for 18 months in Taiwan, the selected candidates from the country would be expected to move to India, where Tata Electronics has already started work on setting up a Rs 91,000-crore semiconductor manufacturing plant in Dholera, Gujarat. This plant will be a source of livelihood for thousands, with about 20,000 workers likely to be employed directly and indirectly. A greenfield semiconductor assembling and testing plant is also being set up in Jagiroad, Assam, at a cost of about Rs 27,000 crore.

It is pertinent to mention here that Hsinchu is a county known for the large number of plants manufacturing chips and semiconductors. Some of the known names in the field are, Epista, United Microelectronics Corporation, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (PSMC).

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InvestoXpert, is seeking talented customer relationship managers (CRM), sales and business-development managers as well as talented candidates to fill other positions. The company is trying to build a diverse and dynamic team capable of driving growth and innovation.

Vishal Raheja, managing director of InvestoXpert, as the company continues to expand its footprint both domestically and internationally, its “focus remains on attracting top talent to fuel our growth. We believe that our people are our greatest asset, and by investing in talent acquisition, we are positioning ourselves for sustained success in the competitive real estate market.”

According to Sanjay Kumar, chief people officer, InvestoXpert, “Our recruitment drive is not just about filling positions but about building a strong foundation for the future. We are committed to providing our employees with a supportive and inclusive work environment where they can thrive and grow both personally and professionally.”

Founded in 2016, the real-estate company is dedicated to meeting the evolving needs of its clients and strengthening its position as a leader in the real-estate industry. It offers comprehensive solutions to fulfil the diverse needs of its clients. With a focus on innovation and customer satisfaction, its robust online platform provides access to expert advice, property listings and financial assistance to its customers.

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A batch of engineers is already ready to join in June 2024, while hiring will continue throughout the year via various channels.

The objective is to improve and scale its lending, health insurance, UPI, and mutual funds services, and foray into new product lines.

The new hires will focus on advanced technologies such as generative AI (GenAI), alternative AI/machine language and big data capabilities to enhance its services, including credit underwriting, to increase underwriting volumes, detect fraud and enhance customer support, quality assurance and sales processes.

The expansion of its team is part of its ongoing efforts to simplify finance for a billion Indians and deliver a seamless experience for its customers through the Navi app.

Co-founded by Sachin Bansal and Ankit Agarwal, this Bangalore-headquartered company is working to make finance simple, affordable and accessible for millions of Indians. It provides personal and home loans, UPI, insurance, mutual funds, and gold. It aims to deliver digital-first financial products and build a great customer experiences.

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The expansion will see Moglix’s workforce grow to over 500-600 employees across various functions including enterprise MRO, supply chain management, manufacturing, finance, and sales. The company is specifically looking for individuals with expertise in industrial sales, procurement, and financing, targeting professionals at all levels from associates to directors.

“This expansion provides us the right bandwidth to further penetrate existing markets and venture into new geographies,” says Sandeep Goel, managing director, Moglix. “With a strong network of over 40 warehouses and a focus on technological innovation and supply chain resilience, we are well-positioned to support millions of SMEs and accelerate the future of B2B commerce.”

This recruitment drive comes alongside the company’s recent expansion of operational capabilities. In the past year, Moglix has launched nine new warehouses across various cities, strengthening its geographical footprint and operational efficiency. Additionally, upgrades to existing facilities in major cities showcase Moglix’s commitment to scaling up storage, supply chain effectiveness, and corporate functions.

As Moglix gears up for hyper-expansion, the focus on attracting top talent across diverse domains underscores their vision for sustained growth and leadership in the B2B commerce landscape.

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While the present employee strength of the firm in India is about 1.75 lakh, the exact number of people needed for the future is not yet known.

Also, it is reported that a majority of the firm’s funds set aside for artificial intelligence (AI) will be invested in India. The firm, which has its headquarters in Paris, reportedly plans to invest €2 billion on AI spread over three years. Most of this will be invested in India. It expects to see its AI and analytics teams expanding to double the present size of 30,000 by 2027, as reported by Business Standard.

Last year, the company had hired about 30,000 people including freshers and lateral hires.

The company plans to make significant investments in acquiring talent, reskilling talent and setting up centres of excellence (CoE). It is pertinent to mention here that CApgemini has more than 100 CoEs in India.

Capgemini has reportedly said it would train one lakh people by June 2024.

Ashwin Yardi, CEO, Capgemini India, did reveal to ToI that the company would hire from campuses this year too, but exact numbers are yet to be known.

Recently, the IT firm announced plans to acquire Unity’s Digital Twin Professional Services arm to speed up the digital transformation of organisations using real-time 3D technology.

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The Indian branch of Tesla Power USA LLC provides a range of maintenance-free batteries for two-wheelers, automobiles, UPS systems and inverters.

The company has also introduced ReStore, India’s inaugural refurbished battery brand, using electrochemical battery-enhancement process technology to prolong the lifespan of old lead-acid batteries.

