Latest news with #RucheeAnand
News18
29-07-2025
- Business
- News18
Layoffs Rock Tech Sector: Why Upskilling Is Key To Career Survival, 5 Ways To Get Started
Last Updated: TCS plans to lay off 12,000 employees amid global tech layoffs. Upskilling in AI literacy, creativity, and problem-solving is crucial. Why Upskilling Is the Key For Career Survival: The stark technological changes, the slowdown of economies and the inception of GenAI applications have sparked a wave of layoffs across the globe, especially in tech companies. The spillover effect hasn't left the Indian multinational companies either, with TCS announcing its plan to lay off at least 2 per cent of its staff or 12,000 employees at middle and senior levels over the financial year. This is just the tip of the iceberg, as anticipated by several experts, with more layoffs by others to ensue sooner or later. TCS's layoff announcement has sent a shock across the IT industry, India's largest service sector and high-paying employment field, and a major contributor of India's GDP. A total of 80,150 employees in 169 tech companies have been laid off in 2025, according to a layoff tracker called The layoff announcement has triggered panic and fear among employees and even in the entire IT industry. Some of them are staring into a dark future with looming EMIs, rents, and other monthly expenses. Among all the pandemonium of layoffs, one important aspect in a professional life surfaces – a continuous cycle of upskilling and reskilling. At times, when technologies are changing the world around us so fast, constant learning and upskilling are not just a luxury but a need for survival. 'The rapid rise of AI is fundamentally transforming jobs. With that, the skills required to perform jobs are changing at an unprecedented rate," argued Ruchee Anand, Head, LinkedIn Talent and Learning Solutions, India. She emphasised that creativity, problem-solving and strategic thinking are among the top skills that recruiters in India seek among prospective employees. " AI literacy, once considered niche, is now essential across roles, with 95% of Indian business leaders prioritising AI skills over traditional experience," she added. Several benefits come with upskilling: Rapid Tech Advancements: The IT industry evolves quickly with emerging technologies like AI, cloud computing, and cybersecurity. Upskilling helps professionals stay updated and relevant. Better Career Growth: Acquiring new skills opens doors to higher-paying roles, leadership positions, and new job opportunities across domains. Stronger Job Security: As automation replaces repetitive tasks, professionals with advanced or niche skills are more likely to retain their roles and adapt to changes. Increased Productivity: Learning new tools and methodologies enhances efficiency, allowing professionals to solve problems faster and deliver better results. Meeting Industry Demand: Businesses seek tech talent that can handle modern challenges. Upskilled employees help companies stay competitive and innovative. How To Do Reskilling? With the tech landscape evolving rapidly, IT professionals need to continuously upgrade their skills to stay competitive. Here are some of the most effective ways to upskill in today's digital world: 1. Online Courses & Certifications Platforms like Coursera, edX, Udemy, LinkedIn Learning, and Pluralsight offer flexible, self-paced courses across domains like cloud computing, AI/ML, cybersecurity, DevOps, and more. Certifications from AWS, Microsoft, Google, or CompTIA can add serious value to a résumé. 2. Bootcamps Intensive coding or tech bootcamps such as Simplilearn, UpGrad, Coding Ninjas, or Scaler are ideal for fast-tracking skill development. These focus on practical training and often include placement assistance. 3. Employer-Sponsored Training Many companies now offer internal learning portals, workshops, or partnerships with ed-tech platforms. Leveraging these resources can be a cost-effective and relevant way to grow. 4. Open-Source Projects & GitHub Contributions Real-world practice is key. Contributing to open-source projects helps sharpen skills, understand team collaboration, and build a visible portfolio. 5. Hackathons & Tech Communities Participating in hackathons or joining tech communities like Stack Overflow, Reddit, or local developer meetups can expose professionals to real-world problems and innovative solutions. 6. Advanced Degrees or Diplomas For those seeking in-depth knowledge, pursuing a postgraduate diploma or Master's in Data Science, Computer Science, or IT Management from reputed institutes can be a strategic long-term move. 7. Self-Learning & Side Projects top videos View all Building your own apps, tools, or automations based on what you learn can reinforce concepts and make learning more meaningful. view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Hans India
21-06-2025
- Business
- Hans India
9 out of 10 recruiters in Hyderabad are investing up to half of their hiring budgets in AI and tech to hire smarter, faster: LinkedIn research
