Satyam, Wipro, TCS & Infosys go slow on hiring, defer joining dates

Recruitments, which are a strong indicator of the expected business for software firms, have suffered a significant drop while placements for the coming season are reflecting the uncertainty in global financial markets. The top four IT exporters have nearly frozen hiring of experienced professionals and have deferred the joining dates for many freshers, analysts said. Around a week or two back, number one software exporter Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) reportedly sent out letters postponing joining dates by six to nine months, people familiar with the situation said. “This quarter, we don’t immediately see a drop in revenues. But we expect the next quarter to show flat to negative growth for some of the top firms,” said an IT analyst, adding that TCS had the highest exposure to financial services among the top tier firms with around 43-44 % of its revenues coming from financial services. According to a survey conducted by brokerage CLSA in 45 colleges, the class of 2009 has received 17.4% lesser job offers compared to the previous year’s figures. Offers from Satyam and Wipro were about 33-50 % lower while that of TCS and Infosys Technologies were 16% and 12% lower, respectively. Regarding the class of 2008, the study noted, “Companies have pushed out the joining dates for the graduating class of 2008. Admittedly, the class of 2008 was given job offers in 2007, pre-slowdown and companies have ostensibly over-hired relative to demand.”