Senior hiring takes a hit, caution in job market: HeadHonchos.com

Hiring at senior levels in India Inc is likely to witness a mixed trend in the second of current fiscal, with 51 per cent organisations hinting at increasing headcount while the rest pointing at stagnation or even downsizing, according to a survey conducted by a job search and career portal HeadHonchos.com.

The subdued trend is likely to be similar in hiring at middle levels also, with an insignificant 3.4 per cent projected increase, according to the survey called “HeadHonchos’ Management Hiring Perspective Report 2012”.

While participants from the pharmaceuticals and FMCG industries were confident about growth, their counterparts in real estate, financial services and entertainment and media said they expected downsizing in some way.

HeadHonchos.com CEO Uday Sodhi said, “Weaker hiring plans for mid-management and senior positions signal a cautious approach amongst corporates, especially when supported by the opinion of professionals.”

Highlights of the survey:

*36 per cent of employers have reduced hiring projections at senior management levels and 33% of employers have lowered projections at mid-management levels as compared to March 2012.

*Nearly 23 per cent of employers plan to keep employee strength at current levels through till the end of the fiscal year. 
 
*Professionals in the smaller towns as well as Kolkata are more bullish on industry hiring and growth rates. 58 per cent of respondents in Tier 2 & Tier 3 cities expect active hiring as compared to 51 per cent across India and 49 per cent in the 3 cities of Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore.

*Professionals are open to job shifts, without expecting as generous salary hikes as earlier. They demonstrated a sizeable swing of about 30 per cent towards a more active job search.