Cognizant to hire 23,000 people from campuses in 2021

Cognizant expects to hire up to 23,000 people from campuses in 2021, a majority of whom will be from India, its newly appointed India managing director Rajesh Nambiar said.

Nambiar, who came on board in October, reports to CEO Brian Humphries and is an executive committee representative of the company’s nearly 200,000 associates in India. He is also responsible for strengthening the firm’s ties with Indian government agencies and policy bodies.

“We have hired approximately 17,000 from campuses this year, a sizeable proportion of them in India, which is one of the highest percentages of campus hires-to-total hires since 2016. We expect to hire 23,000 from campuses in 2021,” Nambiar said, in his first interview after taking over the reins of the India unit.


His immediate goals include strengthening the company’s India operations, collaborating with universities for skill development initiatives, improving ties with government agencies, chambers of commerce, universities, and key policy-making bodies, including Nasscom.