Indian IT’s Goal to Hire 1 Lakh Freshers Stands on Thin Ice
Even as top Indian IT firms performed moderately in Q4 FY25, with some reporting single-digit growth and others seeing a decline, the focus shifted to campus hiring with big numbers. Leading firms like Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, Cognizant, Wipro, HCLTech and Tech Mahindra collectively plan to hire over 100,000 fresh graduates in FY26, even as demand slows and AI threatens to reduce entry-level job tasks. TCS alone says it could hire up to or exceed 42,000 hires it made in FY25, while Infosys and Cognizant talk of hiring 20,000 each and Wipro around 10,000 freshers. HCLTech, which trimmed its target mid-year but still hired over 7,800 fresh graduates, is planning to increase hiring frequency. Mid-tier firms like Persistent Systems, LTIMindtree and WNS, which posted better-than-expected Q4 results, could add another 20,000 hires. “Muted revenue growth and sluggish demand recovery will likely make large-scale fresher hiring a challenging target for Indian IT companies in FY26,” warns Krishna Vij, VP of hiring at TeamLease Digital, while speaking with AIM. Although attrition has stabilised between 10–15%, “the urgency to hire has diminished, and onboarding will be closely aligned with actual project requirements,” she said. As India’s IT sector treads a cautious path with fresher hiring, Cypher 2025, India’s largest AI summit, emerges as a powerful convergence point for innovation and collaboration. It is scheduled to take place from September 17–19 at the KTPO Trade Centre in Whitefield, Bengaluru. In its ninth edition, the event brings together over 5,000 daily attendees, 100+ speakers, and a wave of emerging tech voices. Organised by AIM Media House, Cypher 2025 serves as a pivotal platform for professionals, startups, and enterprises to engage with the evolving AI landscape in India. Past Trends Back in FY24, TCS signalled a shift in its hiring approach. While sticking to its usual plan of onboarding 35,000–40,000 freshers, the company began recalibrating based on utilisation rather than sheer headcount. TCS then COO, NG Subramaniam, had told TOI that with 10% of its workforce on the bench, the company was focusing on improving utilisation rate by training and upskilling employees on the bench to make them project-ready. This mindset may continue into FY26, where fresher hiring is tightly tied to project visibility. Infosys, however, significantly reduced its campus hiring with 11,900 freshers hired in FY24, a whopping 76% drop from over 50,000 freshers hired in FY23, citing inefficiencies in its employee pyramid and focusing instead on tightening utilisation and training its bench on generative AI. The company had even stopped campus hiring for a couple of quarters. Similarly, HCLTech initially targeted to hire 15,000 in FY24, but scaled back mid-year. Wipro, despite onboarding 22,000 freshers in FY24, slowed down further and informed of plans to hire 10,000-12,000 in FY26, citing muted client spending. Wipro CEO Srini Pallia, just like in FY24, expects clients to take a more measured approach, especially on two spend areas—large transformation programs and discretionary spend. Meanwhile, LTIMindtree faced challenges with delayed joining dates for freshers from the 2022 batch, and trying to fill the gap through internal training programs. As the industry navigates a period of cautious optimism, the real test is likely to come in the second half of FY26.  If macroeconomic sentiment in the US and Europe worsens, Indian IT may pull back hiring, as they did in FY24 One of the big questions is whether these hiring plans are more about sentiment or true demand. Utilisation rates are higher than they’ve been in years—well above 80% for many large firms—which indicates that bench strength has been squeezed. Vij expects large IT firms to maintain a healthy pipeline of fresh talent but stagger joining dates until new businesses materialise. “Actual absorption will depend on deal wins and a rebound in client demand across key sectors such as BFSI, retail, and manufacturing in the coming quarters,” she notes, stressing that sentiment across sectors remain cautious. Will AI Reshape Fresher Hiring? The traditional fresher led model in Indian IT is being reshaped with the rise of AI.  Earlier, companies could afford to hire freshers, place them on bench and gradually train them to deploy in new projects. Now, with AI and automation improving productivity, that luxury is gone. This shift was highlighted by HCLTech CEO Vijayakumar C  who said AI disruption in IT services is different from previous technological shifts such as cloud computing and digital transformation. “The changes AI is assuring are very different, and we need to be more proactive to even categorise our revenues to create completely new businesses,” he said. Generative AI is expected to accelerate software development by automating coding and reducing project timelines.He cited a financial services client where AI-driven efficiencies reduced the timeline of a $1 billion technology transformation program from five years to just three-and-a-half years. It resulted in both and cost and time savings. AI is doing the kind of work that earlier required large teams of junior developers. Though firms like TCS have said AI is not impacting fresher hiring, such clarity is lacking across the industry. While some remain optimistic, others are a bit cautious and tying hiring to project visibility. “Overall, the sentiment remains cautious. However, companies are keen on strengthening their talent pyramid to drive long-term cost optimisation and profitability,” Vij added. As GCCs expand in India bringing tasks that were earlier outsourced to the IT firms here, the traditional fresher intake led model could face some heat. Delayed wage hikes, slower promotions and a weak job market are sending mixed signals. The coming quarters will reveal whether intent to hire turns into action, or if AI will rewrite the hiring trends and processes.
Analyst expects large IT firms to maintain a healthy pipeline of fresh talent but stagger joining dates until new businesses materialise.
Analyst expects large IT firms to maintain a healthy pipeline of fresh talent but stagger joining dates until new businesses materialise.
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Mohit writes about AI in simple, explainable, and often funny words. He's especially passionate about chatting with those building AI for Bharat, with the occasional detour into AGI.