TCS to hire 40,000 freshers from campuses this year with AI skills expected at all levels, CHRO says: Report

TCS is increasingly integrating the use of AI into various functions and that it is an important skill to have across all levels of the hierarchy

Published on: Jan 13, 2025, 08:08:22 IST

By HT News Desk | Edited by Abhyjith K. Ashokan

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Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) plans to hire 40,000 freshers from campuses this year, the IT giant's Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO) Milind Lakkad said.

He added that despite the quarterly headcount fluctuations, TCS manages through a combination of “employees on the bench, ongoing productivity enhancements, and other operational adjustments.” (Representational Image/Mint)

This however, comes at a time when its headcount had decreased by over 5,000 employees in the third quarter of the financial year 2024-25.

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“In any given quarter, changes in headcount don't always reflect growth or demand because our hiring plans are structured on an annual basis,” TCS Lakkad said in an interview with Business Standard.

He added that despite the quarterly headcount fluctuations, TCS manages through a combination of “employees on the bench, ongoing productivity enhancements, and other operational adjustments.”

Lakkad said that the company is increasingly integrating the use of artificial intelligence (AI) into various functions and that it is an important skill to have across all levels of the hierarchy such as E0, E1, E2, E3, and so on in what has been described as a “pyramid with different skill sets.”

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Even for the entry-level E0 tier, TCS expects employees to have a foundational understanding of large language models (LLMs) and their applications.

At the E1 level, employees have to be able to work with LLM APIs, which is a skill set similar to that of prompt engineers.

At E2, employees have to use TCS GenAI tools.

At levels E3 and above, TCS expects by default, advanced expertise in AI and its applications across various domains.

However, Lakkad said that while AI is certain to transform jobs, it will more likely change the nature of the roles rather than eliminate them altogether.

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“AI will enhance efficiency, but humans will continue to play a crucial role—especially in client-facing and knowledge-intensive roles, where the value of human insight and empathy remains irreplaceable,” he added.

He also said that degrees are a must as they provide foundational understanding necessary for the broader demands of the services industry as TCS requires “more than just coding skills.”

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HT News Desk
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