Recruiters shift focus from IT as hiring remains slow

livemint.com:

IT sector has pushed recruiters to bank on other industries like manufacturing, retail and auto, amongst others, to make up for lost IT business. The development has effectively swivelled the job market 180 degrees from an employee's market to that of the employer. “About 18 months ago, 80% of our placements were from the IT sector; now it is 40%," said Alok Kumar, president of Manpower, a subsidiary of recruitment firm ManpowerGroup.

“We have shifted focus and 60% of our permanent placements are now on the back of retail and manufacturing." Anshuman Das, chief executive and co-founder of Careernet, a talent solutions provider, said that a middle management position in the top four IT firms takes almost three months to close these days, compared to a month less than two years ago. “For a job posting in the middle management level of IT sector, there are more than 100 applications of candidates who have more than eight years of work experience," added Das. About a year and a half ago, Das had to line up 20 candidates at most to close such a position, indicating the lengthy sifting process the firms are conducting.

IT’s loss clearly has been the other industries’ gain. Recruiters say candidates with digital skills are most wanted in retail, manufacturing, core sector companies, EV (electric vehicles) part of the auto business, and in the FMCG (fast-moving consumer goods) industry. Demand for junior to middle management is seeing the maximum flux taking place.