AON INDIA’S

28th ANNUAL
SALARY INCREASE
SURVEY
2022-23 PHASE I

Prepared by Human Capital Solutions

Proprietary & Confidential

1
FOREWORD
India remains cautiously optimistic against a
volatile global macroeconomic environment.
2022 has ushered in global volatility with unrelenting
signs of geo-political tensions, recessionary headwinds,
and inflation. Against this outlook, we believe that
the fundamentals of the economy remain strong with the
majority of the organisations in the survey anticipating
a 10%+ business growth. Unlike the world, there is
no imminent recession in India, but growth appears to be
moderating compared to 2021. The wide divergence
seen in business growth (the gap between extremes
of negative and high growth) as we emerged from
the pandemic in 2021 has reduced. The sectors
that struggled during the Covid, such as retail, logistics,
and hospitality have shown resurgence on account of
strong domestic demand.
India continues to see a waging war for talent, and
companies are doling out hefty increments to counter
this. Salary increases projected for 2023 are in
double digits, and this is a phenomenon that we’re seeing
after a decade. This is also a reflection of the
confidence that corporate India has on its strong &
sustained business performance. It’s a fine balance
that business leaders have to maintain to manage
the high inflationary impact and the salary pressures
driven by high rates of attrition and the growing demand
for key & digital talent across sectors.
India continues to project the highest salary increases
among the fast-growing economies in 2023, with
the salary increase in other large economies like China
posed to grow at 6.1 percent, Brazil at 6.0 percent,
Indonesia at 7.0 percent, and South Africa at 6.0
percent as per Aon’s global Salary Increase and
Turnover Survey 2022. In fact, we find that the 2022
actual salary increment number of 10.6% is higher
than the projected number in February 2022. The
industries that are projecting the highest salary
increases are E-commerce, Professional Services, Hi-
Tech/IT, Financial institutions, and IT- enabled
Services.
2022 is also seeing a clustering of salary increases
across industries – the recession phenomenon of large
divergence has reduced as some of the worst pandemic-
hit sectors are seeing a rebound recovery. This year
we see some industries doling out extremely high salary
increments, while the average double digit increments
the bottom industries are also around the 9%
mark.
2
As we witness the maturing of proliferating start-
ups and ecommerce businesses, there is a continual
demand for digital talent. This is driving above
India- median salary increases across E-comm,
ITeS and Tech. Our study highlights an interesting
phenomenon that the sectors giving the highest
salary increments in 2022 are also the ones that have
faced the highest impact of global volatility and
uncertainty. Almost all global-facing sectors, especially
in the services domain are taking a cautious approach
and projecting lower salary increases for 2023.
Some Indian-economy facing sectors like
Infrastructure, Hospitality, Transportation have shown
a strong recovery and project higher 2023 salary
increases.
The rising cost of talent is accompanied by sticky
and record-high attrition numbers. 2021 and 2022
have been unparalleled when it comes to the talent
exchange that we are witnessing across sectors.
The overall annualized attrition number for 2022
stands at an astounding 20.3% and the
continuation of this ‘Great Resignation’ has been a
significant concern for the employers. This is only
marginally lower than 21% in 2021 thus retaining the
pressure on salaries. We see this trend continuing
for the next few months.
While India inc. has shown tremendous resilience,
volatility will continue to be a key determinant
of business performance and salary increases across
industries. Whether double-digit salary increments
are here to stay will depend on how the economic
situation unfolds. Going forward, businesses will
have to optimize their talent investment with an eye
on long- term sustainability. Organisations which
are agile, and learning-savvy will be the best placed to
navigate the uncertain macro environment and will be the
ones that eventually come out on top.
Roopank Chaudhary
Partner and CCO,
Human Capital Solutions
3
Media Coverage
Across more than 125 media and broadcasting houses

4
About the Survey
and Key Considerations
The report presents the results of Aon’s India 28th
rates across the sectors.
Salary Increase Survey trends. This is the longest
running and most quoted piece of research across All numbers that have been reported are including 0s.
rewards and performance trends in India, as well as
• Number of Respondents (Ns) across each question
globally. The survey focuses on overall changes in in the survey are varying and hence the average
compensation for 2022 and projections for 2023. across employee groups may not be equal to the
With participation from over 1300 organizations overall analysis.
representing 40 industries that includes sectors such • Data has not been represented across those
as Hi-Tech/Information Technology, E-Commerce, questions wherein the number of respondents are
Professional Services, Financial Intuitions, FMCG/ less than 5.
FMCD, Hospitality, Energy etc. the study provides
a comprehensive view of current and emerging salary • Percentages will total more than 100% across
certain analysis due to multiple responses shared by
trends across the spectrum of industries.
participants.
The report covers submissions received during
• Variable Pay has been represented as a percentage
September and October 2021, and the results
focuses on salary budgets of 2022, salary budgets of Total Fixed Pay.
projected for 2023, factors influencing pay • Attrition numbers have been represented for
decisions, performance and pay trends, rewards the calendar year 2022-23 (YTD).
challenges that organizations are facing and measures
taken-up to control the escalating attrition

4
NOTE BY THE
SURVEY
TEAM

2021 was a year of rapid recovery and

hyper-growth in most sectors around
the world. Now in 2022, as COVID-
19 becomes endemic, organizations
are grappling with volatility, yet we also
see green shoots of recovery.

Organizations are increasingly

reassessing their outlook to choose
Roopank Choudhary Jang Bahadur Singh
between consolidation and growth. Survey Sponsor Survey Director
Consequently, talent investment
decisions will be pivotal to determining Sushil
the future trajectory and success of an Bhasin Mktg
& Media
organization.
Prateek Gupta
Survey Manager
It is in this backdrop that we are
proud to bring you results from
the 28th edition of Aon India’s
Salary Increase Survey Phase I.
The survey aims to help you make
better decisions, by bringing you Shilpa Khanna
critical insight into the status of economy Survey Director
for businesses, how salaries are likely
to change, emerging talent trends,
and more.
Vishakha Kalra
Survey Team
The survey garnered participation
from over 1300 organizations,
spanning across a broad spectrum of
more than 40 sectors, pan India. In
this edition, we share insights for
organizations to help them plan for Shreya Krishnan
2023 salary increase budgets, the Mktg & Media
digital upstart, improving employee
engagement and managing rewards in a
hybrid environment while creating an
inclusive workplace.

We thank you for your

participation and the continuous
patronage you have accorded Aon
over the years, and hope that the
report proves useful as Aaradhya Sharma
Survey Team
organizations set policies and
strategies to improve the odds of
thriving in the new normal.
5
TABLE OF CONTENTS

1
Business Outlook 9
Highlights 10
11
Impact of Volatility on Business 12
13
sentiment Hi-Tech Industry Outlook 14
15
Financial Sector Outlook 16
17
Life Sciences Industry Outlook 19
20

2
Salary Increments 21
Highlights 22

Increments 23
24
Sector-wise Increments 25

3
War for Talent 27
Introduction 28
29
Key Attrition and Retention Drivers 31

4 Pay for Performance 33

34
Highlights
Variable Payout Trends 35
Variable Pay Practices 37
Sector wise Variable Pay 38
Salary Increases and Performance 39
Performance Bell Curve for 2021 - 22 40
Employee Distribution by Performance 41
Sector-wise Performance Bell Curve 42
Measuring performance 43

6
TABLE OF CONTENTS

5
The Great Resignation 44
Introduction 45
46
Sector-wise Attrition 47

Key and Digital Talent

6
50
Focus on High Density 51
Talent Salary Increase 52
2022 (A) Skill Premiums 55
Attrition and Retention Trends for Critical
Talent 56

7
Diversity, Equity, and 57

Introduction 58
59
Current state of Gender Diversity 60
61

8
Environmental, Social, 62

Introduction 63
65
Moving up on ESG maturity 66

9 New Ways of Working

Introduction
67
68
70

10 Conclusion
Our perspective on the Road Ahead
71
72

Professionals 73

7
+

Overall Survey
Highlights
46% organizations are expected to give
double digit salary increases in 2023; a
similar proportion to 2022
Increase
Salary

10.6% 10.4%
2022 (Actual) 2023 (Projected)

The performance differentiation multiplier

remains high at 1.7x in 2022
Performance
Pay for

14.5%
Actual Variable Payout in 2022

Great Resignation impact being felt with

attrition numbers remaining near two-decade
Attrition

highs

20.3% 17.5%
Overall Attrition
Voluntary Attrition
1 Business
Outlook

9
+

Business Outlook
Highlights

87%
Organisations
88%
Organisations
reporting growth projecting growth
in 2022 in 2023

Sectors with highest growth outlook

(2023P)

Engineering/ Telecommunications Engineering

Manufacturing Services Services

Sectors with lowest growth outlook

(2023P)

Financial Retail (incl. Wholesale IT Enabled

Institutions & Distribution) Services
Positive Outlook, Moderating growth

Amidst rising volatility and growing signs of recession

in the western economies, the growth story in India
remains intact. We believe that the fundamentals of
the economy remain strong with three-fourth of the
companies anticipating a significant 5%+ business
growth. But pockets of very high growth are reducing
and the aggregated India Inc. projections are
moderating as we progress through the year. On the
flip side, the number of companies reporting a business
decline has also come down significantly.

Business growth outlook across organisations

2022 2023(P)

1.8%
4.7%

23.5% 17.7%

24.0% 21.8%

47.8% 58.7%

High Growth (20%+) No/minimal Change (0% - 5%)

Moderate Growth (5% - Decline (negative growth)

20%)

The fundamentals of the economy remain

strong with 50% companies anticipating a 10%+
business growth. But pockets of very high
growth are reducing.
11
Impact of Volatility on Business sentiment
Survey respondents have varied views on the
impact of economic volatility on business sentiments.
With the rising Volatility in the geopolitical environment,
rising inflation, and Margin pressures, 32% of the
participants are unsure of the business impact. Yet,
another 24% of respondents expect a negative
downturn.
% responses foreseeing shift in
business sentiment due to economic
volatility
Minor negative impact 22%
Major negative impact 2%
No impact 44%
Not sure 32%
12
1 out of 2 organizations are adopting a wait-and-
watch policy before initiating budgeting for FY 2023,
and 1 out of 4 would take time to re-evaluate their
next steps before crystallizing their budget plans for
FY23. Originations seek more information to
demystify the volatility and pave the way for
organizations to design a future-looking rewards
strategy.
% responses on how economic volatility
affected budget for FY2023
No major impact foreseen 16%
Re-evaluation plans in-line with
the volatality 25%
Awaiting more information to
take a call 45%
Not sure 13%
Macroeconomic Tailwinds and Headwinds

While India is deeply integrated with global economy, there are a few
indications of decoupling.

Tailwinds:
Headwinds:
• The pick-up in consumer demand and
• Global headwinds such as the Russia-
covid- driven digital transformation have been
Ukraine war have led to disruption in the global
drivers of improving business sentiments.
supply chain and triggered a looming energy crisis
The recent phenomena of revenge buying &
in Europe.
travel have aided some of the badly-hit
sectors in Covid. • Surplus liquidity, elevated oil & commodity
prices, and logistics & supply-side
• Spurt in capex spending has given a push bottlenecks have led to inflation, which has
to infrastructure and a boost to the manufacturing been hovering above RBI’s tolerance band
sector. Higher domestic production aided by for the last 2 quarters.
the PLI scheme, and buoyant exports are
likely to be the key drivers of growth. • There are growing fears of US and
European recession. While India’s growth
• There is an improvement in key financial projection is seeing some moderation. It is
sector metrics backed by strengthening still the highest among the large
balance sheets and a reduction in stressed economies listed by IMF.
assets. As per RBI, NPAs are at a 6-year low,
with net NPA standing at 1.7% for banks.
Financial inclusion is also on the rise with
a digital finance revolution led by the
Fintechs and NBFCs, who are enabling
easier access to credit.

