Big tech firms nearly pause recruitment in India amid global slowdown

These companies have registered a 90% decline in active job postings in India in 2023 when compared to the last year, according to a report

The largest tech companies in the world, also known as "FAAMNG", have nearly paused recruitment in India, The Economic Times (ET) reported. "FAAMNG" stands for Facebook (Meta group of companies), Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Netflix, and Google (Alphabet). These companies have registered a 90 per cent decline in active job postings in India in 2023 when compared to the last year, the report cited data compiled by Xpheno, a staffing firm.

The news comes at a time when the technology industry around the world is facing an economic slowdown. This is visible in the manner in which companies have taken steps to cut their expenses. Head of workforce research at Xpheno, Prasadh MS told ET, "The low to no hiring action maintained by the cohort (FAAMNG) over the years will continue to impact tech talent movements, especially in the experienced lateral layers." This is an indication for the smaller companies to move with caution, Prasadh added.

IT companies looking to improve utilisation

The decline in hiring by the big tech companies has been there since last year which dropped 78 per cent from July 2022 to December 2022, the Xpheno data shows. Industry experts have said that the careful approach towards hiring new employees is likely to continue for the next two quarters. The companies are focusing on improving employee utilisation as the demand has weakened, the report said.

What are the experts saying?

An IT analyst, while talking about the state of the global economy, told ET that so long as the US Federal Reserve does not announce interest rate cuts, technology companies across the world will stay cautious. While the sentiments have turned positive for the sector, the technology sector has not seen any significant change in terms of investment. The situation is likely to remain unchanged until at least March 2024, when the first rate cut is expected, another expert said.