By 2026, Tesla Power India aims to establish 5000 ReStore units, generating numerous job opportunities across engineering, operations, sales, marketing and support functions. This recruitment drive will provide valuable employment prospects for unemployed youth across the country.

ReStore plays a vital role in supporting India’s skill development and Atmanirbhar Bharat initiatives by offering training and job opportunities in battery refurbishment within the energy-storage sector.

Sharing the company’s expansion plans in India, Tesla Power India highlights the importance of acquiring talented individuals to drive success in the Indian market. The company aims to achieve its sustainable goals through innovation and is eager to welcome new talent to the team. The company’s mission of ‘Save Cost. Save the Environment. Save Lives’ reflects its commitment to making a positive impact.

Additionally, the company aims to hire local talent in line with its vision of fostering economic development and creating jobs, even in remote areas. Through investing in talent- development and retention initiatives, Tesla Power India aims to build a skilled workforce capable of meeting the evolving needs of the energy-storage sector in India.

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Established in 2020, the Vijayawada campus has rapidly grown into a major IT services hub in Andhra Pradesh, currently serving over 100 global clients with cutting-edge tech expertise. “We’re excited to welcome top talent to our team through this drive,” says Shiva Prasad, associate vice president and centre head, HCL Vijayawada.

Spanning 30 acres, the campus boasts IGBC Platinum certification for its eco-friendly design. Notably, women comprise 43 per cent of the Vijayawada workforce, reflecting HCLTech’s commitment to diversity and inclusion.

Operating in 60 countries and recognised as a Top Employer, HCLTech offers a comprehensive digital, engineering, cloud, AI, and software portfolio, empowering clients’ navigation of their digital transformation journeys.

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While an actuary is presently engaged to determine the effect of the Supere Court’s decision on the pension fund, the work is expected to take time. Therefore, the EPFO feels it is best to have an in-house actuarial facility.

Following the Supreme Court’s ruling, in case of the pensioners and EPF members who are eligible for pension on higher wages, demand notices have been issued to the pensioners/members. The pension amount will differ from one individual to another. Since a good number of members who are eligible to take the higher pension option are still in service, the work related to pension on higher wages is clearly an ongoing process. Therefore, EPFO feels the need to have separate staff to process the deluge of applications.

Under the EPS 1995, the pension fund is a pooled fund, with no individual accounts being maintained. Members of EPS, 1995 can enjoy withdrawal benefit or pension basis their eligibility, which depends on their number of years of service.

Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment Rameshwar Teli had informed in December 2023 that as per actuarial evaluation, the pension fund was in deficit as on 31.03.2019.

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It is expected that the figure will be made public post the earnings call later this week. The company reportedly feels that its revenues were below expectations because of a decrease in orders.

After eliminating 4000 roles in 2022, the US-based tech infrastructure firm had announced plans to cut more jobs in Silicon Valley, in September 2023, in an attempt to restructure.

The company had said then that with heightened competition, particularly in cloud-based networking companies, it wished to pivot its attention towards software and services while moving away from hardware.

At the time, Cisco had stated that it would provide severance packages to all the departing employees, and also assist them in securing new employment opportunities using outplacement services. It had clarified that the layoffs had nothing to do with cost cutting, as the company’s financial health was quite robust. The primary goal of this rebalancing The company had revealed its intention then to allocate resources strategically toward the company’s transformation, enabling better fulfilment of customer expectations in the evolving technology landscape.

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This growth aligns with L&T’s focus on West Asia, particularly Saudi Arabia, where it has established fabrication shops and ambitious goals. “We’re keen to involve local talent,” Raman said, highlighting efforts to train Saudi graduate engineers and bolster the regional workforce.

L&T boasts a $16 billion order book in Saudi Arabia, prompting plans to onboard both senior leadership and on-floor talent. While acknowledging short-term supply chain disruptions due to regional tensions, Raman remains optimistic about long-term prospects. “Saudi Arabia’s 2030 vision remains intact,” he emphasised, noting their $16 billion order book will keep L&T busy for the next two and a half years.

This expansionary outlook comes amid strong post-quarter earnings, with L&T poised to exceed both revenue and order inflow targets for the current fiscal year.

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The company currently boasts of 1,600 employees in the country, of which 60 per cent are French nationals.

Sapthagiri Chapalapalli is the head of European Business, TCS, which has been operating in France for almost 30 years now, having collaborated successfully with 80 clients. The Indian multinational is ready to expand further now as per media reports.

Its Paris innovation centre is proof of TCS’ commitment to pushing technological advancements in the area.

Meanwhile, in the UK, TCS is expanding its ties with British insurance provider, Aviva. This 15-year deal will see Diligenta, TCS’ FCA-regulated subsidiary in Britain handling end-to-end policy administration and servicing covering more than 5.5 million policies on behalf of Aviva.