Rebound in economy and

Headwinds

consumer demand revival

Tailwinds

Disruption in global supply

chain and energy markets
Heavy CAPEX spending by
government and private players
Inflationary pressures &
recessionary fears
Stronger financial sector-
Improving health of balance
sheets
Hi-Tech Sector Outlook
Today the Hi-tech sector is very
diversified irrespective of the lens you
take, from business models and revenue
streams to talent profiles. The lines
between traditional businesses have
blurred on account of industry convergence
and the
91%
86% 89% 87%
emergent trend of “X-Tech”. We can take
a broad brush and divide this space into
3 categories - IT Services, IT
Products, and Early-stage Segment.
Each sector has its own unique context
and is showing interesting trends.
97% 97% 94%
88%

Hi Tech Sector Software Product IT Services Start Ups

Growth 2022 A Growth 2023 P

The lines between traditional businesses

are blurring on account of industry convergence
and the emergence of X-tech sectors like
FinTech, WealthTech, InsurTech or EdTech.

IT services Governance, and the road to profitability.

IT Services as a sector saw a
secular bull run from late 2020 to early
2021 as firms across the board tried to
scale their digital businesses. Now the
sector is under threat from the worsening
macro situation in US and Europe which
are the highest spenders on IT
Services. This sector is also reeling from
supply-side challenges with high attrition
accompanied by rising

IT Product
The IT Products sector in India largely
comprises of technology captives.
The erosion in value for the growth sector
and margin pressures have been
pronounced in this segment. In Global
HQs we have seen tightening and, in a
few places, tough decisions like lay-offs
as well. India is yet to see the full impact of
the same and has largely been restricted to
hiring freezes. The argument also
exists that

Start-ups
Growth firms are under pressure in
the silicon-valley with valuations nose-diving
amidst recessionary fears in the US
and global tensions. With the cost of
capital rising, we have seen an impact on
the start-up sector with funding coming in at
lower valuations as compared to
2021. We have also seen some layoffs
largely in operations/customer-facing
roles in certain start-up sectors like
consumer tech. A few have also pushed
out their IPO plans. Thus, in 2022 VC
firms have placed a lot of value on ESG,

1
 s growth on account of strong demand
pipelines and the untapped digital story,
t which is yet to penetrate segments
a like H&PS, O&G, etc. Given the
l maturity of the sector and the fact they
e have dealt with similar business
n environments in the past exudes
t confidence and cautious optimism.

c
o
the rise in margin pressures rise may be
s an opportunity for India given the cost
t arbitrage advantage that the geography
s has. India is the only location with
.
an existing ecosystem that can provide the
scale and talent maturity that this sector
B
demands. Thus, even the world faces
u
t a recessionary scenario, India could still be
isolated to a fair degree.
t
h
e
r
e While we may be in a mild funding
winter, for organizations with proven
i business models there is no shortage
s of backers. We are seeing newer
unicorns emerge and firms continue to
l raise new rounds of funding. For start-
a ups to survive and thrive they will need to
t focus on building around the core product
e and service rather than invest in high-risk
n and costly off-centre experiments.
t Firms will also rely more than ever on their
leadership group and a value system that
o helps them navigate this tricky period.
p
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1
ITeS Sector Outlook
India’s journey into IT-BPM started
with the BPO and Captive segments
as large financial services firms set-up
their shared services centers in India at the
turn of the century looking for cost
arbitrage options. Today India is a
pioneer in the production and exports
of IT and ITeS, including software,
business processing, financial
technology, e-commerce, and online
health services. Their combined share
in GDP grew from 15 percent in 2007
to
16 percent in 2010 despite the Global
Financial Crisis in 2008-09, and to 21
percent in 2019.
Over the years this sector has seen
the journey from cost arbitrage to value
added services to now a stage where we are
seeing value creation and COEs being
set-up in analytics, cyber security,
etc. India’s BPM segment can be broken
into 3 sectors General-in-house
Captives, BPOs and KPOs each with its
own unique set of challenges and
growth areas.

The move for Captives to Digital & COE set-ups will

drive value added services. This shift will be led out of
India and will continue to grow despite recessionary fears

93% 89%
82% 82% 83%
79%

ITeS Sector KPO/BPO Captives (Including

BFSI)
Growth 2022 Growth 2023 P
A
Captives
GICs by far have the biggest share of the solutions for backward
BPM pie and cuts across diverse integration into the client eco-system to further improve margins for them as
sub- sectors like financial services, clients look at consolidation. BPOs
engineering captives, pharma captives
and retail GICs. The fortune of these
GICs are closely linked with HQ
performance but broadly speaking
even during the pandemic this was
one sector which continued to see
growth. Most of the GICs are doing
dual journeys of increasing operational
efficiency for jobs at the lower end of
the value chain and segments that are
looked at as the ones that will build the
future of the organisation. Banking
captives are the most mature of the lot
and the largest by number of set-ups
and HC employed and despite the poor
macro-

KPO/BPO
Along with the GICs the BPO/KPO
segment has been a silver lining and a
space which has seen very high growth
in the last two years. As more and
more
firms look at data solutions within
risk and ESG KPOs have seen
tremendous value appreciation. Most
KPOs are also doing platform journeys
and are looking at technology

1
e nd more jobs moving to the middle
n office in search of lower talent costs and
v
i to fuel their expansion into adjacent
r horizontals.
o
n At the same time technology
m implementation continues to be strong
e as we continue to see large scale
n transformation across GICs from legacy
t systems to moving towards integrated
s cloud-based enterprise systems. The
w move for GICs to Digital set-ups will be
e led out of this geography and is likely
to be a segment that we expect to grow
a despite recessionary fears in US and
r other parts of the developed world.
e

s
e
e have also been in focus with increase in
i offshoring and expanding beyond India
n to nearshore locations as well for clients
g
but with PnLs sitting in India. Similar
h to captives BPO segment is generally
i considered recession proof given the
g opportunity for end clients to protect
h margins. This along with increased
penetration in new verticals gives us
g confidence that the Indian BPM
r
o segment will go from strength to strength
w even in 2022-23 despite global
t headwinds.
h

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1
Financial Sector Outlook
The fiscal year gone by was a mixed
bag, with the first half being heavily
impacted by the Delta variant and the
second half seeing a strong economic
recovery. With a robust post-
pandemic GDP growth and deleveraged
balance sheets across the board, India
and its financial sector stays resilient in
the face of headwinds characterized by
global cues. The uptick
100%
91%
83% 83%
79% 78%
45%
40%
Financial Banking FinTech Funds/Asset
Institutions Management
Reinsurance
Growth 2022 A
Indian financial Services sector is at a focal
point of transformation and change – Rising
digitization, NBFC and Fintech boom, PSB
reforms, surge in M&A activity and increasing
regulatory oversight.
In the midst of economic uncertainties,
India Inc at large and the Financial
Services sector in particular is at a
focal point of transformation and
change. Buoyed by an uptick in the
economy in late 2021, the sector has
witnessed growth across Banks,
NBFCs, Private Banking, Insurance and
other sub-sectors. The sector has also
witnessed some large M&A and
consolidation activities. Digital
transformation, expansion of brick
and mortar networks, rural lending,
financial inclusion, focus on SME and
MSME are set to be growth engines for the
private sector players in Financial
Services. At the same time there has been
a lot going on in the public sector front in
Financial Services including NPA
management, improving efficiencies,
revamping frameworks, privatization
efforts amongst many others.
In line with the ongoing transformation in
the sector, there is also a heavy demand
for skill sets and talent which will pave
the
in investments (supported by Government
capital expenditure and some revival in
private capital expenditure) and strong
export growth has been a pillar for the
expansion of the economy. There is
however a cautious optimism in the face of
the rising global inflation, the Ukraine
war, anticipated global slowdown.
100% 100%
92% 92%
83% 82% 83% 83%
75%
50%
General Investment Life Insurance NBFC Wealth
Insurance/ Banking Management
Growth 2023 P
way for the envisioned future. The
talent conundrum emerging in the Industry
today is to be able to find effective and
innovative Talent Management and
Rewards strategies which will enable
organizations manage the traditional
and future skill cohorts while dealing with
current realities of decade high attrition
numbers, offer drops, growing demand for
core sector skill sets from non-
traditional players. DE&I and ESG
have also been emerging focus areas
for the sector. Building future leaders,
investing in re-skilling and up- skilling
of talent, and shifting the hyper-
personalization lens inwards to meet
employee preferences cutting across
Rewards, Performance, Wellness &
Being will prove to be a huge advantage for
organizations in the long run.
1
Consumer Sector Outlook
FMCG/FMCD

Consumer markets globally are

changing dynamically in the face of
continuous disruption. Fast-moving
consumer goods and durables
(FMCG/FMCD) industry in India
continues to flourish and be a bright spot
for the global consumer companies despite
the macroeconomic and geo- political
challenges. This trend is mainly
attributed to increase in demand for
convenience with enhanced economic
activities and changing consumer
behaviour post-pandemic. Consumers
are now far more informed, research-driven
and demanding. It is also a result of
the upward income mobility in India that is
driving growth across all consumption
categories. Aspirations across urban
and rural India are fast converging, and the
better access will transform this intent
into actual spend. With increased
adoption of omni-channel strategies along
with new-age digital technologies, consumer
companies in India have been able to tap
this opportunity. As a result, the
industry is expected to record a strong
growth this year.
The same is evident from the overall
average salary increase numbers for the
industry this year. The FMCG/FMCD
industry has recorded an overall average
salary increase of 9.5%, which is
the highest for the industry since
2018. The market sentiments are
strong projecting an overall average
salary increase of 9.9% in the coming
cycle. Companies this year have gone a
step ahead to pay and retain their digital
and other key talent. The attrition for
the FMCG/FMCD industry stands at
16.5% but it is still amongst the
lowest if compared to other
industries. Majority of the firms have
paid out bonuses on time basis the actual
business performance. The Variable pay
spending is also above average when
compared across industries. Major areas
of concern for the industry are still around
maintaining the market competitiveness
while keeping the wage bill in check,
differentiating rewards for key talent
and improving the linkage of
performance and productivity to
rewards.

91% 88% 92% 92% 90% 90%

85% 86%
81% 83%

Consumer Durable Non-Durable: Retail (incl. E-commerce

Foods, Wholesale
Beverages, Tobacco, &
Personal care, Distribution)
Growth 2022 A Growth 2023 P

Evolving post-Covid consumer preferences

have pushed companies to adopt omnichannel
strategies to create seamless experiences and
tap consumers across all spend categories

