The disruption caused by the pandemic seems to have opened up a plethora of opportunities both to the IT companies and employees.
With work from home (WFH) likely to be in vogue at least for the foreseeable future, techies who previously let go otherwise attractive offers, bogged down by proximity factor, now have an opportunity to tap into a wider set of offers. For tech companies, recruitment drive through online platforms has become far more simpler, facilitating them to explore a bigger talent pool beyond geographic limitations.
“A lot of hopping around has been happening in the IT industry in the last one year with WFH leaving location immaterial. Job applications that previously attracted responses from south India alone are now drawing responses from across the country. The only dampening factor is the three-month notice period applicable in this part of the world,” said Aneesh Panthalani, State president of Progressive Techies, a combine of IT employees.
A major hurdle
The notice period is proving a hurdle both for the applicant and the recruiting company. While the former may miss out on offers that demand immediate signing up, companies prepared to wait out the notice period runs the risk of losing their candidates who may be exploring other offers in between.
Recruitment drives have become a lot easier both for the candidates and companies. Thanks to advanced cameras, the identification is all about taking a screen print as the candidate joins the interview panel.
“Earlier, companies had to make a lot of logistical arrangements for conducting a recruitment drive whereas now they just need to send the link of an online meeting. Candidates are also a lot more relaxed and confident facing interviews from the familiar environs of their homes. The recruiter is able to reach a better informed decision,” said Santhosh Melekalathil, a senior professional who is part of a recruitment team of an IT major in Kochi.
The flip side
However, there is the remote possibility of candidates ‘Googling’ for the right answers as shown in a widely circulated recent video. However, companies are increasingly adopting more precautions to avert such cheating.
Arun Rajeevan, manager (marketing) Infoparks Kerala, however, felt that the WFH arrangement can hardly be an incentive to take up offers disregardful of the location since at some point of time employees will have to shift to the company’s location. “Instead, we have noticed a reverse drain where people working outside the State are increasingly preferring to return to home and work from here,” he said.
Risks in job switch
Raghin Kumar, a Kochi-based techie, said that while remote working offered a lot more opportunities not everyone would opt for a switch of job during these uncertain times. “However, there are a lot more online opportunities for location-neutral freelance work these days,” he said.