In other words, TCS will facilitate the transformation of Aviva’s British life business. Aviva’s customer experience will be further enhanced thanks to the use of the TCS BaNCS-based platform.

It is pertinent to mention here that TCS is amongst the biggest information technology (IT) employers in the UK. It has been operating in the country for over four decades and has been working with more than 200 of Britain’s big organisations such as Sainsbury’s, British Airways, Virgin Atl Atlantic, Nationwide, M&S, Asda and Boots.

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Carol Tome, CEO, UPS, has also revealed the company’s intention to sell its Coyote truck-brokerage business in a bid to cut costs amidst a demand slowdown and labour expenses. However, the company managed to stay afloat and focus on its strategy to secure its future and ensure the foundation remains strong for growth.

Shares of the company fell 7.6 per cent. Its annual sales dipped 9.3 per cent, and the company expects an improvement in 2024 of just over one per cent. Delivery volumes fell 7.5 per cent in Q4 due to the slow demand in Europe and the US. Profits will not see much increase because the new labour deal that came into effect in August will prove to be expensive. UPS expects sales for 2024 to be in the range of $92 billion to $94.5 billion.

The shipping company is now working to recover the business that was lost when people preferred to shop from physical stores after pandemic-related restrictions were lifted. Inflation only added to the company’s woes as consumers lost purchasing power.

The firm hopes to concentrate more on delivery of medical supplies, which is expected to bring in more profits.

This year, UPS expects its employees to return to office for five days a week.

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The company was recently criticised for the way it handles explicit content and has been under the scanner for some time now.

Linda Yaccarino, CEO, X, is expected to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee at the end of this month, that is, 31 January, where she will reveal how X handles CSEM. Moving forward, X plans to adopt a ‘zero tolerance’ policy for such content.

The newly-formed moderation team will handle CSEM and also moderate hate speech. Job listings for these roles specify that moderators

In future, X will improve mechanisms for detecting and identifying inappropriate and reportable content. It will be tying up with the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

Last year, that is, 2023, X suspended 12.4 million accounts that were found to be violating CSE policy. The year before that, it had suspended about 2.3 million accounts for the same reasons.

A few years ago, Facebook had increased the salaries of its employees involved in content moderation work. The minimum wage was hiked when a content reviewer had filed a case against Facebook saying the work had caused her mental trauma.

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The gaming division was about 22,000 strong before this latest round of layoffs was announced.

As reported by CNBC, Spencer had asked the impacted employees to take pride in all they had achieved. He also assured the employees of complete support from the company with severance pay, for smooth transition. He called on the employees to ensure that their impacted co-workers are given respect and emotional support in this difficult time.

The division now wishes to focus on areas that have potential for growth and strategies for coming up with more products for players worldwide.

It was just over three months ago, in October 2023 that Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard in a $69 billion deal. This acquisition is said to be the biggest in the gaming space till date. The acquisition, it was hoped, would draw more players to Microsoft’s Xbox consoles and Game Pass subscription service.

Activision Blizzard’s offerings include the popular ‘Spyro’, ‘Diablo,’ ‘World of Warcraft’, ‘Call of Duty’ and so on. The company also owned King, of the famous ‘Candy Crush’ fame.

At the time, Microsoft already had a wide customer base for its ‘Halo’ and ‘Forza’ and the acquisition was to help expand Microsoft’s reach further.

Mike Ybarra, president, Blizzard Entertainment— which looks after the production and distribution of Blizzard’s games—has quit after being associated with the company for almost five years.

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To be launched in Q2 of 2024, the centre will be owned and operated by bp. The focus will be on building on bp’s existing engineering and technical strengths to deliver high-quality services to its hydrocarbons and new energy businesses, globally.

Job postings were already announced over a month ago, in December 2023. The company expects to have a 400+ strong team by the end of 2024. The size of the team is expected to expand to at least a 1000 in the next couple of years.

Molyama Kromah has been appointed head of bp Technical Solutions India, based in Pune. Kromah, who has been with bp for over two decades, moves from bp’s joint venture with Reliance Industries, in Mumbai.

bp TSI will be offering technical services in various areas, including engineering, maintenance, optimisation, data processes, projects and subsurface.bp.

Pune is the ideal location for the CoE given that it houses numerous engineering and technical colleges, offering access to a diverse and rich talent pool. Pune also houses bp’s global business solutions centre and innovation and engineering digital hub, which has played a critical role in the transformation of bp’s business processes.

Giovanni Cristofoli, senior vice president for bp solutions, is excited at the acceleration of the “transformation of how we do engineering in bp. India’s large technical talent pool and successful track record of establishing global capability centres across a broad range of industries positions it as an ideal destination for the hub. bp will benefit from accessing talent across all engineering disciplines to meet our current and future demand.”

