It’s new AI wave of hiring process in IT

Companies are looking at two kinds of skills- one is problem-solving skills and the second is knowledge on the latest technologies. With Generative AI tools coming in, it is not difficult to write standard codes. So, interviewers are asking candidates to write programmes using some automation tools - Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO of CIEL HR, tells Bizz Buzz

Bengaluru: Hiring methods of IT firms, technology startups and global technology giants are witnessing a change with the advent of AI and GenAI tools. Experts in the know said that interviewers are looking at how candidates are performing their jobs, leveraging AI tools than asking them to write simple codes or commands.

“With lakhs of engineering students coming out of colleges, they will struggle to find jobs unless they have necessary skills. Companies are looking at two kinds of skills- one is problem-solving skills and the second is knowledge on the latest technologies. With Generative AI tools coming in, it is not difficult to write standard codes. So, interviewers are asking candidates to write programmes using some automation tools. They want to see whether the interviewee can leverage these automation tools,” Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO of CIEL HR, told Bizz Buzz.

“Companies are of the opinion that they are hiring engineers to resolve a business problem. They are also expecting from freshers that they should have some knowledge on industries in which these companies operate. That is the reason companies are looking at things like internship, and project work among others,” Mishra added.

Earlier, freshers used to be given a test on technology domains, which candidates had to answer correctly. With advent of new technologies, hiring methods of freshers and laterals have changed in recent years.

Earlier, companies like Infosys have indicated that they are hiring half of the total freshers from off campus route.

“Our hiring models have changed significantly over the years. We are now doing more than half of the hiring off campus and rest from campuses. We have not decided yet about the number of campus hiring for this year. We have a headroom to improve our employee utilization levels to around 84-85 per cent from current 82 per cent. Hiring will depend on demand environment,” Jayesh Sanghrajka, Chief Financial Officer of Infosys, said during the post-results press conference.

Last fiscal year had seen fresher hiring touching a low as IT firms were going through a demand crunch as clients held back discretionary IT spending. Most large and mid-tier firms had skipped going to campuses.

However, things are slowly changing for better as companies like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) have begun campus hiring. “We have already started visiting engineering colleges for campus placement apart from conducting its all-India test for onboarding freshers,” said Milind Lakkad, Chief HR Officer of TCS.