1
Ecommerce / Retail
With the entry of various new
players, the Indian retail industry has
evolved into one of the most dynamic and
fast- paced industries. It currently
accounts for more than 10% of the
national GDP and around 8% of total
employment. Between 2019 and
2030, the sector is predicted to grow at
a 9% annual pace, rising from $779 billion in
2019 to $1,407 billion by 2026 and $1.8
trillion by 2030. Despite
unprecedented problems, the India
consumer story remains strong, with
household spending increasing to $1.63-
1.75 trillion in 2022. The Ministry of
MSME has also announced inclusion of retail
and wholesale trades as MSMEs, the
sector will now get the benefit of
priority lending under the RBI
guidelines.
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted
in a shift in consumer preferences that
has a substantial influence on how
people purchase and consume things.
Customers no longer differentiate
between offline and online
consumption channels; thus, many
businesses are experimenting with new
approaches to create seamless retail
experiences that are integrated across
all channels. E-commerce is constantly
developing in the country and is causing
the greatest transformation in the retail
business, and this trend is expected to
continue in the coming years.
The Indian E-commerce business has
been expanding and is predicted to
surpass the United States to become
the world’s
second-largest E-commerce market
by 2034. The sector is projected to
reach
$350 billion by 2030 from an estimated
$55 billion in 2021, due to rising online
shoppers in the country. In addition,
India’s E-Commerce business has attracted
$15 billion in PE/VC investments in
2021, the biggest investment value
obtained by any sector in India. The
government’s large investment in
building a fiber network for 5G would also
help promote E-commerce in India.
Employee turnover rates in the Indian
retail and e-commerce industries were
17.5% and 28.8%, respectively, in
2022, in accordance with the market’s
high attrition trends. Organization in the
retail and e-commerce space are shifting
focus on hiring and retaining talent with
differentiated rewards practices focusing
on wellness, security, and sustainability.
The same is reflected in the salary
increase trends where we are witnessing
significant hikes. The average salary
increases for the years 2021–2022 in the
retail industry was 9.9%, while in the e-
commerce industry it was 13.7%.
Overall, the long- term prospects for the
Indian retail and e-commerce industries are
optimistic, thanks to rising income,
favorable demographics, entry of
international businesses, and increased
urbanization.
2
Life Sciences Sector Outlook
The Indian Life Sciences industry has
successfully navigated through the
challenges posed by the pandemic, it has
displayed resilience by growing steadily in
both the domestic and foreign market.
The industry has been on a double-digit
growth rate and is expected to reach
USD 130 Billion by the end of 2030,
boosting the country’s economy. The
Indian government has set ambitious goals
for the healthcare sector and is fuelling the
same through initiatives like Make in
India, Ayushman Bharat Scheme and
National Digital health Mission along
with accelerated drugs approvals. This
has opened the untapped potential of
the Indian Healthcare sector presenting
an opportunity for organizations with
higher investments. A big boost has
also been seen in both the CRO and
89%
83%
80%
75%
Life Sciences Sector CRO
Growth 2022 A
Industry is witnessing a shift in focus from access
& affordability to Quality of Care and Cure,
enabled by rise in the adoption of technology,
global partnerships and stronger R&D
capability.
In line with the strong attrition trends in
the Indian market, Indian Life
Sciences industry too witnessed an
employee churn rate of 16.9% in 2022,
which however was on the lower side in
comparison to other sectors in the
Indian market. The industry has seen
organizations shifting their primary focus
to retaining and attracting talent with
measures such as: global mobility plans,
enhanced rewards
Medical Technology sector with the
rise in the adoption of technology, global
partnerships, stronger R&D capability
and manufacturing infrastructures, and
a decrease in imports in the Medical
Technology sector aided by
government’s Make in India initiative
and Atmanirbhar Bharat mission. Fast
urbanization, growing disposable income,
easier access to medical infrastructure,
improvement in health insurance
penetration, and diseases linked to
lifestyle have also been a few key
drivers of business expansion. While the
industry is witnessing growth, there are
serious challenges such as pricing pressure
in regulated markets, rising cost of
talent, raw materials and packaging
materials, and changes in regulatory
norms.
91% 89%
86% 83%
Medical Technology Pharmaceutical
Growth 2023 P
and recognition programs, and unique
working models to name a few. Salary
increments also took a leap towards
getting closer to the double-digit number,
with a 9.8% average increment for the
year 2021-22 in the industry. We see
the projected increases for 2023 at
9.4% for the pharmaceutical
organizations, at 10.4% for the CRO
sector and at 10% in the Medical
Technology sector.
2
Manufacturing Sector Outlook
Auto
The Indian automotive industry The commercial vehicle category
continues to be one of the largest in the continues toward the recovery path, and
world, with significant contribution we are also seeing encouraging signs
to the Indian economy, upwards of 7% around the two-wheeler and heavy vehicle
category. One of the most exciting
share in India’s GDP. While the sector
bets for the auto industry comes from in the
witnessed significant slowdown in last
shape of convergence sector of EV.
two financial years on account of the
The EV market is expected to grow at
domestic industry slowdown (FY20) and
CAGR of 49% between 2022-2030 and
pandemic- induced challenges (FY21),
it has been demonstrating steady recovery is expected to hit 10 mn-unit annual
over the last few quarters. The sales by 2030. The EV industry will create
trends, in fact, have been quite 50 mn direct and indirect jobs by 2030.
encouraging from the second half of FY21 Granted continued easing up off the semi-
conductor supply the industry overall is
onwards, with various automotive
signalling a positive outlook for the
segments reporting healthy sequential
automobile sector in 2023.
growth, post
96% 93% of the lockdown-
relaxation 100% 92% 91%
related restrictions. 89%

Automotive/Vehicle
Manufacturing Engineering/Manufac- Energy(Oil/Gas/Power)
turing
Growth 2022 A Growth 2023
P

Restoration of global supply chains, unwavering

consumer demand and robust policy support is
driving a strong growth impetus across Auto
and Engineering/Manufacturing sectors.
Engineering Manufacturing
Despite a sluggish period from 2020 and the trend is expected to continue requiring significant addition to the installed
to 2022, the Indian engineering / generating capacity.
manufacturing sector has seen a
Current share of the renewable sector in the country is around 18% however this is
remarkable growth in the last decade.
expected to grow more than 2.5 times in
This is primarily driven by the rapidly
growing economy with a focus on
manufacturing, infrastructure,
Automobiles etc. have generated
heavy demand in the market for the
industry. However, despite such
progress, manufacturing has remained
largely dependent on foreign producers
for raw materials, parts, and consumables
such as Active Pharmaceutical
Ingredients, spare parts, semiconductors,
yarn, and more. This is the reason
why Covid- induced disruptions in the
international
Energy
India’s power sector is one of the more
diversified in the world. While conventional
power generation like cola, gas,
Hydro, nuclear etc. remains stills
commands majority of the power
generation, India has been seeing rapid
increase in the capacity for renewable
sources like wind, solar and waste.
Electricity demand in the country has
increase rapidly in the last few decades

2
supply chain had also adversely impacted ion of global supply chains and a robust
the Indian Manufacturing sector. momentum in the demand which is giving
this sector a fresh growth impetus. The
N segment is further encouraged by the
o policy reforms declared in the budget 2022
w and investments expected in building smart
corridors and smart cities. Against
a this backdrop, India’s manufacturing
s GDP is forecast to grow at an average
annual rate (AAGR) of 9%, in nominal
t terms, over 2022-26
h
e
the next decade. While the overall
e demand will also continue to grow
f rapidly. This focus on the green energy
f coupled with high demand for sustainable
e energy in the country has seen significant
c foreign direct investment in the country
t primarily in the renewable generation space
s in the last three to four years..
This coupled with the favorable policies
o and subsidies for the renewable sector,
f and government’s plan to cross
200GW capacity of renewable power by
t 2022 make the sector one of the most
h exciting ones in the country.
e

p
a
n
d
e
m
i
c

w
a
r
e
s

o
f
f

w
e

a
r
e

s
e
e
i
n
g

t
h
e

r
e
s
t
o
r
a
t

2
2 Salary Increase
2022-2023

21
Salary Increase 2022-2023 Highlights

45.92% 10.6%
Companies Projecting Overall Salary Increase
Double Digit Salary (A) 2022
Increase

10.4% 12.8%
Overall Salary Sector with highest
Increase Projected Increase:
(P) 2023 Ecommerce

9%
Sector with lowest Projected
Increase: Hospitality/QSR

22
Salary Increase
2022-2023
India Inc. to See Double Digit
Salary Increments
2022 is witnessing a clustering of salary increases across industries –
The large divergence seen during the recession has reduced and
sectors heavily hit by the pandemic are seeing a rebound recovery.

2022 has seen some industries giving out touching double digits with 10.6%. A deep dive into
disproportionately high salary increments. However, even the data highlights that 45% of the firms will deliver
the lowest-paying sectors have witnessed a spike in double- digit increases, a significant jump up from
the salary increase number, averaging around a respectable 32.5% in 2021. Similarly, we see that the proportion of
9% increment. Our survey projects that salary companies projecting 14%+ increments in 2023 is the
increases in 2023 are likely to be the highest over highest in the past decade.
the past decade

Proportion of companies across salary increment buckets

(Comparison of 2023 projection vs 2019 pre-pandemic actuals)

2023 (Projected) 2019 (Actual)

1.6% 0.8%

42.9% 40.17%
38.6%

37.9% 18.6% 1.6%

9.7%
7.9%

0-5% 5-8% 8-10% 10-14% 14%+ 0-5% 5-8% 8-10% 10-14% 14%+

Average: 10.4% Average: 9.3%

2
Salary Increase by Employee Groups
2022 (Actual) and 2023 (Projected)

Further analysis of the data alludes to a trend of organisations shaving off increments across the board, where middle
and junior layers would be least impacted. The Senior or Top management would be seeing the highest impact
as the increases would be shaved off with more focus on Business-linked Incentives. Organisations are
ramping up for a slow start in 2023, with a hope for stability by Q3, 2023.

Overall Salary Increase by Employee Groups

2022 A%
Salary Increment
2023 P 9.7%
Top
Senior Management
Executives/ 9.1%

10.5%
Middle Management
10.1%

Junior 11.1%
All Professional/Supervisor
Management/
10.8%

7.9%
Clerical Administration
7.7%

5.2%

Manual Workforce 5.1%

10.6% 10.4%
Overall Salary Increase Projected Salary Increase Across
Across Employee Groups 2023 (P)
Employee Groups 2022 (A)

2
Sector Wise Increments
2022 Actuals and 2023 Projections
Highlights
Increment 2022 2023
%

India Inc. Manufacturing Services

10.6% 10.4% 9.6% 9.7% 11.3% 10.8%

Aerospace Engineering Chemicals

9.3% 10.0% 9.6% 9.7%

Automotive/Vehicle
Manufacturing Cement
10.1% 9.6%
8.7% 8.7%
Auto Producers
10.3% 9.7%
Auto Suppliers
9.7% 9.5% 9.5%
Engineering 9.6%
Services

Energy (Oil/Gas/Coal/Power)
9.5% 10.1% Other - Manufacturing
8.7% 8.4%
Power
9.7% 10.3%
Oil/Gas Lifesciences / Pharmaceuticals
8.4% 10.6% 9.8% 9.8%

Renewables CRO

10.3% 9.7% 10.6% 10.4%

Pharmaceutical
9.2% 9.4%
Engineering/Manufacturing
9.7% 9.9% Medical Technology
10.3% 10.0%

FMCG/FMCD
9.5% 9.9% Manufacturing (Without
FMCG/FMCD & Life Sciences)
Non-Durable: Alcohol-beverages 9.8% 9.8%
10.8% 10.5%
Durable
9.3% 9.8%
Services (Without
Non-Durable : Foods, Beverages, Tobacco, IT/ITes, FI and E-Commerce)
Personal care, Wellness
9.7% 10.0%
9.5% 9.9%

Metals & Mining

9.7% 10.0%
Sector Wise Increments
2022 Actuals and 2023 Projections
Highlights
Increment % 2022 2023

India Inc. Manufacturing Services

10.6% 10.4% 9.6% 9.7% 11.3% 10.8%

Financial Institutions
ITeS
10.9% 10.5% 10.7% 10.1%
Banking/Private
Banking Other Captives
10.2% 10.0% 11.1% 10.8%

Funds/Asset Management Third Party Service Provides

11.7% 11.8% 9.9% 8.7%

Investment Banking
KPO
11.2% 10.1% 13.3% 11.2%

NBFC
BFSI Captives
11.5% 10.7% 10.3% 10.3%

Life Insurance
Transportation Services/Logistics
9.1% 9.0%
8.7% 10.0%
Fin Tech
12.1% 11.1%
Telecommunications Services
General Insurance
9.9% 9.7%
10.0% 9.9%
Wealth Management Professional Services
11.6% 10.5%
12.4% 12.1%

Hi Tech/Information Real Estate/Infrastructure

12.0% 11.3%
Technology 8.7% 10.1%

Software Products Other - Services

12.1% 11.6%
8.7% 9.1%
Application Services/Consulting
11.3% 10.6% Hospitality/Restaurants
Semiconductors 8.5% 9.0%
11.9% 12.0%
Start-Ups Ecommerce
14.3% 12.6% 13.7% 12.8%

Entertainment & Media

10.6% 10.9%
3 War for
Talent

27
War for Talent

Majority of the organisations see an offer decline rate between 10%

to 30%. The sectors facing the highest impact of the war for talent are
Technology and Professional Services.

Scouting, developing, and retaining talent has always been a key priority for organisations. But, the “War for
Talent” has risen fast to be one of the top risk elements that organisations are grappling with in recent years.
While firms want to attract, groom, and hold on to the brightest talent, the problem is the relative deficiency of
high-quality applicants and they are difficult to discover. This difficulty has come to the fore because of the
exceedingly unstable and novel conditions we have encountered recently. Since the pandemic’s start, people have
changed careers, lost employment, and even created some new ones. Employees have had a chance to re-
evaluate their priorities and re-consider their careers to better align with their internal compasses.

