Techies eye fat pay packets

April 20, 2010 08:26 pm | Updated 08:26 pm IST - HYDERABAD:

With recession clouds floating away and the industry stabilising steadily with projects coming in and with it the currency, IT professionals are hopeful of a return of the pre-recession era when a job well done meant one took home a fatter pay packet.

With several top companies announcing plans to hike remuneration of their workforce, optimism has crept back into the mindsets of the employees, especially after nearly two years of retrenchments and disappointments.

From big players like Infosys, TCS and Mahindra Satyam to mid-level companies like Sierra Atlantic; everyone has declared at least a single digit percentage increase in pay packets.

“The IT industry is doing really well,” said Narasimha Rao, president, IT and ITES Industry Association of Andhra Pradesh (ITsAP). “Recently, Infosys has declared 15 to 18 per cent hike in salaries.” In a recent interview, CEO, Sierra Atlantic Raju Reddy said the company “may consider a high single digit per cent of increase this year.” “The hikes may not be as much as those witnessed by the industry in 2000 but there is lot of hope and optimism. The hikes will definitely be much better than those shelled out last year,” Mr. Rao said. ITsAP expects an overall hike of 12 to 15 per cent this year.

However, some employees with considerable work experience are concerned over not being in as much demand as they should have been. “With not many new software applications being released recently, there is a large pool of cheap workforce available. This is a classic case of less demand and more supply,” said an IT professional who wished not to be named.

Others point to how the percentage of pay hikes, in general, decreases as one climbs up the corporate ladder.

Besides, indicated some, companies have learnt their lesson and are beginning to save for a rainy day. “Although adequate billings are being generated from clients, managements are not as liberal as they were when it comes to sharing the earnings,” said an executive.

The industry might be regaining its confidence but there is another perception that IT industry is slowly beginning to stagnate. “Every industry goes through this cycle,” agreed Mr. Rao. “We will reach maturity level but will continue to do well for the next 10 year.

There will be some bit of correction over a period of time but over the next two years, things will return to normal.”

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