IT salaries on the rise: Nasscom-Hewitt survey

With IT firms expanding, the biggest challenge for the industry is to hire specialised manpower.

According to the latest Nasscom-Hewitt survey, over the last one year, salaries in the IT industry have risen by 16 per cent.

Further, the survey also said that with IT firms expanding into newer areas, which include the Tier-II and Tier-III cities, the biggest challenge for the industry is to hire specialised manpower.

"Movement to the Tier-II and Tier-III cities has expanded the talent base, but on the other hand, the shift from low-end business processes to higher value knowledge-based processes has amplified the challenge of hiring specialised manpower," said Nishchae Suri, Asia Pacific business consulting leader, Hewitt Associates.

The study, which surveyed 125 foreign and local IT companies, reports that the industry is witnessing a trend towards differentiated total rewards practices based on specialised skill and complexity.

According to the survey, 48 per cent of the partners said that they paid premiums for specialised skills at the hiring stage and the quantum payout was often left upon the recruitment manager's discretion. In an attempt to retain employees, salary levels of employees with hot skills are frequently revised.

The survey says that companies are also designing fixed pay ranges and placing employees with hot skills in a higher quartile within the same range.

With most corporations having a base in Bangalore and NCR, the two regions continue to be amongst the highest on the location index with each reporting a 4-6 per cent increment over the national average.

According to the survey, Chennai reported an under 13-per cent compensation differential in comparison to the national average.