India’s technology sector is shifting from mass hiring to selective recruitment, with companies prioritising AI and problem-solving skills over volume hiring, as fresher intake remains below pre-pandemic levels, Rajesh Nambiar, president of Nasscom, told TNIE.
The shift reflects a broader reset underway across the industry. Nambiar said CY 2025 marked “a strategic reset across industries,” driven by geopolitical uncertainty and the growing influence of artificial intelligence. While sentiment has improved slightly, he noted that “growth continues to remain measured and disciplined,” with overall technology spending expected to stay in the 5–7% range year-on-year. AI budgets, however, are rising gradually as companies move from experimentation to scaled adoption.
He said FY27 is likely to mark a “maturation phase of enterprise AI spending,” where companies balance quick deployment with longer-term transformation. Growth will become more uneven, with “tier-1 players and progressive mid-sized firms diverging based on domain depth, AI readiness, and talent capabilities.” Companies are also expected to shift towards “platform-led models,” outcome-based pricing, and micro-vertical specialisation.
On concerns that agentic tools such as Anthropic’s Claude could disrupt the services model, Nambiar said. “AI is unlikely to be adopted as a simple ‘out-of-the-box’ solution in large enterprises,” he said, adding that firms will continue to play a key role as “AI orchestration partners.”
The industry is also moving past early enthusiasm around generative AI. Nambiar said “the enterprise conversation has already moved beyond experimentation toward scaled deployment and measurable outcomes.” Many companies are reassessing early use cases and focusing on integration rather than quick wins. According to Nasscom’s CXO conversations, “over 50% of enterprise leaders are prioritising productivity and efficiency improvements,” compared with earlier efforts to explore new revenue streams.
This shift is also changing how companies approach data and services. Enterprises are increasingly treating data as a monetisation asset, while service providers are moving towards “deep micro-vertical specialisation,” using industry-specific models trained on domain data and regulatory frameworks.
Hiring trends reflect these changes. Nambiar said the sector is moving “from volume hiring to deliberate talent pool creation aligned with future capabilities.” While the industry remains a net employer with nearly six million workers, recruitment has become more targeted. In FY26, companies focused on “job-ready candidates,” moving away from the earlier model of large-scale hiring followed by training.
He added that more than two million professionals have already been upskilled in AI, including up to 300,000 in advanced capabilities. Data from Naukri’s January 2026 JobSpeak Index showed fresher hiring in the BPM segment rising over 30 per cent year-on-year, but overall hiring remains selective. For FY27, firms are expected to prioritise “AI fluency, problem-solving ability, and learnability” in entry-level roles.
On workplace trends, Nambiar said return-to-office policies vary across companies, but most have settled into hybrid models. Typically, “around 70% of roles operate in hybrid mode,” with about 20 per cent requiring more in-office presence due to client or security needs, and a smaller share remaining fully remote.
Overall, the sector is entering a phase defined by tighter spending, selective hiring, and a stronger focus on measurable outcomes from technology investments.