It's talent tug of war: Why Cognizant is in the crosshairs of top IT firms

Cognizant pulling top executives from rivals has triggered a legal battle at a time when the pie is shrinking

A war for talent has bro­ken out in the infor­mation technology (IT) sector. And it is getting serious. On the one side is US-based tech major Cognizant, which is deter­mined to create an A team to drive growth. On the other are Indian IT giants like Infosys and Wipro, which have lobbed allegations of poaching and unethical practices against Cognizant.
 

Last week, as 2023 drew to a close, the war escalated. Wipro and Infosys pulled out legal notices from their arsenal, and senior IT officials found themselves tackling lawsuits.
 

Trouble started brewing in 2023, after Cognizant announced that Ravi Kumar,