% of companies classified into offer drop rate cluster

Industries with most offer declines

34% Hi Tech/Information Technology

29%

24% IT Enabled Services

companies

Professional Services
% of

7%
5%
Financial Institutions

0-10% 10-20% 20-30% 30-40% More Automotive/Vehicle Manufacturing

than
40%
E-Commerce
Offer Drop Rate

FY 2022
28
Reasons for Offer Declines

Offer not competitive 14.1%

Retained by current employer 37.5%

Competing offer from another firm 40.4%

Inconsistent Candidate Experience 4.5%

Unappealing Employer Brand 2.6%

Majority of the organisations see an offer decline rate

between 10% to 30%, The war for talent has
been extremely critical in the Technology sector
followed by the professional services sector.
Conventional sectors such as automotive/vehicle
manufacturing has also positioned itself on 4th
amongst all sectors facing the highest offer
declines. Although the Top 2 reasons for offer
declines stay same as FY2021, Candidate
Experience and Employer Brand have become
more prevalent as reasons for dropping an offer at
hand.

Majority Orgs in India Inc. see an offer decline rate of 10-30%, The war for talent has been extremely critical
in the Technology sector followed by the professional services sector. Conventional sectors such as
automotive/vehicle manufacturing has also positioned itself on 4th amongst all sectors facing the highest
offer declines. Although the Top 2 reasons for offer declines stay the same as FY2021, Candidate Experience
and Employer Brand have become more prevalent as reasons for dropping an offer at hand.

Continued focus on Cash in Hand

C&B and Team teams largely focused
on Cash in Hand
In comparison to 2021, top two hiring strategies i.e. Joining Bonus and Matching/Exceeding the counter-offer
have shuffled ranks, but larger focus on cash has been persistent across the last few years. Marginally
lowered numbers in referral-based hiring and hiring candidates that are in fag end of their notice periods, the focus
has shifted on giving higher increases during appraisal cycles and introducing long term value creation options
such as Equity/LTI programs.
Measures being taken organizations to
reduce the number of offers declines

Measures being taken by organisations to reduce offer declines

20% 19.6%
19% 19.5%
17%
15.6%
20% 19.6%
19% 19.5% 12.0%
12% 11.9%
17%
15.6% 10%

12% 11.9% 12.0% 5.3%

5% 5%
10% 3.8%

5% 5.3% 5%
3.8%
Hire candidate who Joining Bonus Match/Exceed the More referral based Increase higher Introduced an Hire more
are at the end of Counter offer raises raises Equity/LTI Program candidates than the
their notice period requisition
Hire candidate who Joining Bonus Match/Exceed the More referral based Increase higher Introduced an Hire more
are at the enda of Counter offer raises raises Equity/LTI Program candidates than the
their notice period FY 2021 FY 2022 requisition

FY 2021 FY 2022

29
Pay rises continue to be the weapon of choice in the war to attract and retain talent. While it can be an
effective tactic in a buoyant market, recruiting across industries is at an all-time high right now and simply
throwing money at talent is not enough. While cash used to be king, if you are not at the very top end of salary
offerings, then the extra money is unlikely to hold much sway. While many organisations are focusing on pay
increases and matching mar- ket-leading compensation, but this alone is not sufficient nor is it sustainable in
the long run. Industries and compa- nies that focus on the cravings of their talent will win in the long-run and
therefore make savings in training and new hire costs. Those that remain blinded by simply playing bank
or bust may soon wake up to a mass exit.

Measures taken by organisations to attract and retain talent

On an average, firms are giving out

an increase of up to 10% on competing
offers to attract talent

In response to higher attrition and hiring

challenges, organizations are offering se-
lective market corrections apart from regu-
lar year-end increases

High base salary increases remains the

most used element to attract new talent

While many organisations are focusing on pay increases

and matching market-leading compensation, but this is
alone is not sufficient nor is it sustainable in the long
run.

30
Key Attrition & Retention Drivers

Top reasons for voluntary attrition

External inequity Limited Nature of Work Internal inequity

of Growth of
Compensation Opportunities Compensation

2022 1 2 3 4
2021 1 2 4 3
2020 1 2 4 5
2019 2 1 4 7

Attrition drivers:

Given the entire demand and supply gap prevalent

in the market, not surprisingly External Inequity of
Compensation. This means that as an employee,
I’m aware that there are organizations willing to
pay a significant differential on my current
compensation, and financial well-being dictating the
employee preferences post a pandemic impacted year,
driving employees to jump ships.
The next one is Limited growth opportunities which
also happens to be amongst the top 4 reasons. The
baseline for employees has become steady income and
growth opportunities.
But interestingly and also as a corollary of what’s
happening in the market is the 4th reason themed
around
Internal inequity of compensation. this could be
directly attributable to some actions organizations
have been taking to retain and attract talent. With
significantly high attrition numbers and the pressure to
meet demand, organizations have opted to look
beyond the existing compensation ranges and have
started fitting in external talent basis their compensation
– and inevitably, the moment you start getting in hires
with a similar skill set at a much higher cost, there is a
gap created for the internal employees leading to them
looking at it from a point of view that they don’t want to
miss the bus or also that the organization is not treating
them fairly for their acquired skills, which has led to
a lot of strife and resentment in them, ultimately
resorting to looking out.

31
Top retention drivers
Recognition Fair & Equitable
Treatment in Rewards
For all Emplioyees
2022 1 2
2021 1 3
2020 2 3
2019 3 5
Retention Measures:
As a direct response to these attrition drivers,
organizations that have a highly competitive
recognition program and have done a better job around
internal inequity have seen better results in retaining
employees Hence it is no surprise that the number
one reason for retention is “Recognition Awards
(Monetary/ Non- Monetary)” and “Fair & Equitable
Treatment in Rewards for all Employees” is number
two on the list. Be it in the form of one-time payouts,
leveraging equity programs, or off-cycle increases are
options that multiple organizations have or are willing
to explore. Hence the story of compensation stays
prominent even from a retention perspective.
Interestingly where some employees have been quoting
stress and long working hours as a reason for
looking
32
Work Life Telecommuting/
Balance Other Flexible
Work
Arrangements
3 4
2 -
1 -
4
out “work-life balance” has secured a place in the list
as the third most important tool for retaining
employees. A lot of organizations are striving to
emphasize Work-life balance, wherein the employees feel
in control of how they balance the various demands of all
aspects of life to enable well-being, thus promoting
“happiness, fulfilment and job satisfaction”. This has
also meant organizations have adopted unique
practices like no meetings Fridays, 4-day weeks,
and Flexi working timing.
Amongst the other factors that Have had more
success when it comes to retaining people is
Telecommuting/ Other Flexible Work Arrangements,
which is an important indicator of the times we live
in. Firms have adopted these measures to expand their
talent pipelines and promote flexible working.
4 Pay for
Performance

33
Pay for Performance Highlights

14.5%
Average variable
36.0%
Employees in the
(bonus) payout in 2021 top two
performance rating
categories

Sectors with highest variable payout

Financial FMCG/FMCD Professional

Institutions Services

1.7X
Salary Increase Multiplier
for top performers
Pay for Performance
Variable payouts in 2022 (for the performance year 2021-22) were
reflective of the recovery across sectors as these numbers
touched pre-pandemic highs. Most organizations saw an upward
revision in their business forecasts and variable payout plans as the
year progressed.

Variable Payout Trends

A sectorial view of the variable pay numbers show
that the services industry with sectors such as financial
services, professional services, IT enabled services
amongst oth- ers, largely driven by a better-than expected
performance saw an average payout of 15.2% in 2022
compared to 11.7% in 2021.
of an improved performance in sectors such as engineer-
ing manufacturing, energy and automotive manufacturing
with an average payout of 13.2%, an increase from
2021 with 12.9%.

The manufacturing industry also did better on the

back

Historical trend of average variable payouts (as % of total fixed pay)

16.6 16.1
15.1 15.3 15.3 15.2
15
14.5

13.2 13.4

2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
35
 Variable pay plans continue to be effective tools for employers to
incentivize the right behaviors and outcomes. Top management
with the maximum opportunity to influence business has the
maximum percentage of pay at risk.

Variable pay as per levels of management

24.1%
23.4%

20.2% 20.2%

17.0% 17.2%
14.4% 13.8%
11.4% 11.4%
10.4% 10.3%

Top/Senior Management Middle Management Junior Management

2019
2020 2021 2022(A)

Linkage of variable pay plan to

performance increases as one
goes up the hierarchy and so
does the component dependent
on business performance. Thus,
the major impact of a pandemic
hit year is visible on top
management employees. Most
organizations have exercised
discretion while making bonus
payouts and have looked at
minimizing the impact at the
junior levels.

36
Variable Pay Practices

“ Organizations are adopting a mature approach to Variable pay,

acknowledging the impact of uncertainty and adapting to needs
of an increasingly younger and remote workforce.

Variable Pay Plan Practices

Plan changes for 2021
No Change Increase Decrease

23%
Performance goals

77%
10%
Eligibiltiy/Coverage
of Employee
Groups 88% 2%
16%

Funding
82% 2%
14%

Individual Performance
Component 83% 3%
2.0%

Payout Frequency
97% 1%
28%

Communication/
Training 72%
13%

Targeted Payout

86% 1%

A key tenet of this approach was more transparency and greater communication around rewards decisions.

Significantly, 28% of the organizations revisited their variable pay communication philosophy and invested in
manager trainings to ensure the appropriate messaging was getting cascaded down across levels.

37
Sector wise Variable Pay
2022 Actuals
Actual Variable Top Middle Junior
Industry Payout 2022 Management Management Management
Overall India 14.5 27.0 17.4 8.9
Manufacturing 13.2 25.2 19.1 11.1
Services 15.2 28.3 19.8 9.4

Aerospace 20.0 39.2 27.0 16.8

Automotive/Vehicle Manufacturing 11.5 22.0 15.6 8.6
Auto Producers 14.4 27.1 16.5 11.4
Auto Suppliers 7.1 13.4 10.3 5.0
Energy(Oil/Gas/Power) 13.1 24.6 15.9 8.6
Power 13.0 24.7 15.4 10.4
Oil/Gas 13.2 25.7 15.8 9.6
Renewables 13.4 26.0 19.2 11.4
Engineering/Manufacturing 13.8 26.6 20.0 11.6
FMCG/FMCD 16.9 20.0 18.0 13.9
Durable 10.4 19.3 14.3 7.9
Non-Durable : Foods,
Beverages, Tobacco, Personal 18.3 25.7 18.9 14.7
care, Wellness
Metals & Mining 16.9 32.0 19.0 14.2
Life Sciences 11.6 17.5 12.5 8.9
CRO 15.1 27.8 18.0 9.1
Pharmaceutical 12.5 16.1 11.7 9.0
Medical Technology 11.0 24.0 15.8 10.5
Chemicals 17.6 32.4 26.4 14.0
Cement 10.0 19.5 12.0 7.3
Engineering Services 10.9 20.7 11.9 7.7
Other - Manufacturing 6.7 12.8 7.4 4.3
Financial Institutions 23.5 36.1 26.9 20.0
Banking 19.3 39.4 24.5 15.5
Wealth Management 22.3 42.6 26.7 18.3
Funds/Asset Management 24.6 45.0 28.9 15.3
Investment Banking 31.4 47.8 35.0 25.8
NBFC 15.4 30.3 17.8 10.8
Life Insurance 20.7 29.5 21.7 15.1
FinTech 16.8 23.8 16.6 10.3
Hi Tech/Information Technology 13.9 26.5 15.6 12.1
Software Products 14.2 27.7 18.8 9.3
Application Services/Consulting 14.4 26.8 20.1 9.3
Semiconductors 5.5 10.0 6.4 3.4
Start-Ups 12.9 24.1 15.2 8.6
IT Enabled Services 14.2 27.3 18.2 11.6
Other Captives 13.2 26.4 17.2 11.7
Third Party Service Providers 16.8 33.4 23.6 10.1
KPO 13.2 24.6 19.6 9.0
BFSI Captives 13.6 26.9 15.4 11.0
E-Commerce 10.0 18.5 14.9 6.6
Entertainment & Media 13.5 24.9 17.5 11.7
Retail (incl. Wholesale & 17.0 32.3 21.3 11.8
Distribution)
Transportation Services/Logistics 6.3 11.4 9.0 3.8
Telecommunications Services 11.3 21.5 12.5 7.5
Professional Services 14.0 27.0 16.1 11.4
Real Estate/Infrastructure 15.5 30.4 21.2 13.0
Other - Services 20.0 37.0 28.6 16.7
Hospitality/Restaurants 16.2 24.5 17.0 12.6

