AI push meets resistance in the middle layer at IT firms
Artificial intelligence is rapidly changing how work is done inside India’s IT services companies, but industry leaders say the shift is not always smooth across organisational layers.
At a recent industry forum, Ankit Bose, Head of AI at NASSCOM, said companies often see enthusiasm for AI at the top leadership level and among technical teams, but not always in the layers in between.
“The executive layer is gung-ho. The technical team is gung-ho. The mid-tier and the end tier, they are not very happy or very encouraged to use AI because of various reasons,” Bose said.
According to him, some employees worry about how the technology might affect their roles. “They think their job is at risk. I have been doing this for probably a number of years. I know all that is right.”
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) CEO K Krithivasan also said at the recent Nasscom event in Mumbai that senior employees have been slower than younger staff to develop AI-based solutions, saying that those higher in the hierarchy often read about new tools but do not build with them.
Krithivasan, however, said employees should adopt the technology even if it reduces traditional revenue streams.
“We are telling associates that if you find that you can do something faster, better, cheaper with AI, you should probably go and tell your customers, even if it cannibalises revenue,” he said.
Across India’s large IT services companies, AI tools are already reshaping daily work. The technology is being used to code, test, in sales, HR and more departments.
“AI has clearly changed how we work. Earlier, we would spend days writing and testing basic code. Now, tools can generate a first version in hours. It saves time, but it also means clients expect faster delivery and sometimes lower costs,” said Ram Prasad, a mid-level software engineer at a Bengaluru-based IT firm.
While AI tools can complete routine coding tasks more quickly, engineers say their roles are evolving rather than disappearing.
“So we have to add value in other ways, like understanding the business problem better or improving system design. I don’t think jobs will disappear overnight, but the nature of our roles is definitely changing,” Prasad added.
Inside companies, AI training is becoming common. A project lead at a large IT firm said employees are being encouraged to use the technology widely.
“At the same time, people are quietly worried about what this means in the long term. If AI can handle routine tasks like testing or monitoring, fewer junior roles may be required,” she said.
At the operational level, companies are also introducing AI agents that handle monitoring and routine system tasks.
“These systems analyse large volumes of operational data and act on it automatically,” said Anant Adya, EVP and Service Offering Head at Infosys.