India sees sharper demand for specialised, mid-career talent as GCC hiring accelerates

Bengaluru: Global capability centres (GCCs) in India are accelerating hiring, especially for specialised and mid-career talent, as they expand beyond cost-focused operations towards technology, innovation, and enterprise transformation, according to Quess Corp, a staffing and workforce solutions company.

GCC hiring surged to 12-14% in the March quarter, from 4-6% in the December quarter, Quess Corp said in a report. The GCC sector currently accounts for nearly 27% of India’s IT hiring demand, up from 15% in 2024.

India has more than 2,100 GCCs, and the sector is projected to employ around 2.7 million professionals by 2030.


Also read: AI skills power nearly two-thirds of new GCC hiring in India

“The labour market is being reshaped by AI, digital transformation and capability-led hiring,” said Lohit Bhatia, executive director and group CEO, Quess Corp. “The hiring mix is also changing. While technology capabilities remain central to GCC expansion, 65% of flexible hiring is now in non-technology functions, including operations, finance, HR, compliance and shared services.”

Technology roles account for 35%, covering AI, data engineering, cloud, cybersecurity and product engineering, where talent availability remains considerably tighter.

The GCC hiring pyramid is also shifting towards experienced professionals, with those having 4-10 years of experience forming the core of demand. Fresher hiring has fallen from 28% in 2024 to 15% in 2025, according to the report.

“This is because organisations are increasingly seeking ‘deployment-ready’ talent that can contribute immediately to transformation programmes,” Bhatia told ET. Contractual talent now makes up 25% of the GCC workforce, compared with 18% two years ago.

AI skills are commanding an increasing premium. Generative AI hiring surged 178% year-on-year, while cybersecurity and cloud engineering demand rose 75% each, and data engineering grew 61%. Traditional business intelligence roles, meanwhile, declined 14-16%, highlighting the shift towards newer technology capabilities.

The growth is also spreading beyond metros. While Bengaluru and Hyderabad continue to dominate with engineering and product mandates, Coimbatore, Ahmedabad and Kochi are emerging as Tier-2 GCC locations, accounting for 10-12% of hiring demand and growing.

Further, young workers are emerging as the primary drivers of formal employment, signalling a generational shift in how India’s workforce is being built. The report, which analyses EPFO, PLFS and industry data alongside workforce trends, said nearly 59% of all new EPFO subscribers in FY25 belonged to the 18–25 age group, underscoring the growing role of young workers in expanding India’s formal economy.

The trend is equally visible across the organised workforce. Of the more than 57,000 new Universal Account Numbers (UANs) generated during FY26, 79% belonged to individuals aged 18–30, while the 21–25 age group accounted for more than 35% of all new UANs, making it the single largest cohort entering formal employment.