AI and innovation are growing stronger roots in Hyderabad, and the city's recruitment landscape mirrors this trend. New research from LinkedIn, the world's largest professional network, reveals that over 95% of recruiters in the city are allocating up to 50% of their budgets to tech and tools like AI to boost hiring success. LinkedIn's India Hiring ROI research, based on responses from over 1,300 HR professionals across 10 cities, finds that recruiters in Hyderabad are shifting from 'quick hiring' to 'quality hiring', with quality of hire (79%) emerging as the top measure of success, followed by time to hire (61%) and retention rate (60%). The definition of 'quality talent' is shifting – 74% recruiters in the city prioritise practical and transferable skills when defining talent quality. Ruchee Anand, Head of LinkedIn Talent Solutions in India, says, 'Recruiters across India are shifting focus from just filling roles to finding quality talent that drives business impact. Hyderabad is championing this evolution with investments in AI-powered tools to help them hire better. At this crucial juncture, 8 in 10 recruiters in the city are also seeing value in online platforms such as LinkedIn to deliver the highest recruitment ROI. As hiring grows more skills-first and strategic, LinkedIn's AI-powered tools are helping talent leaders unlock stronger candidate engagement and build an agile workforce.' Talent gaps key challenge across sectors Across India, sectors like IT & technology (62%) and Healthcare (41%) are also giving skills the higher seat when weighing talent. However, recruiters in IT & technology say it's tough to find qualified candidates quickly (69%), while those in Healthcare struggle to find the right mix of technical and soft skills (68%). For Global Capability Centres (GCCs) in Hyderabad, balancing global company goals with local skill availability (83%) and limited training opportunities (60%) pose significant hurdles in hiring skilled talent locally. Abhishek Singh Kumar, Senior Director, Impetus, says, 'LinkedIn has been an invaluable asset in our talent acquisition strategy, enabling us to connect with both active job seekers and highly qualified professionals who may not be actively searching. The AI-powered candidate outreach ensures that our messaging is well-crafted and efficiently customized, enhancing our employer branding and positioning us effectively in front of potential candidates. With ongoing support from LinkedIn's dedicated account managers and subject matter experts, our recruiters have mastered the art of hiring through the platform. As a result, LinkedIn has helped us source exceptional talent swiftly, contributing significantly to our business growth." AI tools boost efficiency, help recruiters grow into strategic career advisors Recruiters are using AI to save time by automating manual tasks and enhancing productivity. As per the research, 67% of Hyderabad's recruiters are using AI-powered screening tools, and 72% are leveraging data analytics in decision making to speed up hiring. Across India, IT & technology companies are also using AI-powered screening tools (71%) and data analytics (74%) to hire faster. They are seeing measurable benefits: 54% recruiters in Hyderabad say AI increases efficiency, 51% say it improves skills-first outcomes, and 45% say that by taking repetitive tasks off their plate, it helps them focus on higher value activities such as stakeholder alignment and candidate experience. As AI adoption grows, 90% of recruiters in Hyderabad expect to step up as 'strategic career advisors' in their roles, and 94% plan to use personalised content and data insights to engage candidates more effectively. LinkedIn's AI-powered tools are built to help recruiters hire quality candidates faster, with higher response rates As recruiters face rising pressure to move faster without compromising on quality, LinkedIn's AI-powered tools are designed to deliver results that matter. ● Recruiter 2024, LinkedIn's first generative AI hiring experience, is already helping hirers connect with qualified candidates more effectively, with AI-assisted messages seeing 44% higher acceptance rates and being responded to 11% faster than standard outreach globally.
Hans India
12-06-2025
- Business
- Hans India
3 out of 4 Indian recruiters are investing up to 70% of their hiring budgets in AI and tech to hire smarter, faster: LinkedIn research
Nearly three years into adopting AI at work, Indian recruiters are moving from 'quick hiring' to 'quality hiring'. New research from LinkedIn reveals that 3 out of 4 (75%) recruiters in India are investing up to 70% of their hiring budgets in recruitment tech and AI tools. LinkedIn's India Hiring ROI research, based on responses from over 1,300 HR professionals across 10 cities, finds that today's top 3 recruitment priorities are finding high-quality candidates with transferable skills (57%), adopting smarter hiring tech (52%), and proving the ROI of hiring investments to C-suite leaders (46%). But challenges persist, from ensuring the right mix of soft and technical skills (64%) to hiring fast (58%) and finding candidates who are the right culture fit (54%). To meet these shifting demands, 69% of Indian recruiters are now using data analytics to make informed hiring decisions and 63% are using AI tools to improve hiring speed and accuracy. Ruchee Anand, Head of LinkedIn Talent Solutions in India says, 'With the pressure to hire quickly, many recruiters cast the net wide but not deep, choosing volume over precision. But hiring today demands more. Recruiters need tools that help them find skilled talent who can drive real business outcomes. The opportunity lies in using AI and data to shift from quick-fill roles to high-impact hires. Our latest research shows that over half (53%) of recruiters in India already see stronger returns from platforms like LinkedIn, as they shift focus to skills like problem-solving, creativity, and leadership. This marks a clear step forward in how India hires - with precision, purpose, and long-term value in mind.' Hiring ROI in India is now defined by quality and revenue, not just speed Nearly 3 in 4 HR professionals in India say their organisations complete hiring within two to four weeks. But quality of hire has become the most important measure of success, cited by 72% of recruiters, followed by time to hire (60%) and revenue per employee (59%). Recruiters say delays in the process result in losing top candidates to faster competitors (58%), higher workload pressure on teams (64%), and reduced productivity and morale (63%). The most common causes of delay are structural: lengthy approval processes (58%) and indecision among hiring managers (56%). Recruiters are evolving into strategic career advisors as AI boosts efficiency Recruiters are using AI to save time by automating manual tasks and enhancing productivity. 