Sashi Mukundan, bp regional president and head of country, see this as “a significant step forward for bp in India. The centre will allow us to provide innovative solutions for bp worldwide as we tap into India’s diverse and skilled workforce and expand our footprint in the country.”

With a century-long business presence in India, bp and RIL have also joined hands to create a major retail, aviation fuels and mobility alliance, Jio-bp. TSI?aims to provide?high quality technical services to bp’s?hydrocarbons and new energy?businesses worldwide, to deliver safe, affordable and lower emission energy, while continuously innovating how we work.

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The objective is reportedly to cut costs. The cuts will primarily be carried out in New York, Austin, Los Angeles and some locations outside of the US. The exact number of employees impacted has not been officially communicated yet. Some media reports even peg the figure at 100.

A townhall meeting is to take place today, 23 January following this announcement.

TikTok’s US workforce is about 7,000 strong, whereas its parent company, ByteDance has over 1,50,000 employees worldwide.

In October 2023, TikTok had grabbed headlines when it came to light that the popular short-video app had asked its managers to give lower ratings to employees during performance reviews. At the time, the company had told the media that the move was aimed at ensuring a fair distribution of performance ratings among its over one lakh employees worldwide. Reportedly, in mid-October, senior management and human resources staff conveyed to managers the directive to increase the allocation of performance evaluations at the bottom end of the company’s bell-curve rating system. This adjustment was also expected to significantly raise the number of subpar ratings assigned to certain teams, possibly doubling or even tripling them.

Earlier last year, the firm had also modified its bonus structure in a way that some employees believed would lead to smaller bonus payouts. TikTok’s annual bonuses are typically determined based on an individual’s performance reviews.

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The said employee posted a video in the first week of December revealing that he performed an additional shift as a picker at the warehouse. It is pertinent to mention here that the employee, Kendall, has more than 35,000 followers on TikTok.

After being fired, he posted on TikTok that he had lost his job because he had tried to tell people not to buy heavy items from Amazon because he, as an Amazon warehouse worker, was exhausted lifting heavy boxes.

Later, after his termination, Kendall again took to TikTok to reveal that he had been fired. He wondered why the clip, which was enjoyed by most and considered to be humorous, could be offensive in any way. According to him, it was quite clear that the video was made in jest and the overexaggeration was just for fun.

He apologised to those who found the video offensive saying that he did not intend to upset anyone. He goes on to seek forgiveness saying that he had only tried to make a funny video and had already paid a heavy price for it by losing a job that he had for seven years.

His video showed him working an extra shift lifting boxes at the warehouse and finding most of them to contain dog food or Fiji water. He had jokingly asked people to stop purchasing water on Amazon and walk to a store nearby instead and pick it up themselves. He also joked about why people would want to wait for a couple of days to get their water when they could stop being lazy and buy it immediately from a store.

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Last year, Lufthansa hired about13,000 people. Its current team strength is over 95,000 across at least 90 nations.

Lufthansa is targeting hiring over 3,500 for cabin roles and about 1,000 for the cockpit. It is also on the lookout for at least 2,000 technicians, to ensure its fleet of aircraft is well maintained and operates smoothly. Given the rapid rate at which digitalisation is happening,Lufthansa also requires about 900 skilled information technology professionals.

The airline will also be hiring ground staff at Frankfurt and Munich.

Brussels Airlines, which is one of the four Lufthansa Group network airlines and member of Star Alliance, will also be hiring at least 380 new people, and 50 per cent of these will be cabin crew members. More than 60 maintenance and engineering workers and 50 ground staff will also be hired.

The Group posted the second-best quarterly result in history in the third quarter of 2023, with pre-tax earnings of more than €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion). The Group’s airlines served more than 38 million passengers in that quarter. A new airline is also being launched by Lufthansa, called City Airlines. This subsidiary has already started hiring.

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Sundar Pichai, CEO, Google, has conveyed that the employees should brace for more job cuts in 2024.

As per a report by The Verge, Pichai has indicated in a memo that Google will focus on “removing layers to simplify execution and drive velocity” in certain areas. He also clarified that the scale of job cuts will not be the same as that of last year, nor will it impact all teams.

YouTube’s workforce was about 7,137 strong before the latest cuts. Employees were informed of the cuts by Mary Ellen Coe, chief business officer, YouTube, via an e-mail.

Over the last one year, the ads slump has affected YouTube’s finances. Additionally, it has received strong competition from TikTok, the short-video service that youngsters widely use across the globe.

This has prompted the parent company, Google to seek out ways to cut costs.

Last week’s layoff announcement impacted jobs in Google Assistant, that is, Google’s voice-operated product; its core-engineering division; and also across its augmented reality (AR) projects. Organisational changes have been going on at Google for some time now as part of which many roles have been done away with, worldwide.

YouTube plans to make meaningful investments in bigger priorities and better opportunities.

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Fresh graduates who have interned or have held part-time jobs before will be hired. Candidates with experience in the hospitality and customer-service space will be preferred.

