E-commerce, tech startups lead hiring sentiments for freshers: Report

The hiring intent for freshers has marginally improved to 72 percent for the current half-year (July-December) 2024, according to staffing firm TeamLease EdTech. The hiring sentiments were higher in e-commerce and technology startups at 61 percent, followed by Engineering & Infrastructure at 61 percent and Retail at 54 percent.

Freshers hiring intent was lowest in Marketing and advertising industry during H2 2024 at nine percent, and in the media & entertainment sector, it was at 15 percent--3 percent down from H1 2024.

According to the report, Bengaluru, Mumbai, and Chennai are the top 3 cities that have witnessed a surge in hiring of freshers. In addition to this, 'Full Stack Developer, SEO Executive and Digital Sales Associate,' job roles are in demand among employers predominantly. The staffing firm also noted that employers are looking for skills like 'cybersecurity, cloud computing, data analytics, and search engine optimization' while recruiting freshers.

The TeamLease report also observed a sharp rise in demand for fresh talent in the FMCG, with hiring intent for freshers reaching 32 percent in H2 2024, up from 27 percent in the first half of the year. This increase is propelled by a deeper market penetration into rural and semi-urban markets on the back of rapid growth of India’s food processing industry, projected to double from $263 billion in 2019-20 to $ 535 billion by 2025-26, with a CAGR of 12.6 percent.

FMCG companies are prioritizing freshers with skills in market insights, retail distribution, and regional consumer understanding as they expand into untapped areas. Food Engineer roles are projected to have a hiring intent of 41 percent in Bengaluru, while Logistics Coordinators showed a hiring intent of 39 percent in Delhi. Additionally, the demand for Supply and Distribution Chain positions in Hyderabad was 37 percent, and Brand Management Trainees have a hiring intent of 34 percent in Bengaluru.

"The rise in demand for fresh talent in FMCG can clearly be attributed to deeper expansion in rural and semi-urban markets, fueled by the rapid growth of India’s food processing industry. As companies focus on strengthening supply chains, market research, and brand management, the demand for talent is expected to be high. Freshers now investing in related skills and expertise definitely stand to benefit from it," Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO, of TeamLease Edtech said.