38
Salary Increases and Performance
Performance Distribution and Salary Increases 2022

Overall Salary Increase by Performance Rating

Distribution of Salary Increase by employee groups

Expectations
Expectations

Expectations
Expectations

Expectations
Often did
Exceeded

not Meet
Exceeded

Did not
Often

Meet
Met
Far

48.5%
24.7%
% Employees
All
Employees 11.2% 7.5% 3.9%

% Increment 13.1% 11.3% 7.8% 3.3% 1.1%

36.2%
29.0%
Top Executives/ % Employees
11.9%
Senior
4.1% 2.3%
Management
% Increment 8.8% 8.3% 7.2% 1.8% 0.8%

40.4%

% Employees 31.4%
Middle
12.2%
Management 5.3% 2.4%

% Increment 11.4% 10.2% 8.7% 2.4% 1.0%

38.6%

% Employees
Junior 25.6%
Management/ 9.4% 6.7%
3.0%
Prof/Supervisory

% Increment 14.1% 11.9% 9.0% 4.5% 2.3%

39
Performance Bell Curve for 2021-22
Differentiated increments and performance ratings

High risk to reward ratio for India Inc. is a continuing trend and the performance bell curve for 2022 follows a
similar theme from 2021. Top rated employees stand to see salary increase budgets to the tune of 15.5%
against 9.1% for employees rated as Met Expectations. We also see a very low percentage of population in the
bottom two categories which is usually a sign of a high growth scenario.

15.5%
13.1% 12.7%
11.3%
7.8% 9.1%

3.3% 2.7%
1.1% 0.5%

Far Often Met Often did not Did not

exceeded exceeded expectations Meet Meet
expectations expectations 53.5% expectations expectations
10.8% 27.6% 7% 2.8%

1.7X 1.4X X 0.3X 0.1X

Ratio of the % increment given to top performer vs increment given to avg

performer

40
Employee Distribution by Performance

Organizations in 2022 see a higher percentage of the employee

population in the top two rating categories on the back of improved
business performance and a need to retain talent amid a raging
war for talent.

Pay for Performance

Higher differentiation in performance leading to a sharper bell-curve

Employee Performance Differential Performance Pay Differential

Horizon 3 (2005 -2010) 10.1 29.4 52.5 8.1 1.3X

Horizon 2 (2011 -2015) 9.0 24.7 54.4 11.9 1.6X

Horizon 1 (2016 -2019) 7.4 23.5 55.3 13.8 1.7X

2020 9.7 23.3 55.9 11.0 1.6X

2021 11.2 24.7 48.5 11.5 1.7X

2022(A) 10.8 27.6 53.5 9.8 1.7X

Far Exceeded Expectations Exceeded Expectations Met Expectations Did not Meet Expectations

Over the last few years, more and more firms are
a higher percentage of the population in the top two
moving away from a fixed rating fitment curve to provide
categories.
flexibility to managers and to allow for adjustments as per
actual business performance. This has led to a
The performance differentiation number is calculated
variation in the percentage of population being
as the ratio of salary increase for top performers to
parked under various rating categories. In bad years
employees meeting expectations. The improvement in
we lower percentages of population in the top two business performance also meant 2022 was a good year
ratings. Conversely, in a strong year, we typically see a for top executives with the highest percentage of top
higher percentage of population in the top two performers being identified at the top management
performance rating categories. level while the lowest percentage being at the bottom of the
pyramid.
We see organizations piggyback off improved business
performance and an ongoing talent war, thus
parking

4
Sector Wise Performance Bell Curve
2022 Actuals

Far Exceeding Often Exceeded Met Expectations Often Did Not Meet Did Not Meet
Expectations Expectations Expectations Expectations
Industry
% Salary % of % Salary % of % Salary % of % Salary % of % Salary % of
Increases Employees Increases Employees Increases Employees Increases Employees Increases Employees
Overall India 15.5 10.7 12.7 26.9 9.1 52.8 2.7 6.9 0.5 2.8
Manufacturing 13.8 9.4 11.4 25.9 8.9 54.3 2.6 7.5 0.6 2.8
Services 15.9 11.7 12.6 28.2 9.0 50.9 2.5 6.7 0.5 2.5

Aerospace 15.9 9.6 12.2 24.7 8.2 59.0 0.0 6.7 0.0 0.0
Automotive/Vehicle Manufacturing 14.8 7.8 12.0 29.6 9.4 54.0 3.7 7.1 0.9 1.5
Auto Producers 15.2 8.3 12.8 23.4 10.2 57.4 5.4 9.0 1.6 2.0
Auto Suppliers 14.1 8.2 10.9 26.9 8.6 55.4 4.3 7.6 1.0 2.0
Energy(Oil/Gas/Power) 15.6 4.4 11.8 19.4 7.7 69.5 0.0 5.3 0.0 1.4
Power 16.8 4.3 11.3 19.9 8.3 69.8 0.0 4.6 0.0 1.3
Oil/Gas 17.2 4.9 11.9 20.4 7.5 68.2 0.0 5.3 0.0 1.3
Renewables 16.4 4.5 12.9 18.1 7.2 71.3 0.0 4.7 0.0 1.4
Engineering/Manufacturing 14.6 11.2 10.6 30.2 7.8 51.7 2.1 5.1 0.7 1.8
FMCG/FMCD 14.4 7.1 11.5 26.1 8.3 55.9 2.9 8.4 0.8 2.5
Durable 16.1 5.0 12.7 25.5 8.8 57.6 3.3 9.5 1.1 2.6
Non-Durable : Foods, Beverages, Tobacco,
Personal care, Wellness 13.6 7.9 10.9 26.5 8.0 55.2 2.7 8.0 0.6 2.5
Metals & Mining 12.6 13.4 10.1 23.4 7.4 54.4 2.3 5.7 0.0 3.1
Life Sciences 13.6 9.2 12.2 21.0 8.9 61.2 3.8 5.7 0.4 2.9
CRO 14.3 13.9 11.6 7.0 8.6 68.8 0.0 7.0 0.0 3.4
Pharmaceutical 15.3 8.1 12.0 20.8 8.8 61.7 4.8 6.4 0.6 3.0
Medical Technology 15.7 7.8 12.9 27.2 9.2 57.3 2.6 5.7 0.0 2.0
Chemicals 15.7 8.7 11.7 25.9 8.6 55.1 2.2 6.8 0.0 3.5
Cement 11.8 10.2 11.0 34.1 8.4 50.7 5.4 4.9 0.0 0.1
Engineering Services 13.8 9.2 11.9 28.1 8.7 54.0 2.2 7.0 0.0 1.6
Other - Manufacturing 15.1 6.5 12.9 25.0 10.3 50.8 1.7 6.2 1.5 11.4
Financial Institutions 16.6 10.7 14.5 28.3 10.0 49.4 3.0 8.4 0.6 3.2
Banking 15.1 9.9 12.9 28.0 9.3 54.0 1.7 6.4 0.1 1.8
Wealth Management 15.4 8.9 14.3 29.6 10.2 55.6 1.6 4.4 0.1 1.5
Funds/Asset Management 14.9 13.0 12.4 39.6 8.9 35.7 4.2 8.6 0.8 3.1
Investment Banking 17.1 13.5 13.9 37.5 9.6 39.3 7.3 6.6 2.3 3.1
NBFC 16.2 9.9 14.7 25.9 11.0 53.5 3.4 8.4 0.3 2.3
Life Insurance 16.9 9.1 14.0 25.5 8.8 54.6 0.4 8.1 0.0 2.6
FinTech 30.8 13.3 23.5 28.7 15.5 36.1 8.7 12.9 3.4 9.0
Hi Tech/Information Technology 17.1 11.8 13.9 27.6 9.6 51.6 2.6 6.6 0.3 2.3
Software Products 17.2 11.3 15.6 28.0 10.3 52.7 2.3 5.9 0.2 2.0
Application Services/Consulting 16.0 11.5 12.3 26.2 8.6 52.3 2.3 7.3 0.3 2.7
Semiconductors 16.5 16.2 13.3 25.1 11.7 51.9 3.5 6.3 0.4 0.5
Start-Ups 19.0 8.3 14.8 23.4 10.2 57.4 5.4 9.0 1.6 2.0
IT Enabled Services 14.7 12.3 12.2 27.5 8.7 50.8 2.1 7.0 0.6 2.4
Other Captives 14.8 13.5 12.6 26.0 9.1 52.2 1.4 5.6 0.1 2.6
Third Party Service Providers 13.3 11.3 11.6 31.7 7.3 45.6 2.3 8.8 1.0 2.6
KPO 20.1 14.6 15.4 29.6 10.7 46.3 2.3 7.8 1.5 1.6
BFSI Captives 15.7 11.7 11.1 25.1 8.6 55.5 2.2 5.5 0.3 2.2
E-Commerce 17.0 16.4 13.4 29.5 10.0 44.5 2.4 6.7 0.0 2.9
Entertainment & Media 16.5 10.7 11.5 24.3 9.0 59.6 4.0 4.7 0.0 0.7
Retail (incl. Wholesale & Distribution) 14.2 9.4 10.6 25.6 8.8 55.4 4.3 5.6 0.2 4.0
Transportation Services/Logistics 13.9 6.6 9.8 24.9 6.8 50.4 2.0 10.7 0.0 7.3
Telecommunications Services 14.0 12.7 11.3 26.2 8.0 54.7 1.3 4.2 0.0 2.1
Professional Services 18.6 13.8 13.7 25.1 10.3 51.7 5.5 5.1 3.5 4.3
Real Estate/Infrastructure 17.2 9.5 10.9 35.5 7.3 47.5 2.5 6.2 0.0 1.2
Other - Services 14.8 9.3 9.6 19.5 7.1 58.7 1.9 9.8 0.4 2.7
Hospitality/Restaurants 15.2 23.0 12.3 27.0 10.0 47.1 1.2 2.9 0.0 0.0

4
Measuring performance

After many years of hype, we finally witness

traction in companies moving away from traditional
rating scales and adopting innovative ways of
“ The 5-point scale continues
to be the preferred rating
assessing performance. The most common scale for performance
alternate performance differentiation mechanisms
are 9-box grids and continuous feedback. calibration. However, some
Leading the shift are Consumer and ITeS
companies, with 17% and 16% of companies companies are moving away
reporting moving away from traditional rating scales
respectively. Among other scales, 6 point scale is from forced rating scales.
prevalent among e-commerce companies. A few
companies are also adopting a 2-point scale to
identify ‘Doers’ and ‘Stars’.

Prevalence of rating scales across organisations

58%
54%
52%

20%
19%
17%
14% 13%
11% 11%
8% 8%
6% 6%
2%

3-point scale 4-point scale 5-point scale Other scales No Rating scale

2020 2021 2022

4
5 The Great
Resignation

44
The Great Resignation
The Great Resignation rages on in 2022 and is leading to record attri-
tion levels. About 1 in 5 employees quit their jobs in 2022 citing
inequity of compensation, limited growth opportunities and nature of
work as the top 3 reasons for attrition.

Headwinds caused by slowing economy and supply

side disruptions on account of geopolitics and war have
had little impact on “the Great Resignation” with
attrition numbers hitting 20.3% (YTD), marginally
lower than 21% in 2021.
The phenomenon can be broken down into 2
major
facets:
1. Supply Side shocks
As per the International Monetary Fund, the Global
economy is moving from a world of relative predictability
to one of greater uncertainty. The global economy
which is still reeling from the effects of the pandemic and
from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is now looking at
higher- than-expected inflation, especially in the
United States, Asia and major European countries.
This is consequently
leading to a tightening of global financial
conditions. China’s slowdown has been worse than
anticipated amid COVID-19 outbreaks and lockdowns.
Geopolitical shocks and supply chain disruptions
further add to the woes of an already wounded world
economy. However, the economic prospects for India and
economies in the Gulf Region continue to be bright spots in
an otherwise somber outlook.
As a result, firms are searching for alternatives to de-
risk and bridge gaps in their supply chains and continue
to look at India as a hub for expansion. As a result,
in the last 12 months, we’ve seen a slew of companies
establish captives in India, contributing to the rising
demand for talent. India continues to be seen as a
preferred destination for growth not just for
transactional back- office roles, but middle and front
office roles as well. This is leading to a strain for
top talent.