Only those who have passed at least Grade 12 may apply, provided they have a minimum height of 160 cm tall and can reach a height of 212 cm. Fluency in both written and spoken English is a must. Knowledge of any other language(s) in addition to English will be advantageous.

It is pertinent to mention here that Emirates’ cabin crew comprises members belonging to over 140 nationalities and speak about 130 languages.

Interested candidates will be assessed on the basis of their personality and team-playing mentality.

Applicant should be able to fulfil the employment visa requirements of the UAE.

The hiring will be done via open days and assessments in over 460 cities around the world.

The airline had ordered hundreds of new aircraft for its fleet. About 65 A350s and over a hundred each of Boeing 777-9 and 777-8 aircraft will start getting delivered to Emirates later this year.

Last year, that is, in 2023, Emirates had hired 8,000 cabin crew from over 353 cities, worldwide. By August of 2023, the airline’s cabin crew strength was over 20,000, and it has now reached 21,500.

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As part of its expansion strategy, the company also prioritises creating a more diverse and inclusive talent pool, extending its footprint across India. The company seeks dynamic individuals who share its passion for reshaping the investment landscape.

The move aligns with WiseX’s strategic goal of achieving Rs 1000 crore Assets Under Management (AUM) by 2024. Additionally, the company wishes to enhance its portfolio and reinforce its position as a market leader.

To entice prospective candidates, the company has unveiled exceptional career- advancement opportunities. For instance, recruits will have the chance to engage with the latest technologies, collaborate with prominent asset-management firms and fund managers, and experience significant career growth within the alternative investment sector.

Furthermore, the company is committed to offering performance-based rewards, periodic off-site retreats, and a comprehensive employee- benefits package, including health and accident insurance, among other perks.

Beyond recruitment, WiseX emphasises talent development, fostering a high-performance and reward culture at work.

WiseX stands as a neo-realty investment platform developed by Aurum PropTech. The firm actively foster diversity within a collaborative framework to optimise solutions through a multifaceted approach. The platform provides real-time overviews, detailed tracking and full transparency, enhancing investor confidence and experience.

Additionally, it brings expertise from diverse fields, including architecture, real estate, engineering, computer science and finance. Diversity serves as our strength, harmoniously woven into our collective vision and passion for reshaping an industry rooted in tradition.

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Upholding its commitment to people-centric values, Meesho has also ensured equitable compensation for all its employees.

The newly-appointed roles span a wide spectrum, including tech and product, analytics, business, fulfilment and experience, monetisation, finance, growth and HR. Non-tech roles such as strategy and operations have experienced a noteworthy increase in salary packages compared to the previous year.

Ashish Kumar Singh, chief human resources officer (CHRO), Meesho, expressed his thoughts on this development, stating how the resumption of Meesho’s campus hiring reflects the company’s strong trajectory in 2023 and outlines a robust roadmap for 2024. “We have a proven history of hiring from prestigious campuses, and we are grateful to all participating institutions for their cooperation in facilitating a seamless and successful hiring process,” he said.

With this fresh recruitment drive, the company has also decided to ensure a positive onboarding experience for all the freshers.

Some of the notable campuses that the company visited include the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) at Bombay, Kharagpur, Kanpur, Madras, Roorkee and BHU, as well as the Indian Institute of Science (IISC), Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Allahabad, BITS Pilani, IIM Lucknow, Kozhikode, and NIT Delhi, Bhopal, Surat, Calicut, among others.

Furthermore, IIIT Allahabad and IIT BHU emerged as the leading campuses in terms of the maximum number of hires.

In terms of compensation part, Meesho offers an industry-leading pay package, complemented by various wellness programmes and benefits, including medical insurance, health and wellness initiatives, work-life balance support, parental support, retirement benefits, learning and development opportunities, and employee- delight initiatives.

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The last time the company decided to trim its workforce, about 700 employees had been rendered jobless amidst the pandemic, in 2020.

As per media reports this second major layoff round is because the company has been forced to take measures to cut costs across various divisions due to dwindling sales. Sales over the last quarter have gone up merely by one per cent. In 2017, Nike had trimmed its workforce by about 745 in Oregon, where it happens to be the largest company. Globally, Nike has a workforce of well over 83,000 as of 31 May..

While the profit margins had improved there is uncertainty regarding the company’s retail business. Additionally, the share prices of the company tanked too, falling by ten per cent. This latest round of layoffs, which is being projected as a restructuring exercise is expected to help make the processes more efficient, effective and smooth within the organisation.

On 6 December 2023, the employees received an email in which Nike outlined several executive changes aimed at speeding up decision-making and addressing consumer needs.

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Although the laid-off people also include non-performers, it is clear that the layoffs are a step towards cutting costs, and the impact has reportedly been felt the most by the marketing and operations teams.

The increasing reliance on AI is aimed at improving efficiency, getting rid of repetitive jobs and moving towards better growth.

