THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even as the IT sector battles a rising attrition rate and the unprofessional practice of employees serving multiple companies, the Group of Technology Companies (GTech) - a forum of top managers in the state - is preparing to roll out a set of guidelines to help firms formulate an optimal work from home (WFH) policy. With the Covid pandemic subsiding, the priority of the IT sector, like any other, is to bring employees back to the workplace, GTech chairman V K Mathews told TNIE.
“The guidelines will be ready in a month and suggestions will be finalised in consultation with representatives of IT companies,” said Mathews, who is also the founder- chai rman of IBS Software.
Ruling out the possibility of companies shifting completely to work from office mode soon, he said the hybrid mode of operation would continue as that has worked out to be a good deal for the industry, companies as well as the employees. “We must also note that techies should not be locked at home for work always,” he said. Though WFH has the merit of working in a flexible environment, doing it daily is neither good for the employees, nor the industry, Mathews said.
“None has worked from office for the past two years. The employees haven’t even seen their managers. They are becoming mere numbers. This affects their social life,” he said. A major demerit of WFH, he said, was employees’ tendency to work in multiple companies simultaneously to earn more money.
“It has been found that some employees are working in multiple companies at the same time. This is unprofessional and unethical. The new recruits are not getting the chance to understand the work culture of good firms as they haven’t been to office,” he said.
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Math ews was also wary of the rise in the attrition rate in the state’s IT sector. “Though several IT firms flourished during the pandemic, some have been struggling due to massive attrition. The rate is 35 per cent in Cognizant Technology Solutions (CTS) and 27.5 per cent in Infosys. Attrition has also affected the quality of the human resources. And when the quality is bad, customers will change suppliers,” he said.
He said in the post-pandemic scenario, office spaces would be modelled in a way that allows employees to be more collaborative and friendly while working. “In two years, there will be a transformation of office spaces. We expect IT firms will redesign their office spaces. Everybody has a laptop now. So all the colleagues can come to office, sit together and work in a closely-knit environment,” he said. He said GTech and other stakeholders would work together to improve the startup ecosystem in the state. “We will also work with the Technopark authorities for the development and maintenance of the park,” he said. Mathews also approved of the government’s strategy to attract more big IT companies to the state, saying it was the right move.
“We need a campaign highlighting the reason Thiruvananthapuram is a great place for Fintech firms due to the resource pool. Kerala is the place for digital technology. My suggestion is to promote the slogan ‘Work from Kerala’. So many Keralites are working elsewhere. Allow them to return to Kerala and work from here for prestigious companies,” Mathews said, adding that proper infrastructure is the basic requirement for such campaigns.