Attrition Trends
Highest attrition over two decades signifying the impact of great resignation on India

21.0
19.8 20.3
19.3
18.7 18.5
18.1 18.1
16.9 16.3 16.4 16.3 16.1
15.8
15.4 17.5
14.5 14.4 16.5 17.0
14.0 16.2 16.4
13.2 15.7 15.7
15.1 12.3
13.7 13.3 13.5
12.9 13.1

10.5

2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022

Overall Attrition Voluntary Attrition

45
2. Demand Side Shifts

COVID-19 has accelerated the growth of e-commerce

Additionally, there has been a secular surge in
across India. As per FICCI, “Online shopping has
organizations from all industries in trying to
increased significantly in Tier-II and Tier-III cities as
develop digital capabilities. Organizations are looking
well due to the easy availability of the internet on cheaper
at India as an R&D and Technology hub and setting
tariffs and restrictions on physical movement during the
up centers of excellence for top skills such as
time of the pandemic.” According to the IBEF, the
Analytics, Big Data Analysis, and Machine
Indian e-commerce market is predicted to increase by
Learning.
21.5% in 2022, reaching US$ 74.8 billion in overall
market size leading to a sharp increase in
This has created a supplier’s market, resulting in
demand for talent.
significant attrition across levels and functions.
Digital and New age talent groups have seen the highest
2021 also saw the growth of India as a hub for start-
ups with over 44 unicorns created with a valuation of brunt of the resignation spree with Technology and
over $93 billion. Net headcounts at India’s unicorns R&D roles seeing the highest talent churn.
and soonicorns have risen by over 40% in the last 2 years
as per Economic Times.

Attrition across functions compared to company average

18%
29%
37% 44%

37%

41%
26% 24%

36%

13% 15% 10%

Corporate Support Product development Technology(IT) Relationship

(HR/Finance/Legal)
(R&D/Engineering) Management/Business
Development

More
Same Less

46
Attrition Highlights
Attrition % Overall Voluntary Involuntary

Overall
Manufacturing Services
20.3% 17.1% 3.9% 14.8% 12.3% 3.0% 23.0% 19.6% 4.3%

Ecommerce, Financial institutions, Professional Services and Technology sectors are

seeing attrition numbers above the 20% mark, placing them among the top 5 Sectors by
attrition. The surge in talent demand can be explained by 3 trends –

India’s start-up eco-system has really started

1 to come-off age. Firms which are cash rich and

need tech talent to fuel growth have been hiring
very aggressively leading to a knock-on effect
across the sector.

2
The Indian IT outsourcing sector has come
out relatively unscathed from the pandemic,
demand pipelines are strong which high
utilization.

3
The demand for tech talent is also rising due
to convergence as sector such as
manufacturing, FI and others are also
looking at digital channels for growth.

As businesses look to consolidate, focus on managing

employee costs and as talent demand saturates, we
anticipate a slow decline in attrition over the next 2-3 years.

4
Sector Wise Attrition
(2022 YTD)
Attrition % Overall Voluntary Involuntary

Manufacturing Services
14.8% 12.3% 3.0% 23.0% 19.6% 4.3%

E-Commerce
27.7% 21.3% 6.0%
28.8% 24.9% 5.1%
Entertainment and Media

Hi Tech/ Information Technology Chemicals

12.9% 9.8% 4.0%
21.5% 18.3% 4.0%

Software Products Life Science

20.0% 16.7% 4.5% 16.9% 14.6% 2.4%

Professional Services
Application Services/
Consulting 25.7% 26.0% 2.2%
21.8% 19.3% 3.2%
Cement
15.4% 11.7% 5.5%
Semiconductors
11.5% 10.2% 1.4%
FMCG/ FMCD
16.5% 13.8% 2.6%
Start-Ups
28.7% 23.0% 7.8%
Other - Manufacturing
IT Enabled Services 14.2% 10.7% 2.9%
21.4% 18.8% 3.3%
Automotive/ Vehicle Manufacturing
Other Captives 12.4% 10.7% 2.5%
20.0% 17.1% 3.2%
Transportation Services/ Logistics
Third Party Sevice Provider
23.0% 19.8% 4.1% 21.5% 25.0% 5.0%

KPO
Financial Institutions
24.5% 22.7% 2.4% 29.2% 23.6% 5.8%

BSFI Captives
Banking
19.1% 17.5% 3.3% 27.2% 20.0% 6.0%

Metals and
Mining Wealth Management
8.6% 7.4% 3.5% 26.4% 22.0% 3.8%
Sector Wise Attrition
(2022 YTD)
Attrition % Overall Voluntary Involuntary

Manufacturing Services
14.8% 12.3% 3.0% 23.0% 19.6% 4.3%

Funds/ Asset Management Engineering Services

16.3% 14.8% 2.6% 14.0% 12.5% 2.2%

General Insurance/ Reinsurance Hospitality/ Restaurants

32.8% 24.2% 3.7% 9.4% 8.6% 1.6%

Investment Banking Real Estate/ Infrastructure

21.8% 19.4% 2.4% 23.7% 19.5% 4.3%

NBFC
29.0% 23.9% 6.2%

Life Insurance
50.3% 44.2% 9.8%

Fintech
27.4% 20.5% 8.1%

Aerospace
11.1% 7.5% 0.4%

Telecommunication Services
25.7% 21.9% 4.7%

Engineering/ Manufacturing
11.7% 9.2% 3.0%

Energy (Oil/ Gas/ Power)

14.8% 9.6% 7.1%

Retail (incl. Wholesale and Distribution)

17.5% 16.3% 1.8%

49
6
Key
and
Digital
Talent

50
Key and Digital Talent
Focus on High Density Talent
Talent supply pipeline constraints have forced
This focus on Key and Digital Talent is also
organizations to rethink their talent strategies.
reflected in the salary increase numbers for these
All CHROs today talk about the need for high-
two segments. On an average key talent has
density talent which essentially means getting more
seen a differential of 1.43x over the India Inc.
for every dollar spent. In such an environment
salary increase budget with digital following it up
the need to retain key talent becomes
closely at 1.49x. Industries such as
paramount. In the past, investment decisions used
Telecommunications Services,
to be driven by the “normal curve” distribution
Automotive/Vehicle Manufacturing, Financial
principle. Today though we see a marked shift
Services, IT Enabled Services and Chemicals are
from that philosophy where more and more
among the industries that are seeing the highest
organizations are deploying the Pareto principle differentiation for Key Talent. On the other
in their talent planning. The top 20 percent of hand, industries such as Financial Services, IT
the firm are seeing disproportionate amounts of Enabled Services, Hi-Tech, Retail and
investment. As a thumb rule in the past, the top Telecommunications Services are differentiating
25% of the firms used to account for 35% of all their digital talent most aggressively.
investments which is now nudging towards 40%.

5
Salary Increase 2022 (A)

Digital
Overall Key Talent
Talent

Represented as

Overall India

10.6 15.1 15.7 Digital talent has been in high-

Engineering Services demand across industries in the last
few years. This is visible in the
9.5 12.1 10.0
salary increments being offered to
Real Estate/ Infrastructure digital talent is much higher than that
8.7 11.6 9.5
of India Inc.
Other - Manufacturing
8.7 11.1 9.6
An average digital talent earns a pay-
Metals and Mining for- performance differentiator of 1.5
9.7 11.3 10.8 times, while numbers for key talent are
slightly lower. Performance
Transportation Services/ Logistics differentiation, while it has plateaued
8.7 9.6 9.8 across roles, digital talent is still highly
valued through differentiated
Life Sciences
performance.
9.8 10.6 11.0

Energy (Oil/ Gas/ Power)

9.5 12.4 11.0 Despite measures by organizations
to retain and reward digital talent, the
Engineeering/ Manufacturing attrition numbers are still much higher at
9.7 11.8 11.6 23.4% compared to India Inc. at
20.3%.
Professional Services at This shows that the digital talent market
12.4 16.2 15.0 is much more volatile and much more
competitive than non-digital counterparts.
FMCG/ FMCD
9.5 12.6 12.3

Automotive/ Vehicle Manufacturing

10.1 15.5 13.5

Entertainment and Media Performance differentiation, while it

10.6 13.2 14.3 has plateaued across roles, digital
talent is still highly valued through
differentiated performance.

*Data represented for each sector with minimum 10

company responses.
Salary Increase 2022 (A)

Represented as

Overall Key Talent Digital

Talent

Aerospace
9.3 12.7 12.9

IT Enabled Services
10.7 15.6 15.6

Retail (incl. Wholesale and Ditribution)

9.9 13.3 14.4

Chemicals
9.6 13.5 14.1

Other - Services
8.7 11.8 12.9

Hi Tech/ Information Technology

12.0 16.4 18.7

Financial Institutions
10.9 16.2 17.9

Telecommunications Services
9.9 15.5 16.7

*Data represented for each sector with minimum 10

company responses.

53
Another striking factor is that in today’s
environment where all organisations are looking to
scale digital capabilities, key talent and digital
talent have almost become synonymous. This is also
reflected in the largely similar budgets for digital
and key talent across most industries.
We are also seeing a change in the make-up of
most organisations. The percentage of population
classified as “Digital” has been steadily increasing.
Today almost 21.3
% of the total population across India Inc. is
classified as Digital, whereas 17.5% are classified as
Key Talent. This
is a significant statistic which also indicates an
increasing reliance on technology for delivery and a move
towards leaner structures. For a rewards professional,
this shows how pyramids across the board are changing
and how the need to balance the twin priorities of running
the business and transforming the business will go
hand in hand.
An interesting case study of this is also seen in
banking captives where we see how over a small
period of just 5 years the break-up of the
traditional captive has undergone a sea change and
has increased by 10% to make up more than 50% of
the total headcount.

Role archetypes in BFSI captives

Banking
3% Operations
5% Digital Roles
5%
Research Roles

5% Support Roles
1%
8% Customer Support
Roles
35%
44%

42%

51%

In today’s environment where all organisations are looking to

scale digital capabilities, key talent and digital talent have almost
become synonymous. The percentage of population classified
as “Digital” has been steadily increasing. Today almost 21.3
% of the total population across India Inc. is classified as
Digital, whereas 17.5% are classified as Key Talent.

54
Skill Premiums

In the past, top skills in a sector used to be closely

development has seen the highest jump from number 7 to
related to the domain skills required to succeed in the
number 2 as organizations go on their individual
sector. This narrative is also changing and the need
platform- building journeys. Architecture related skills
for Digital skills is cutting across sectors. The top 5
then make up the top 5. In domain-specific areas,
skills observed across sectors are all dominated by
skills such as FEA (finite element analysis),
fields such as analytics and UI/UX and Application
Underwriting, Information Security and Financial
development etc. Data Science has consolidated its Market Knowledge are emerging as critical areas.
position at the top as the most sought- after skill across
the board. On the other hand, full-stack

Digital confluence of top skills across industries

2022 Financial
RANK Manufacturing Institutions Hi-Tech/IT Other Services

1 Data Sciences/Analytics

2 Full Stack Development

3 AI/Machine Learning

4 Cloud Architecture

5 Technology Architecture

FEA (Finite Scrum Masters/ Accounting/CFA/

6
Element Analysis) Underwriting Agile CA

Knowledge of Information Product

7 CAD/CAM/CAE Financial Markets Security Management

More and more organizations are looking for roles that
sit at points of convergence where employees are expected
to marry knowledge of technical skillsets with domain
and market knowledge.
This focus on digital skills and changing employee
demographics is pushing up talent costs and putting up
unsolved challenges for talent teams across the
board. As
you move up the value chain in any domain area the
skill premiums that one observes across the value chain
from critical skill to a vanilla skill in the same band
can go from anywhere between 20-30%. A data
scientist today can expect to make more than 50-60%
than the professional maintaining the database. A
cloud architect on the other hand generally commands a
15-20% premium over an infra-architect.