The company is expected to save at least 10 per cent on employee costs by automating processes using AI.

However, these layoffs are not an indication of a hiring freeze going forward. In fact, the company is planning to hire about 15,000 people to be part of its main payments business in 2024. The firm also has plans to expand its insurance and wealth businesses.

One97 Communications is the parent company of Paytm. The company had recently decided to focus more on high-ticket loans and reduce small-ticket loans. This decision had led to the firm’s shares dropping by 20 per cent.

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The startup aims to do away with all hidden costs and will charge no onboarding platform fee from the drivers either. Combined with an effective and efficient user interface, the firm is prepared to offer seamless service.

The firm that launched its service about four months ago, feels that the success of its service will hinge on satisfied and happy drivers, and wants both to feel safe and satisfied too.

The platform will be a driver-run one and will ensure that the drivers own their business.

Personalised and seamless experience is what viaDots is endeavouring to ensure. It is also hoping that millions of drivers will be part of its team in the next two years.

The firm did its homework before launching operations having studied the market for ride hailing in the country and finding a need to give priority to the drivers for success of the service.

On LinkedIn, viaDOTS expressed how the firm is “all about making rides smoother for both riders and drivers through our nifty Driver Operated Transport Service (DOTS).” The firm highlights the fact that “transparency is our jam. No hidden fees, no surge charges—just fair prices set by the taxi community, ensuring pocket-friendly, safe rides every time.” The people-oriented startup rightly states, “ We’re all about the people—constantly fine-tuning our game to improve your experience. Our tech-savvy platform is your ticket to hassle-free, smart rides.”

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The high competition and the uncertainty of the macro environment are the reasons cited for the decision to trim the workforce.

Josh Silverman, CEO, Etsy, has informed employees in a letter that even though the marketplace has expanded two-fold since 2019, drastic changes are required to stay competitive. The company is looking at restructuring and streamlining for cost-effectiveness.

While employee costs have grown, the sales have not increased for Etsy sellers at the expected rate, despite adopting cost-cutting measures and alteration in recruitment strategies, including a hiring freeze. Sustainability is the need of the hour, and the company is now resorting to layoffs to make that happen.

The Etsy marketplace sells handmade products and brings buyers and local artisans in touch with each other, worldwide. The firm now wishes to focus on improving sales for the seven million sellers associated with it from around the globe. It seeks to ensure value for all its stakeholders.These layoffs are part of this much-required internal restructuring.

The firm will incur a cost of at least $25 million in paying severance to the affected employees, along with other benefits. The restructuring exercise will be completed by the end of Q1, 2024.

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The reason for the layoffs is the falling demand. The firm has been struggling for the past several quarters and does not expect demand to grow much next year either. That is why it has resort to this extreme step of downsizing, for the future stability of the company.

During the pandemic, the company ‘s sales had gone up as the demand for toys has surged. That was because people were confined to their homes and parents spent on toys to keep their children engaged.

Chris Cocks, CEO, Hasbro, has reportedly been apologetic for announcing the layoff at a time when people are looking forward to Christmas.

The layoffs will be executed over a period of a year and a half to two years.

The toy firm had already axed about 800 jobs in a bid to cut costs and save up to $300m (£238m). In January, when it revealed its intention to cut some jobs, the company had admitted that while its digital gaming business was doing well, the demand for its traditional toys had fallen.

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As per a report in HT, there are about a 100 vacancies. A month ago, it was reported that almost 68 per cent of the posts sanctioned in DPCC were yet to be filled. Only 111 out of 344 posts were filled at the time, with 233 lying vacant.

An RTI filed by Varun Gulati, an environmental activist, had questioned the vacant posts in January 2023. He alleged that the DPCC had decided to take action only because the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) had intervened in the matter.

As per the HT report, the said 100 appointments that will take place post the exam scheduled for 17 December will help deal with the staff shortage to some extent. The second batch of 38 people will be hired for permanent Group A posts in January 2024.

It is pertinent to mention here that DPCC runs 24 of the 40 air-quality monitoring stations in the national capital. It also operates over 30 noise pollution monitors, and tests the quality of water at the capital’s sewage-treatment plants. This regulatory body also implements the the environmental and pollution control laws enacted by the Parliament.

It is the responsibility of DPCC to ensure that industries in the State adhere to pollution norms.

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The layoffs began last week starting with the vice president rank.

The impacted employees are still wondering how they could have been terminated because of their performance issues when no performance evaluation had taken place at all. They were simply summoned by the HR and personally told that they are being terminated, without any warning.

The company, however, maintains that the business is progressing just as planned and even hiring is happening wherever required. As per the firm, terminations based on performance are not unknown or new at the startup.

Having received funding from Blackstone in the first half of 2021, Simplilearn had been strategically using the finance to enhance its workforce and marketing. Maximum hiring had taken place in the product, tech and marketing teams. In fact, by June 2022, its tech team had grown from 60 to 200. In 2022, it had expanded its team by about 800.

