HCLTech Reports 8,080 Headcount Drop in Q1 FY25
services company, HCLTech, in India, unexpectedly observed a significant staff drop in the first quarter of FY25. As of June 30, 2024, the company had 8,080 employees; it attributed around 7,398 of the losses to a disposal.Despite this decline, HCLTech’s quarter-wide head count came in at 219,401. While all of its rivals, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, and Wipro, recorded negative headcount growth, in Q4 FY24, the company showed a positive trend with net personnel gains both year-over-year and sequentially.
Although HCLTech has had 1,078 fresh graduates on staff in Q1, it plans to onboard 10,000 more graduates total over FY25. In the same period, TCS hired a net of 5,452 people, undoing a decline over the three quarters that preceded. Still, TCS’s total head count fell 1,509 sequentially from the March level.Underscoring the importance of the divestment with State Street during the Q1 results conference on July 11, Chief People Officer of HCLTech, Ramachandran Sundarajan, stressed: “Outside of the divestment, our headcount is essentially flat quarter-over-quarter, aligning with our plans given the investments made in previous quarters for offshore transitions in major engagements,” he said.In April 2024, HCL Investments UK sold its 49% share in a joint venture with US-based State Street International Holdings. This shift drastically changed the head count at HCLTech.HCLTech’s attrition rate dropped from 12.4 percent in Q4 to 12.8 percent based on the last twelve-month (LTM) basis. Still, it progressed from 16.3 percent in Q1 FY24 year over year. “Attrition continues at 12.78% LTM for IT services, maintaining lower thresholds for several quarters now,” Sundarajan stated. This incline should level off.Every quarter, HCLTech plans to qualify and equip about 20,000 general-purpose artificial intelligence employees, Sundararajan also noted. By year’s end, the company wants more than 100,000 competent experts in this advancing technology.These changes cause HCLTech’s Q1 results to demonstrate a realignment of strategy resulting from the divestment and continuous focus on staff upskilling to meet future needs. Notwithstanding personnel reduction, the company’s proactive approach to generative artificial intelligence training and aspirations to onboard fresh talent point to a forward-looking strategy targeted at ongoing development and innovation in the competitive IT services industry.
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