55
Given the spread of roles and diverse nature of jobs,
rewards professionals will also need to look at of key and digital talent for business. At the same
time, range penetration and utilization will be
skill- based pay. These pay structures will have
important parameters defining the success of these
to be designed to control costs while enabling affordability
pay structures.

Data Data Application Infra

Maintenance Migration Maintenance Architecture

Data Reporting Database Administration System Integration Automation Architecture

(5-7%) (10-15%) (8-10%) (5-7%)

Data Visualization Data Engineer- Big Data Frontend Development Technology Architecture
(10-12%) (10-15%) (20-25%) (5-7%)

Business Intelligence Data Architect Backend Development Security Architecture

(5-10%) (15-22%) (5-7%) (5-7%)
AI/ML Engineer Full-Stack Development
Cloud Architecture
Data Modeling
(20-22%) (10-15%) (10-12%)
(1-3%)

Data Sciences
(10-15%)

(All percentages are increments over preceding skills)

Attrition and Retention Trends for

Critical Talent
In a buoyant talent market, attrition is higher in Key and
Digital talent groups at 23.4 % and 21.6%
respectively. Key reasons identified for attrition Critical Talent - Retention
remain like India Inc.
Among the reasons identified, external inequity of com-
pensation and limited growth opportunities hold the top 2
positions with internal inequity and role stagnation
mak- ing up the remaining of top 4 reasons.
Interestingly, when
it comes to measures for retention, we see a marked organizations also look beyond the obvious in
shift in trends for critical talent. For India Inc, we rewards intervention and try to create an eco-system
see mea- sures such as equity, work-life balance, where there are other levers for the firm to
flexible working exercise and critical talent to feel at home and
arrangements and leadership accessibility, but for critical truly thrive.
talent these seem to be considered hygiene factors with
a focus on total rewards and differentiation becoming
apparent. Measures such as off-cycle correction,
above
market pay, retention bonuses etc. have been
deployed en masse to retain critical talent.

To summarise, given the margin pressures most

sectors are facing and the current macro environment,
critical talent poses a very serious challenge for most talent
professionals. On one hand retaining this set is
critical for growth, on the other hand most
organizations will be operating under limitations
doing so. Today in the short- term giving higher
increments during performance cycles and hiring seems to
be the obvious answer but this isn’t sustainable in the
long term. In such a situation, it is im- perative that

56
Off Cycle Pay Correction

Pay Above Market

Retention Bonuses

Recognition Awards

Equitable Treatment in Rewards

57
7
Diversity,
Equity, and
Inclusion (DEI)

5
Diversity, Equity,
and Inclusion (DEI)

One in three organizations are continuing to focus on improving

diversity at Board and Senior Managerial positions

The impetus on Diversity and inclusion has grown

beyond headcount, policies, or affirmative actions. By more women in executive roles have more than
doubled. One-third of organisations are continuing
valuing each team member’s individual needs, viewpoints,
to focus on improving diversity in Senior
and capabilities, equitable employers outperform their
Managerial positions.
rivals. As a result, people who work in diverse and
inclusive environments show more loyalty and
Morever, Junior, Technical roles and Corporate
trust.
support roles have seen a sharp rise in the respondents
The mission to improve gender diversity is not limited saying that it would be a target area.
to specific levels or roles. It cuts across industries and
roles. Organisations are making a dedicated effort to
shatter the Glass ceiling and the percentage of organisation
wanting

Roles/Levels targeted for diversity hiring

40%

35% 36%
33%
32%
30%
28%
25% 25%

20%
17%
15%
14%
13% 12% 12%
10% 11% 11%

5% 7%

0%

Executive
Senior Junior Corporate Technical Front End Roles Blue collared Roles
Management
Management Management Support
role

2021 2022

5
Different Spectrums of Diversity
Percentage of Organizations focusing on various aspects of diversity

47% 46%

19%
16%
15%
11% 12%
9%

Gender Sexual
Differently Abled Others-Religion/
Balance Orentation
Ethnicity/
Language/Regional

2021 2022

Although Gender takes the limelight, there are
other aspects of diversity that organizations have
started venturing into. The start-up culture has
driven the average age of the new age sector
down drastically. With organizations placing
increased emphasis on fresh perspectives and out-
of-the-box thinking, there is a greater shift in their
focus toward improving Age/ Generation/Millennial
diversity.
the two fastest-growing domains for Diversity
Practices. Organizations have started to tie up with
NGOs and Skill Development Centers to streamline
the talent supply for these sets of employees.
Religion and Ethnicity have seen a growth of 33%
in the number of organizations that focus on it.
Multi-location presence and multi-lingual platforms
make it inevitable for Organizations to chart out plans
for this spectrum of diversity.

With Organizations Maturing with their systems

and process, Differently-abled and Sexual Orientation
are

Current and Target Diversity Ratios

29.9

23.6

21.6

7.8

4.5
4.1 3.6
3.5 3
2.6
1.9 2

Gender Balance Differently Abled Sexual Orentation Others-Religion/

Ethnicity/
Language/Regional

2021(A)
2022(A) Target

5
Current state of Gender Diversity

Highlights
Gender Diversity Ratio Actual Diversity
Ratio Target Diversity
Ratio

“
India Inc.
23.6% 29.8%
Although DEI has
Manufacturing been of strategic
16.9% 24.4% importance to India
Inc. the manufacturing
Services
26.9% 32.6% sector still struggles to
keep up with the
Top 5 Sectors
trend.
Gender Diversity Ratio Actual Diversity
Target Diversity
Ratio
Ratio
IT Enabled Services
32.0% 36.1% Inclusion and Diversity have been
among the top priorities of India Inc.
Retail (incl. Wholesale and Distribution) with almost all sections having aggressive
28.0% 35.8%
targets for various aspects of diversity with
a special focus on Gender Diversity.
Hi Tech/ Information Technology The top 5 sectors have a majority
representation of the Services sector,
26.3% 32.7%
however, the bottom 5 has predominantly
Ecommerce been from the Manufacturing Sector.
25.0% 35.0%
The Tech and Services sectors have
seen to have very strong DEI
roadmaps, and EVP strategies to
22.5% Institutions
Financial 25.3%
attract and retain
women in the workforce. Although DEI
Bottom 5 Sectors has been of strategic importance to
Gender Diversity Ratio Actual Diversity Target Diversity India Inc. the manufacturing sector still
Ratio Ratio struggles to keep up with the trend. Lack
of structured return-to-work programs,
Engineering/ Manufacturing
slow growth, and lack of
8.8% 15.9% infrastructure are the key drivers for
women to not take up jobs in the
Transportation Services/ Logistics sector. Considering the Responsible
12.0%
8.8% 25.0%
15.9%
Practices analysis part of the survey, only
48% of the Organizations
Metals and Mining highlighted that they have a formal DEI
15.5%
8.8% 15.9%
27.8% policy in place. This shows us that there
is still a long way to go for India Inc.
Life Sciences
16.6%
8.8% 15.9%
23.4%

Chemicals
17.7%
8.8% 15.9%
23.6%

60
DEI actions for organizations
Data-driven initiatives in diversity and inclusion can
assist firms in going beyond simple check-the-box and styles within the organization, and using
employees’ identity-related knowledge and experiences
activities. They can use it to evaluate where they’re
to determine how to best carry out the company’s core
lacking, gauge the experiences of groups inside the
tasks are four actions that leaders must take.
organization, and stop staff churn in its tracks.
Finding data gaps in your HR systems is a good place
to start with. To help our clients set realistic targets and The shift from D&I to I&D has been a notable one,
learn from each other’s best practices, we added diversity laying emphasis on the fact that Inclusion must take
and inclusion as one of the key modules. The study also precedence over diversity or Inclusion is a must for
highlights some interesting practices followed across diversity to thrive. As organizations make concerted
industries on the initiatives taken up to make the efforts to make the diverse set of employees feel more
workplace more inclusive. inclusive, some practices link Expanding the diversity
pool, having unconscious bias removal programs in place,
and creating mentoring programs continue to be top
Building trust and fostering an environment where
priorities across the last two years.
people feel free to express themselves, actively combating
bias and oppressive systems, embracing a variety of voices

Initiatives organizations are taking to be more inclusive

1 Expanding talent pools for candidate diversity (43%)

2 Communicating clear DEI objectives and commitments (39%)

Implementing measures to increase fairness and reduced

3
adverse impact in employee selection and hiring procedures (30%)

Upskilling programs for leaders to focus on inclusive

4 behaviors, value of diversity of thought (28%)

5 Introducing or expanding unconscious bias training (28%)

6 Creating or enhancing mentoring programs (22%)

7 Using data analytics to measure demographics and talent mobility

8 (20%) Reviewing compensation and benefits programs (20%)

9 Targeted upskilling programs for women/ ethnic minorities

10 (18%) Taking action on commitments to achieving pay

11 equity (16%) Utilizing apprenticeship/ mentorship

programs (13%)
61
 Environmental,

8
Social, and
Governance
(ESG)

62
Environmental, Social,
and Governance (ESG)
72% of the responding organizations have a defined ESG
roadmap, with manufacturing outpacing services on ESG
adoption.

With the Regulatory environment ramping up and Over the years, there has been a rise in businesses
Growing investor demand ESG compliance is now at that have a well-defined ESG strategy as well as
the heart of organizations’ operations. short-term and long-term roadmaps.

In the war for talent and with rising employee Manufacturing organizations are significantly ahead of
conscientiousness, a company’s ESG credentials are their services peers in terms of ESG adoption given
a key component in the fight to attract and retain the large focus on minimizing the environmental
talent. impact and carbon footprint of these firms.

Prevalence of ESG roadmap or strategy across organisations

Have defined well defined ESG roadmap 72%

Do not have an ESG roadmap, but plan to have one in

the near future 25%
Do not intend to have a ESG roadmap even in the
future 3%
63
 Sectors with
Top sector highest
which haveESG
defined Bottom sector whichESG
have defined
Sectors with lowest
adoption
ESG roadmaps ESG roadmaps
adoption

Automotive/Vehicle
Automotive/VehicleManufacturing
Manufacturing E-commerce
E-commerce

Energy(Oil/Gas/Power)
Energy(Oil/Gas/Power) Retail
Retail (incl.
(incl.Wholesale
Wholesale&&Distribution)
Distribution)

FMCG
FMCG // FMCD
FMCD Professional
Professional Services
Services

Foreign owned orand

Foreign-owned JV companies are slightly
JV companies of Despite
ahead ahead
are slightly of lack of ESG reporting standards, there is growth
their local peers on the ESG adoption
their local peers on the ESG adoption curve. curve. Outside of in thethe
Despite number ofESG
lack of firmsreporting
that publish quantifiable
standards, there
ESG the large-cap
Outside and MNC
of the large-cap companies,
and most companies
MNC companies, most isaregrowth
performance
in thedata.
number
As perofourfirms
survey
that
nearly
publish
two-
thirds of navigating
companies where to
are navigating starttoonstart
where ESG,onmoving
ESG, from
quantifiable
a tacticalESGthe companies
performance report
data.outAstheper
ESGour&
DEI metrics either to a practical approach.
moving from a tactical to a practical approach. survey,
through nearly
a Business
two- Responsibility
thirds of the companies
Report or publish
report
as a their ESG & DEI metrics either through a Business
Responsibility Report or by publishing it as a part
part of annual report.
of the annual report.