In fact, in June last year, Krishna Kumar, founder, Simplilearn had revealed that as part of the expansion plan, in India and abroad, the company would be making substantial investments in its workforce by the end of 2022.

However, the year 2023 saw many edtech startups facing funding challenges, with several resorting to downsizing in order to stay profitable.

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The contracts are being discontinued because production has fallen. Compensation will be provided to the contract workers who quit early in this first ever layoff round by Honda in 25 years since its joint venture with GAC began in 1998.

Till October of 2023, GAC Honda had sold only about 4.9 lakh units, recording an 18.5 per cent dip in year-on-year sales. Most of the units were sold in the US and not China, which once accounted for 30 per cent of the total sales. In China, the sales dropped by nearly one fifth of the sales recorded during the same time last year.

The slump in the traditional auto-manufacturing space can be attributed to the growing demand for electric vehicles.

Hundreds of workers had been laid off by General Motors this year when its plants were affected by the United Auto Workers (UAW) strike. Ford and Stellantis too had laid off hundreds of workers at their plants during the first-ever labour action against the Detroit three automakers.

Very recently, high costs and low productivity caused Volkswagen brand to be declared financially incompetitive. The parent company, VW Group — which owns Audi, Porsche and the original Volkswagen brand — is shifting focus to producing electric cars.

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The platform, which streams game videos and airs esports content, calls this move a restructuring exercise and claims it intends to focus on global expansion.

Having reported a high market share and extraordinary levels of engagement, with users spending over an hour a day on the platform, Loco had introduced a ‘Quest’ feature about six months ago, to ensure a more interactive experience for users.

As per the official website, since 2020, Loco had grown to 55 million registered users with nine times year-on-year daily active users (DAU) growth. Within a year of its launch, the platform had over one lakh creators streaming on Logo with four times year-on-year creator sign-up growth and a record 17 million live watch hours of content being consumed per month.

The decision to trim the team is expected to ensure the health for the platform in the longer run and also make it sustainable.

The platform of course plans to assist the impacted team members with monetary support, ongoing health insurance as well as outplacement support. The company reportedly intends to focus on controlling costs and transaction-based monetisation.

With the introduction of its VIP programme and the Sky Championship 5.0, Loco’s metrics have grown. Paid users of its VIP programme account for three per cent of its monthly active users.

In 2022, the platform, founded by Anirudh Pandita and Ashwin Suresh, had managed to raise $42 million in a Series A round, led by Hashed a venture capitalist from South Korea.

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The plant is set to expand its capabilities and the Group has already acquired a new iPhone assembly plant. While the new facility will primarily manufacture iPhone parts, there is a likelihood of it producing parts for other brands of high-end phones in the near future.

This expansion confirms Apple’s intentions to focus on making India the hub for manufacturing smartphones.

The Tata Group became the first iPhone manufacturer in India when it acquired Wistron’s iPhone assembly plant in Kolar, Karnataka.

At the time of acquisition, in April this year, Wistron’s Indian facility was manufacturing the iPhone 12 and iPhone 14 using eight production lines. Once Tata acquired the plant, Wistron no longer had a presence in the Indian market as this was their only facility producing Apple products in India.

There were mainly three Taiwanese corporations that assembled Apple products in India, namely Wistron, Pegatron and Foxconn. Wistron departed from India, while Foxconn and Pegatron have expanded th their production lines in the country.

It is pertinent to mention here that Apple posted record revenue in India in the June-September quarter. More than 2.5 million units were shipped out of India. Clearly, Apple has been experiencing significant year-on-year growth in the country.

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Since the announcement of the deal, in May 2022, Broadcom had been open about chasing a goal of making VMWare, the multi-cloud services firm, profitable by $3.8 billion, which would entail addressing the duplication of various jobs in finance, legal, human resources, information technology and facilities.

The layoffs are worrying not just for the existing employees, but also customers and partners. After all, those who have received layoff notices were amongst the thousands of VMWare employees who had only just been absorbed by Broadcom. Some seem to be receiving offer letters to join Broadcom, while some are receiving layoff notices. Naturally, the employees feel they are being treated as capable of being disposed of at will.

Even the offer letters that were mailed post closure of the acquisition deal last week were not received by many VMWare employees. Therefore, there was no way for these employees of knowing where they stood, and the VMWare management seemed to have no clarification to offer either.

Even the partners are not sure how they are or would be benefitting from this acquisition. With several clients being stalled due to the acquisition there is even more uncertainty. Customers are left wondering how the situation will impact the prices and quality of VMWare offerings.

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The California-based company already has a 20,000-strong India team, which forms the lion’s share of its global workforce of 30,000. Its other development and software-delivery centres in India are located in Chennai, Kochi, Coimbatore, Pune, Bengaluru, Bengaluru, Thiruvananthapuram, Hosur and Delhi NCR.

