IIMs placements defy job market blues; sales and marketing among top recruitment areas

In a striking reversal from the tepid job market sentiment of 2024, India’s premier business schools have reported a 100 percent placement rate as of March 4, 2025. Among the standout performers was the Indian Institute of Management Lucknow, which, for the first time in its history, achieved full placement, securing 576 job offers for 555 students.

According to the institute, the average monthly stipend for students reached ₹1.31 lakh, with the highest stipend recorded at ₹3.50 lakh. Notably, 410 students at IIM Lucknow received a monthly stipend exceeding ₹1 lakh. The top 10 percent of students secured annual salary packages above ₹50 lakh, while the top 80 percent were offered ₹32 lakh per annum.

Consulting and finance continued to be the dominant recruiting sectors across India’s IIM campuses, followed closely by roles in product management, sales, and marketing. At IIM Lucknow, major recruiters in the sales and marketing sector included Colgate-Palmolive, Hindustan Unilever, Myntra, Pidilite, Dabur, ITC, Procter & Gamble, and Puma. The highest monthly stipend offered in this domain was ₹2.25 lakh, with a median stipend of ₹1.5 lakh.

New-age job roles such as cybersecurity specialist, cloud architect, AI and machine learning engineer, direct-to-consumer specialist, and social media marketing and community managers also saw significant demand, according to Neelesh Gupta, a partner at Deloitte India.

E-commerce emerged as the most sought-after sector for graduates, with 56 percent of students opting for roles in the industry, followed by professional services (30 percent), fast-moving consumer goods (23 percent), and banking (7 percent).

At IIM Ahmedabad, Boston Consulting Group emerged as the leading recruiter, extending 35 offers, followed by Accenture Strategy with 30. The institute’s placement committee reported a sharp increase in hiring by retail B2B and B2C firms, with offer volumes surging by 400 percent and 800 percent, respectively.

Among the marquee recruiters at IIM Ahmedabad this year were AB InBev, Airtel, Amazon, Asian Paints, Bluestone, British Petroleum, Dabur, Flipkart, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, Google, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, L’Oréal, Nestlé, OYO, Procter & Gamble, Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, United Breweries, Wipro Consumer Care, and Zomato, among others.

IIM Calcutta also saw robust hiring, with 456 students securing 538 offers from 196 companies despite ongoing market volatility. The consulting sector led the hiring cycle with 201 offers, while firms in banking, fintech, and technology also participated actively.

IIM Bangalore reported that 580 students in its current cohort received over 640 offers from some of the world's top firms, reinforcing the institution’s standing as a recruitment powerhouse.

Industry leaders emphasized the value that IIM graduates bring to their organizations. Irene Tan, Vice President of Human Resources at Coca-Cola India and Southwest Asia, highlighted the company's “Mantra” internship program, which aims to integrate top talent from premier business schools into strategic business projects.

“Interns work on critical assignments, gaining hands-on project management experience and corporate exposure,” Ms. Tan said in an interview with Storyboard18.

Despite concerns over geopolitical uncertainties and economic headwinds, corporate recruiters remained bullish on India’s top business schools.

“Given the volatile global environment, we anticipated challenges in this year’s placement season,” said Professor Viswanath Pingali, chair of IIM Ahmedabad’s placement committee. “Yet, as always, companies continued to place their trust in IIM graduates.”