TECHNOLOGY GAP
Diversity initiatives are bringing more women to certain roles: Survey
Indian companies are prioritizing diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) initiatives, with varying levels of women's representation across roles highlighted in a Manpower Group survey. Administrative and operational roles show higher female presence, while top-level management and STEM roles exhibit lower representation. Key findings emphasize the importance of trust, relationship building, and technology-driven solutions like AI for unbiased recruitment.
Strong ER&D demand helps IT buck overall soft hiring trend
India's $250 billion IT services industry is facing sluggish hiring, but a bright spot is emerging in Engineering, Research & Development (ER&D). Demand for ER&D services is surging, driving a 15% increase in recruitment for these roles. Staffing firms report that tech companies are ramping up ER&D hiring to stay competitive in the global market.
Viability gap funding set to boost offshore wind energy space: Crisil
The government's outlay, announced on June 19, includes Rs 6,853 crore for the installation and commissioning of 1 GW of offshore wind energy projects of 500 MW each off the coast of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. It also has Rs 600 crore for augmentation of two ports to meet the logistics requirements for offshore wind energy projects farms and encourage developers to enter this space.
Budget 2024: Hi-tech thermal plants may get Rs 6,000 cr viability support
Budget 2024: The Union budget for 2024-25 is expected to include a support scheme for setting up 800 MW coal-based power plants using Advanced Ultra Supercritical (AUSC) technology. The finance ministry is evaluating a proposal for ₹6,000 crore viability gap funding (VGF) and a ₹3,500 crore payment security mechanism for electric buses. The project, based on indigenous technology developed by a consortium of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research, and NTPC, is expected to cost upwards of ₹15,000 crore at completion.
Can cyber-attacks on the US stop its drinking water supplies?
In recent times, the US has been attacked by Iran, Russia and China based hackers who have targeted various water utility projects. This has exposed the country’s outdated infrastructure and has shown a lackadaisical approach in dealing with cyber-crimes that threaten its critical IT infrastructure.
RBI urges banks to address credit gaps for underserved sectors
Despite India's progress in banking access, micro and small business units, marginal farmers, and self-help group members still lack institutional credit and comprehensive financial services, as highlighted by the Reserve Bank of India.
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Nearly nine in 10 recruiters use AI for sourcing candidates: Survey
India Inc. is grappling with a shortage of workers skilled in AI, despite over half of recruiters being prepared for AI adoption. Lack of knowledge or training is cited as a major barrier, emphasizing the need for educational initiatives to bridge the skills gap. A survey from Talent500 indicates a strong inclination among companies to incorporate AI-driven tools into their recruitment processes.
Indian deep tech startups count surges in 2023 but funding plummets 77%: Nasscom
Total $850 million was raised in 2023 itself -- this is a 77% decline over $3.7 billion raised in 2022. The number of deals, meanwhile, declined by 25% in 2023 over 2022, it said.
Beyond the paycheck: What employees look for and how employers can fix hiring gaps
The changing work culture is causing a gap between employer and employee expectations in hiring and retention. Companies struggle with mismatched salary expectations, required skills, and cultural fit issues. Nonprofits and FMCG companies face the most challenges. Many employees in India and Asia Pacific prioritize flexibility and career progression. Ageism is evident, especially in sectors like Insurance.
AI jobs command premium pay as companies fill specialised roles
Experts and staffing firms told ET that qualified AI professionals in India are raking in serious cash. Compared to traditional IT roles, AI specialists can command a salary premium of up to 40-80%. The demand for AI talent is exploding as companies race to fill these new and specialised positions.
Pay gap shrinks: Will BTech grads stay MBA course?
A Deloitte survey revealed a significant narrowing of starting salaries between MBA and BTech graduates in India. The pay gap has reduced to 57% in 2024 from 102% in 2021, potentially impacting the appeal of costly management courses for BTech graduates.
What's stopping TCS from filling 80,000 open positions?
TCS is facing a challenge with 80,000 open positions due to a skills gap. Amar Shetye, global operations head of TCS's RMG, highlighted the mismatch between employee skills and required roles.
India to collaborate with ILO on global skills gap mapping, future of work
A tripartite Indian delegation, led by labour secretary Sumita Dawra, to the 112th International Labour Conference being in held in Geneva, Switzerland, reinstated India’s commitment to strengthen its work with ILO in view of emerging technologies and digitalization in the future of work.
More women employees break free from 9-5 cycle, hustle for gig work
The number of female professionals opting for freelance roles surged, with a 300% increase in female consultants in India in FY24 over FY22, as per data from Flexing It shared exclusively with ET. In FY24, global organizations increasingly looked to India for high-quality talent at lower costs, taking advantage of the country's robust post-pandemic remote work practices.