45% say AI increases efficiency, and 42% say that by taking off repetitive tasks off their plate, it helps them focus on higher value activities such as on stakeholder alignment and candidate experience. As AI adoption grows, 90% percent of recruiters in India expect to step up as 'strategic career advisors' in their roles, and 92% plan to use personalised content and data insights to engage candidates more effectively. Sunil Chemmankotil, MD at Adecco India says, "We're witnessing a fundamental transformation - not just in the talent pool, but in the very nature of roles themselves. As job functions converge and hybrid profiles become the standard, traditional job titles no longer capture the full scope of what candidates bring to the table. With advanced tools like LinkedIn Recruiter 2024, we can now decode roles into the core skills that truly matter. This allows us to identify adjacent talent that might have been overlooked in the past. In a dynamic market like India, this kind of AI-driven insight is not just helpful - it's a strategic advantage.' LinkedIn's AI-powered tools are built to help recruiters hire quality candidates faster, with higher response rates As recruiters face rising pressure to move faster without compromising on quality, LinkedIn's AI-powered tools are designed to deliver results that matter.
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Business Standard
12-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Recruiters shift hiring with focus on skill than degrees: LinkedIn
Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way Indian recruiters are now scouting for talent, with the focus shifting to 'skills' rather than 'degrees'. According to a recent survey by professional networking platform LinkedIn, 78 per cent of recruiters are now prioritising skills over formal qualifications. It noted that this shift of skills-first was being led by global capability centres (GCCs) (85 per cent) and IT firms (71 per cent). 'In this report 'skills first' agenda is moving from theory to execution. This survey shows that 78 per cent of recruiters actually use a skill-first approach,' said Ruchee Anand, head of LinkedIn Talent Solutions, India. Anand said the other reason for this shift is because the templatised hiring process has changed. 'Earlier, when hiring was done, the job description required an MBA, an engineering degree or a post-graduation degree. Now, if an individual has certain skills and they are able to prove it, they get hired. This is also happening because we need access to large talent pools,' Anand explained. She said that when recruiters focus on skills first the talent pool goes up by 9x in India. In case of women candidates, this goes up by 12x. Anand added that the third reason for this acceptability is due to the career pivots that individuals are doing these days. 'We are increasingly seeing on the LinkedIn platform that professionals are pivoting. They may have a certain qualification, and would have started in one area, but now moved to another. Organisations too are more open as they are looking for skills…this fits,' she added. The LinkedIn India RoI research also added that there are long-term advantages of skills-based hiring such as improved workforce adaptability (58 per cent), responsiveness to market shifts due to faster skill acquisition (58 per cent) and internal upskilling opportunities (55 per cent). The survey, which looked at return on investments on hiring, found that three of four (75 per cent) Indian recruiters are investing up to 70 per cent of their hiring budgets in recruitment tech and AI tools. Nearly three in four HR professionals in India say their organisations complete hiring within two to four weeks. But quality of hire has become the most important measure of success, cited by 72 per cent of recruiters, followed by the time to hire (60 per cent) and revenue per employee (59 per cent). Recruiters say delays in the process result in losing top candidates to faster competitors (58 per cent), higher workload pressure on teams (64 per cent), and reduced productivity and morale (63 per cent). The most common causes of delay are structural -- lengthy approval processes (58 per cent) and indecision among hiring managers (56 per cent). 'With the pressure to hire quickly, many recruiters cast the net wide but not deep, choosing volume over precision. But hiring today demands more. Recruiters need tools that help them find skilled talent who can drive real business outcomes,' Anand elaborated. 'The opportunity lies in using AI and data to shift from quick-fill roles to high-impact hires. Our latest research shows that over half (53 per cent) of recruiters in India already see stronger returns from platforms like LinkedIn, as they shift focus to skills like problem-solving, creativity, and leadership. This marks a clear step forward in how India hires - with precision, purpose, and long-term value in mind,' she added.
