Learnability as a skill more critical than ever: Mphasis CEO Nitin Rakesh

As AI reshapes IT hiring, Mphasis has dropped campus recruitment, betting on internships, hackathons and learnability over credentials in the age of GenAI

Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way technology companies are hiring -- shifting from credential-based recruitment to models that focus on adaptability and problem solving. Mphasis is one such example.

 

The mid-cap information technology (IT) services firm has not hired engineering graduates from campuses since the last two years. Instead, it organises three to six months internship programmes, which has emerged as the source to recruit new employees.

 

Mphasis is focusing more on learnability as a skill during the hiring rather than specific competencies. It means engineers being ready to unlearn and relearn quicker in the age of AI.

 

“That has become the hiring pipeline for us as it focuses on live projects and new technology projects,” said Nitin Rakesh, chief executive officer and managing director of Mphasis. 

 

“What we need is technology skills plus learnability, we do not do interviews as much as we do hackathons.”

 

IT services companies are increasingly using hackathons as a launch pad to hire fresh talent and deal with the rapidly changing technology.

 

For years, the services industry had an inextricable link between revenue and headcount, with higher revenue being directly proportional to higher number of employees. But generative AI (Gen AI) and agentic AI have changed the hiring techniques with more focus on problem solving skills and ability to work as a team.

 

Engineering colleges encourage their students, especially in their second and third years, to participate in hackathons and gain relevant experience and certifications. Based on their performance, companies are often inclined to offer jobs after course completion.

 

TCS, Coforge already hire graduates through that route.

 

Rakesh added that people with five years of experience and above will always be in demand as companies need domain skills in certain stacks depending on the requirement. “The pyramid will be more fluid and will take somewhat of a diamond shape,” he said, referring to the traditional employee structure.

 

At the same time, Rakesh said that lower level engineering roles, typically referred to as L0 and L1, have become completely humanless as agents have taken over. L2 is assisted by agents.

 

“A solution is already incorporating domain architects, AI agents, human agents, and anybody else who is needed to deliver in the ecosystem. For that programme, whether I need the same number of people or half the people, it is of no consideration to the client. Earlier it was capacity based pricing but now it is outcome based. In the relearn phase, I may need just 20 per cent people, in the rewrite phase, I may need 50 per cent of what I needed earlier,” he said.

 

Mphasis reported a 3.5 per cent rise in net profit to ₹442 crore in the third quarter. This was despite the ₹35 crore provision the company had to make due to the implementation of the new Labour Codes.

 

Consolidated revenue from operations rose 12.3 percent ₹4,002 crore.