Percentage of women in senior leadership roles increases to 18% in 2023 from 16% in 2016: Report
The report by LinkedIn and The Quantum Hub highlights that while there has been an increase in women joining the workforce, leadership positions still lack gender parity. The representation of women across the workforce rose to 26.8% in 2024, but senior leadership roles only account for 18.3%, showing a decline from the previous year. Industries like education and government administration have higher female leadership representation, while sectors like construction and utilities lag behind.
Global capability centres seek to increase female representation in tech roles
Data from Quess Corp indicates that the presence of women in global capability centres (GCCs) has slightly increased to 30% in FY24 from 26.6% in FY20. However, there remains a significant gap in women's representation in mid and senior-level roles, leading to talent shortages. A report by Pure Storage and Zinnov reveals that only 6.7% of women hold executive positions in GCCs, with even lower representation at the senior level (15.7%).
How Jaipur-based AU Small Finance Bank plans to plug a $400 billion credit gap
India’s largest small finance bank has recently bulked up and is now looking to utilise its heft to increase its presence in MSME lending. How successful would it be, is the billion-dollar question.
ETMarkets Fund Manager Talk: PSU banks trading at 40-50% discount to pvt banks, can outperform: Hardick Bora of Union Mutual Fund
Hardick Bora discusses the state of the PSU banks versus the private banks, Nifty 50 Index, Fair Value Spectrum, small and midcap funds, and asset allocation strategy for moderate risk profiles. Bora says: "An election outcome with continuity of the current administration may strengthen the sentiments of local as well foreign investors."
Govt ready to fund 50% cost of creating 10,000 GPU capacity in India: Meity secy S Krishnan
The Centre is willing to spend up to half of the cost of creating computing capacity of up to 10,000 graphic processing units (GPUs) in a push to the National Artificial Intelligence (AI) mission, funding can be done either through viability gap funding or a voucher based system
For India to shine, more and more girls must take up STEM: Isha Ambani
Isha Ambani advocates for increased female participation in STEM and technology careers, highlighting the need to bridge the gender gap and support women in leadership roles for India's technological advancement.
India bridging infra gaps to be a global manufacturing hub: Siemens executives
Siemens executives affirm India's potential as a manufacturing powerhouse, with a focus on infrastructure development. Leveraging India's talent pool, Siemens aims to drive growth through AI innovation and strategic partnerships in semiconductor manufacturing.
India must close gap with China on fibre deployment: Sterlite Tech exec
"If you look at China, they are deploying 240 million kms per year, which is nearly 12 times that of India with a population of comparable size. In Europe and the US, 8Gbps speed is becoming a norm," Sterlite Technologies (STL) managing director Ankit Agarwal said.
CDS asks military, DRDO to work with startups to get cutting-edge space tech to reduce gap with adversaries
In an effort to boost collaboration between the Indian space and defence sectors, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan today asked the three defence forces and DRDO to engage with the Space industry and startups to develop cutting-edge technology to reduce the gap with the adversaries.
Skill gap in workforce, AI advancements make cyber attacks more threatening in India
India is witnessing an unpredented surge in cyber attacks. There is also a big skills gap in the cyber security workforce, and advancements in AI are making the problem more acute. While AI is a threat, it is also an opportunity. Synergy between AI and human expertise may be the key to safeguarding the country’s expanding digital ecosystems.
In India's sizzling stock market, consumer stocks rise 18% but are laggards
Stock prices of consumer firms selling soap, hair oil and refrigerators are seeing double-digit gains but are still lagging benchmark Indian stock indexes as low income growth and volatile inflation hurt demand for everyday goods. Meanwhile, luxury goods are flying off the shelves.
Tourism and Hospitality Skill Council unveils report highlighting sector's demand and skill gap
The Tourism and Hospitality Skill Sector Council (THSC) has released a report on the Demand And Skill Gap, estimating that 5.7 million youth could be trained to meet an expected incremental labor demand of 3 million workers between 2025-2028. Challenges such as low wages and long working hours deter youth from continuing in the industry. The report was unveiled by Atul Kumar, secretary, Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and highlighted the need for skills like problem-solving and communication.
Women as business leaders: India Inc moved little in five years, finds study
The male-to-female ratio in leadership roles at Indian companies remains unchanged, indicating a lack of gender equality. Sectors like technology, information & media, real estate, transportation and logistics have seen a downward trend in women in leadership roles, while industries like construction, oil, gas & mining, and utilities have seen more women in such positions.
Smartphone ownership among 44+ drops in urban India, rises in villages
As per the findings of the Kantar-TGI (Target Group Index) study, available exclusively with ET, the gender gap in smartphone ownership has also narrowed over the past five years, even though males consistently exhibited higher ownership percentages. The sharp increase in smartphone adoption levels is pronounced among female users, suggesting a closing gap in technology access.
Tech sec, be more gender-savvy
The technology sector in India faces a gender pay gap of 28-30%, with a higher disparity of 18-20% in junior management, according to an Aon PLC report. This gap is notably high by global standards, contributing to India's position at 127th out of 146 countries in the 2023 Global Gender Gap Index.
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