The laboratory at the newly-inaugurated innovation hub — UST’s fourth in the country after Kochi, Chennai and Thiruvananthapuram —will see engineers and researchers creating innovative solutions in collaboration with clients, partners and academics.

In addition to engineering and computer information science (CIS), the new facility will serve as a research and development (R&D) centre for artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), Internet of Things (IoT) and other emerging technologies. It will also work to develop SAS platform practices.

The company is eager to leverage the rich talent available locally to strengthen its capabilities, and develop the hub into a global capacity centre to fulfil the needs of various sectors, including telecom, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, insurance and pharmaceuticals.

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The multinational firm specialising in audit, tax and advisory services, has established its new office, featuring cutting-edge amenities and collaborative spaces. The space is designed to accommodate an expanding team of professionals, as mentioned in a media statement.

The firm stated that this expansion signifies its acknowledgment of the dynamic talent pool in Kolkata and underscores the strategic significance of the city in KPMG’s growth strategy.
Partho Bandopadhyay, managing director, KPMG Global Delivery Centre, emphasised the importance of Kolkata in KPMG’s growth strategy, citing the city’s rich talent pool. He expressed the company’s intent to enhance service offerings and generate appealing job opportunities.

In July 2023, KPMG and Microsoft announced an extensive expansion of their global partnership, aiming to reshape professional services in critical areas such as workforce modernisation, secure development, and the utilisation of Artificial Intelligence (AI) solutions across various sectors.

The collaboration involves a multibillion-dollar commitment from KPMG in Microsoft cloud and AI services over the next five years. The alliance aims to elevate client engagements and revolutionise the employee experience responsibly, ensuring trustworthiness and safety.

The global professional- services firm providing audit, tax, and advisory services, operates in 147 countries

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The hiring will span engineering, design, luxury, digital, data analytics/science, marketing, and sales. Specifically, roles for engineers are expected to increase by a minimum of 50 per cent in the next 2-3 years.

“The aggressive hiring strategy reflects their dedication to bringing in experts from various fields, both young and experienced. This strategy is expected to accelerate growth and innovation, solidifying Titan’s position in the industry.”

Priya Mathilakath Pillai, head HR-corporate and retail, Titan Company

The company envisions that by onboarding individuals with new-age skill sets like data analytics, cybersecurity, product management, and digital marketing, it can deepen its presence in the premium and luxury segment. This aligns with its strategy of building deep expertise through a combination of building, borrowing, and buying.

Titan is also eyeing international hires, particularly focusing on the GCC market. The company plans to expand its international workforce by 10 per cent over the next 5 years. For the GCC market alone, it anticipates creating around 150-200 new positions in the next 2-3 years.

While currently, 60 percent of Titan’s employees are based in metros and 40 percent in Tier 2 & 3 cities, the company plans to strengthen its presence in emerging markets and leverage local talent to encourage regional employment.

In line with its commitment to diversity and inclusivity, Titan is actively pursuing a diverse and talented workforce. Priya Mathilakath Pillai, head HR-corporate and retail, Titan Company, emphasises that the aggressive hiring strategy reflects their dedication to bringing in experts from various fields, both young and experienced. This strategy is expected to accelerate growth and innovation, solidifying Titan’s position in the industry.

Notably, 40 percent of the new hires in Q1 of FY 2024 were women. Titan recently launched the women-focused return-ship program Sequal, aimed at upskilling women and providing re-entry support. Through this programme, Titan aims to enable the re-entry of women into the workforce.

Beyond hiring for mid-senior levels, Titan will continue to recruit talent from the campuses directly, and that will constitute 15-18 percent of the total hiring every year. This ensures a steady influx of innovative young minds into the company.

Titan’s objective extends beyond investing in talent to investing in the future. As the company diversifies and expands its offerings across brands like Tanishq, Mia, Fastrack, Sonata, Eyeplus, Taneira, Skinn & Caratlane in Indian and international markets, there will be a significant focus on augmenting Titan’s luxury segment.

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With Amazon deciding to shift priorities and deciding to concentrate more on generative artificial intelligence (AI), hundreds of employees from its voice-assistant unit may be rendered jobless. The exact number of people to be laid off is yet to be known, although reports say that employees in the US, Canada and India will be affected.

Very recently, employees were let go in the music and gaming divisions, as well as the human resources department.

The news does not come as a complete shock since there have been indication of Amazon’s devices and services business failing to be profitable. Alexa, the voice assistant could be relied on to set timers, handle search queries, play music, supply jokes and trivia, find a phone, and even serve as a home automation hub. Right now, the company feels it needs to put in maximum efforts on generative AI as that is what matters most to its customers. After all, the technology can not only generate fresh and creative content, but also generate images, code and text from available data. Therefore, Amazon would be able to enhance Alexa’s features and make it even more spontaneous, sharp and supportive by investing in generative AI.

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