Enhancing capabilities

India should focus on expanding the GCC ecosystem

The world’s largest coffeehouse chain, Starbucks, recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Tamil Nadu government to establish its first India global capability centre (GCC) in Chennai. This will create about 800 high-value technology jobs in its first phase. The investment adds to Chennai’s growing GCC ecosystem. The city already accounts for about 10 per cent of India’s GCC talent base, with more than 250 centres, and recent commitments from wind turbine maker Nordex show a growing interest in the city. The timing is important. India’s GCC ecosystem has reached over 2,100 centres, employing 2.36 million professionals and generating nearly $100 billion in revenue, according to a recent Nasscom-Zinnov report. The number of centres has grown 32 per cent since FY21, with more than 500 Forbes Global 2000 companies now operating GCCs in India. GCCs also account for a rising share of India’s services exports, increasing from 19.7 per cent in FY19 to 23.5 per cent in FY26.

 

The nature of this expansion is changing with time. Nearly half the GCCs established since FY21 have been built with artificial intelligence (AI) as a core focus, while more than 1,200 centres have embedded AI and machine-learning capabilities. According to industry estimates, nearly two-thirds of GCC roles created this year require AI, data science or automation skills. Hiring has grown substantially since 2021, reaching about 228,000 in the first half of 2026, up 11 per cent from a year earlier, and is projected to cross 510,000 for the full year. Notably, 56 per cent of hiring is concentrated among professionals with four to 10 years of experience, highlighting the growing demand for specialised mid-career talent. Reskilling, therefore, needs attention. A study by PwC India-Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry finds that 72 per cent of GCCs need to reskill or upskill more than 40 per cent of their workforce as AI changes job requirements. In this regard, companies have to invest more in continuous learning, while universities need to align their curricula more closely with emerging industry requirements. The state needs to focus on industry-linked skilling, university-industry research & development, reliable infrastructure, and faster regulatory approvals enabling ease of doing business.

 

It is also worth noting that around 94 per cent of GCC hiring remains concentrated in six major cities, creating pressure on talent availability, housing, transport, and other urban infrastructure. Tamil Nadu can use Chennai’s momentum to develop complementary hubs in Coimbatore, Madurai, and Tiruchirappalli. Linking local universities and engineering talent to specific industry clusters could widen the talent pool and make growth more geographically balanced. Other states, such as West Bengal, should also tap this opportunity by building on Kolkata’s emerging GCC base and improving the ecosystem for technology, skills and investment.  The success of the GCC story should not be measured only by the increasing  number of centres but also by maximising the value created by them. Although the output and intellectual property created in GCCs mostly belong to foreign companies, the fact that such work is happening in this country with the Indian workforce will have spillover effects over time. GCCs are also supplementing India’s services exports, which is helping not only through job creation, but also by supporting the external accounts at a macro level. Thus, both the Union and state governments must continuously work on improving the operating environment.