Yes it is more volatile than fluorine, and it’s the Indian job market.

Let’s take a look at the facts surrounding the ever so lucrative Indian job market as prospective candidates are willing to hop jobs within a year, sometimes in six months and the only option weighed while decision making is money. Everybody is talking about package,when a job is offered and the most common questions are…

• How much are you offering?
• Are there long-term onsite opportunities?

Not to mention there is a wish list of the countries as well. Importantly nobody asks how much did the last salary appraisal cycle yield on an average. Why, because they don’t wish to stay long enough for the company to raise it, they know that hopping a job would give them more salary than any appraisal on this planet can.

Was it always like this always?

When I joined ‘IT’ it was more of a talent pool attraction and the questions where a little different…

• What projects do you have?
• Is the work challenging enough?
• Is there ample room to learn and improvise skills?
• What are the training facilities and opportunities to move cross functions?

And lot of such questions related more towards career sculpting and not just the financial aspect of it. But the thought process has changed dramatically post recession, and more so in India than any other country.

The 3 Month Notice Period Monster

Companies’ think that they were smart in implementing notice period of 3 months. And this has proved to be in favor of the candidate seeking job. Obvious question, How’s that?

• Whilst resigning, candidate gets his first offer and resigns
• In remaining three months period they keep looking and try to get as many offers as possible.
• Each time they get a new offer, they get an increment. and the increment is not on the CTC, but the highest offer in hand.
• This strategy works well, and the candidate can easily score about 50% raise on the current CTC. I have also seen figure much higher than just 50% but that totally depends upon your skills to sell yourself.

Why did this happen?

Well one reason I think is that recession left a bad scar in everybody’s memories. The insecurity that came with the bad times has left that bitter taste and not to mention the mishandling of recession by most of the companies left their employees to believe that companies don’t care. So yes some guys at those corporate seats got it wrong in understanding the human emotion. Why did they not get it? Well that’s my second point. Most of the companies operating in India are multinationals and the decisions are always taken at a global level. What this means is if in Europe an average 4-5% hike would be celebrated such a hike in India would be a matter of worry. In recession when all the companies were booking losses, all their Indian counter parts were in green. But yet in view of the global decision layoffs were done none the less. Indian demography is not well-considered when the decisions are taken at global level and the effects are out in the open

Its effects

Evidently the Indian job market has changed so much that recruiters are finding it hard to match the resource cost with available vacancies they might have. The skilled resource crunch is well over 30% and when global companies are utilizing every bit to move the jobs offshore to reduce cost, the operating cost gap is closing day by day. How long before it lasts? For individual, well as it turns out you can only stretch that far and at some point you will again get on track of self-development and look forward for a career where you feel passionate about the work, anything that excites you. So don’t look at the company only from a perspective of how much it would pay you, also see if there is a value addition on both sides. For Companies, where ever possible, hire fresher and groom them to be absorbed in the system. Once the skill-set crunch reduces the market demand can automatically come down and also the operating cost is reduced quite
considerably.

So Happy hunting guys, and though money has to be the first thing, make sure it is not the last one while taking a decision on career move, it is an important step in your career and also on your resume, so make it count.