How are companies reporting on ESG

How are companies reporting on ESGmetrics
metrics

Publish anannual
Publish an annual sustainability
sustainability / Business responsibility/
/ Business
Integrated report 33%
responsibility/
Report some
Integrated of the
report 33%ESG & DEI aspects on our
company’s
Report someAnnual
of the Financial
ESG & DEIReport oron
aspects Website
our 33%
company’s Annual
Do not report Financial
currently 35%Report or Website 33%

Do not report currently 35%

Quantifying ESG performance
“ There is a significant focus on ESG planning, but are companies
walking the talk?
While ESG reporting aims to shed light on a
company’s ESG activities and improve investor
transparency, ESG performance will depend on the actions
that organisations take.
Tying executive compensation to ESG is gaining
momentum, but only about 37% of companies
have a formal ESG linkage to their Senior leadership
compensation. Most companies are not far enough in
Prevalence of policies across organizations
Code of Conduct policy
Data Privacy/Cyber Security policy
Anti-bribery and Anti-Corruption Policy
Health & Safety Policy
Diversity & Inclusion
Environment Policy
65
their journey to set a meaningful goal with formal weights
until ESG metrics are measured comprehensively.
Implementation of key policies is also a good
barometer of a company’s intent on improving its ESG
performance. The majority of companies have in place
the key policies around governance and security. But
only a little over half have gone the extra mile and
introduced policies on DEI and Environment.
89%
87%
79%
74%
66%
54%
Moving up on ESG maturity
ESG management has been a primary area of
focus for institutional investors and advisors. Large
investors expect companies and their boards to be able to
articulate an ESG strategy and disclose key
metrics.
While the regulations are still evolving, ESG metrics
should be tailored to each individual company’s
context and ESG priorities and tied in with existing
pay incentives. Just as every Company develops its
approach to addressing ESG risks over time, so does
each Company follow its own “ESG maturity curve”.
For many companies, a focus on DEI and HCM
strategy, goals, and disclosures may be one of the
early steps in their journey. Board oversight on key
topics and formalizing the charter of ESG duties is
essential to ensure strong governance around ESG
adoption.
along the curve before others, there is a usual ESG
progression that organizations can employ to
determine their current maturity and define the next
steps.
Four goals are needed to meet stakeholder
expectations located across the top: identification,
addressal, accountability, and transparency.
The four categories of activities located across the
bottom—engage stakeholders and identify relevant
ESG topics, set goals and track progress,
communicate and disclose progress, and continually
adjust—summarize how to achieve ESG goals.
And finally, communication with relevant internal and
external stakeholders is key throughout this journey of
scaling up on ESG.

While an organization may consider some steps

further

ESG maturity curve

Identify Address Accountability Transparency

ESG metrics tied to Executive Compensation

ESG business strategy integration
Dedicated ESG report and/or webpage
Proactive Stakeholder Engagement
Utilization of ESG reporting framework (SAS13, GRI,
TCFD) Commitment to ESG Pledges and/or Coalitions
Ongoing board education on ESG related topics
Integrated disclosure of ESG strategy/progress (Annual Report,
Website)
Standardized metrics & goals to measure & collect data
Formal board/committee oversight of ESG strategy & accomplishments
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Human Capital Management, and Supply Chain strategies
ESG Dashboarding, including peer benchmarking
CSR Reporting & Philanthropic Initiatives

Engage Stakeholders & Set Goals & Communicate & Continually Re-Evaluate
Identify Material ESG Topics Track Progress Disclose Progress & Adjust

66
9 New Ways of
Working

67
New Ways of Working
Last 6 months have witnessed a sharp dip in the percentage of
organizations working virtually, with a majority of the organizations
migrating to a hybrid working environment.

The lingering impact of the pandemic, rapid

evolution of technology, changing sociocultural behaviours
and demands, regulatory headwinds, economic volatility, and
other intrinsic challenges all continue to impact our
work, workforce, and workplaces.
One of the most significant shifts that this volatility
has thrown up is the expectation and widespread
acceptance of flexibility at work - not just where
but when and how work is done. Organizations are
therefore experimenting with and adapting agile and
new ways of working to manage a more fluid and
dispersed workforce and to meet the diverse
needs of employees.
Our survey shows that while there has been a sharp
dip
in the percentage of organizations working virtually-
from 38% to 9%, a majority (68%) of the
organizations are now working in a hybrid mode.
While on one hand there has been a push towards a
return to work with a need to establish employee
connect and belongingness, drive innovation and rebuild
culture, on the other hand, the great resignation and
talent scarcity is forcing organizations to take
cognizance of employee needs for continued
flexibility.
Our survey shows that the attrition for organizations
that announced a return to office in the next few
months stood at a high of 29% compared to 19% for
organizations that are working in a hybrid or virtual
mode.

Current state of return-to-work plans

68%

46%
38%

23%
15%
9%

Currently working virtually Back to office, Already functioning from

following Hybrid office/site locations
model

Jan-22 Aug-22

68
Attrition for companies categorized by working model

29%

20%
19% 19%

Already functioning on-

Back to office, Currently working virtually Returnig to office in next
site following Hybrid few Months
model

It is interesting to note that, 77% of the MNC’s continue to be in hybrid or virtual mode as compared to
47% of local organizations, driven largely by global guidelines and policies and by commitments to embed
flexibility as part of their employee value proposition for the future.

Only 12% of the MNC’s have mandated a full return to office as against 35% of locally owned organizations.

Prevalence of Working Models by ownership and company size

Locally owned company 35% 37% 10%

Prevalence by
Joint venture company 33% 49% 9%
ownership

Foreign owned company 12% 69% 8%

Above 5000
Prevalence by 24% 51% 5%

company size
1,001-2.000 19% 58% 6%

Under 1000 20% 54% 13%

Functioning on-site
Hybrid Model Working Virtually

A significantly higher proportion of smaller organizations (under 1000) are working virtually, enabling them to
save costs and leverage a dispersed talent pool, including gig workers.

The Convergence of social and work life has led to a blurring of professional and personal boundaries and has
brought to the forefront conversations on mental health, well-being, and inclusive benefits.

From gender-inclusive childcare policies like special allowances for new mothers and enhanced paternal leave,
to additional time off, increased insurance covers, and an array of wellness programmes, organizations are
doubling down to make health and wellness a priority and build employee resilience.

69
Evolution of benefits
How are companies augmenting their Total Rewards in Light of New working models?

65%
Companies have introduced mental
31%
wellness programs / stress management Companies have introduced mental
and counselling wellness programs / stress management
and counselling

46 69%
Companies are providing creche/day-
Companies have increased insurance care facilities through In-house facilities,
%
cover for self or dependents External tie-ups or reimbursements

53% 40%
Companies are providing Relocation
Companies have provided allowance for Assistance to employees returning to
Home Office set-up office

71%
Companies Have introduced an
Employee Financial Assistance program
or have increased the cover/ quantum
of support

70
10 Conclusion

71
Conclusion
Our perspective on the Road Ahead

Sustained euphoria around the war for talent and high salary growth
continue being looming challenges for businesses. Organizations
will have to be agile and creative to manage cost pressures, sustain
margins and at the same time attract and retain talent.

Navigating the volatility:

As the pandemic recedes, we have seen a strong business rebound with firms, having quickly learned and
adopted to work in an uncertain environment.

We believe that while such similar black swan events might be far and few in-between, but the volatility will
persist and will be an integral input into how firms operate. While India Inc has shown great resilience so
far, there are immediate challenges such as high inflationary pressures and political uncertainty.

Organisations need to build in plans that enable them to navigate the volatility, solve for any future business
threats and ensure long term sustainability. To protect their business interests, they need to:
• Optimize investment in talent
• Look at a build model for the long run
• Cultivate an Agile workforce mindset
• Build a decision framework for leadership

War for talent:

A large portion of the war for talent has been about acquiring digital skillsets for both new age and
traditional sectors. With supply struggling to keep pace with demand for these skills we expect the war for
talent to continue to drive up people costs and attrition numbers.

Moonlighting and Quiet quitting have also emerged as a recent phenomenon that demands the
attention of employers. Moonlighting is fueled by the buoyant demand for tech roles and aided by
employees having the flexibility to work from home. While the industry is at odds on how to manage it, but
we may see higher involuntary attrition if companies decide to clamp down on it. Quiet quitting on the other
hand has emerged as a counter to post-pandemic burnout that a large chunk of employees is experiencing in
an always-connected workplace.

To solve for this we expect companies to :

• Look for innovative models to expand talent pools like Flexi-work and Gig jobs.
• Hire for skills rather than roles.
• Retain their workforce by re-evaluating their EVP through total rewards offerings.
• Define suitable measures to respect the work-life balance of employees.

7
Continued Resilience:

Emerging from the pandemic, organizations have learned to operate under uncertainties. Businesses that have
resilience in their DNA are the ones that are able to weather storms better and come out ahead of the
competition. A resilient organization also comprises of resilient employees who feel secure, productive, and
motivated in their jobs, and can rapidly adapt to change.

Strategic investment in people initiatives including ESG & DEI, driven by clear, compassionate, and visible
leadership, and empathetic dialogue between employer and employee is critical to delivering workforce resilience.

After the great pandemic reset firms are presented with an opportunity to build a lasting change in the
way they work.

Key to long-term success would encompass:

• Building resilience as a core part of workplace culture
• Defining the future workforce model
• Greater focus on ESG & DEI

Challenges and Way Forward for

Rewards Professionals

Rewards Professionals are facing a tough time in striking a

balance between internal equity and external competitiveness in
this volatile talent market

Attrition has peaked over the last decade.

Additionally, businesses are jump starting and attaining 2022 has also seen multiple mid-year corrections and one-
time payouts. It has witnessed just-in-time market
stability after a 24-month long wait amidst the covid
benchmarks for organizations to align their
crisis. As a result, the role of rewards professionals has
Rewards Philosophies. Although Rewards seem to be
become very critical in handling the situation of never- a short-term moat to this guerilla warfare for talent,
ending hikes and offer declines. Rewards organizations have consequently started working on
professionals find themselves in a fix of external long-term sustainability.
catchup to the market and realigning their internal
medians to have parity.

7
 Access to
accurate
and timely
market
d Raising
Differentiati a ability
the of
ng
rewards t managers
to have effective
for
key a
pay
conversatio
talent

3
withnstheir
team

Maintaining
2 4 Addressing the
market diverse needs
Rewards
1 5
competitiveness of your
of pay levels
Challenges workforce

2022 Ranking

To sum it up, with threats of looming slowdown in the beginning of FY 2022, Rewards professionals cannot win
the war for talent on cash alone. With Margin Pressures being high for the coming year, it becomes inevitable
for Reward Professionals to work on the intangibles such as providing a Rich Employee Value Proposition, Long
term career growth through better quality of work and frequent role rotations along with focused approach on
Succession planning for Business-critical roles.

Priorities for talent professionals

Revamped
Job
EVP
Rotations

Quality of
Succession
Work
Planning

7
 x

Appendix

7
LIST OF PARTICIPANTS
Aerospace
Adani Ports and SEZ
L3Harris Technologies
BAE Systems
Lockheed Martin
Cubic Corporation
Corporation Mahindra
Curtiss-Wright Corporation
Meggitt
GE Aviation
Moog, Inc
General Atomics
Raytheon Technologies
GMR
Corporation Safran
Godrej
Tata Advanced Systems Ltd.
Honeywell India

Automotive/Vehicle Manufacturing
AAM India Manufacturing
Mahindra Trucks and Buses
Corporation AB Volvo Group
Mitsubishi Electric Automotive India
Adient
MRF
Aditya Auto Products &
Engg. Amara Raja Batteries Oshkosh Corporation
Asahi India Peugeot Motocycles
Glass Ather Polaris Industries
Energy Bajaj REHAU India
Renault Group
Auto
Renault Nissan Automotive India.,
Birla
ROHM Semiconductor
Carbon
Royal Enfield (unit of Eicher
Bosch Motors ) SCOOT
Caterpillar
Somic ZF Components
Continental India
Stellantis
Cooper
Sundaram Clayton
Standard Sundram Fasteners
Cummins Inc Swaraj Tractors
Daimler Truck Innovation Center India (DTICI) Tata Motors
Dana India
TDS Lithium Ion Battery Gujarat
EPC BY Mahindra
The Goodyear Tire and Rubber
Fiat India Automobiles Company Toyota Kirloskar Motor
Garrett Advancing Motion
TVS Mobility
General Motors UD Trucks
Graco
Varroc Engineering
Gromax Agri Equipment VE Commercial Vehicles
Hendrickson
Vitesco Technologies
John Deere Volvo Group India
JTEKT India
VST Industries
Magna Yamaha Motor India
Mahindra Agri ZF Friedrichshafen AG
Mahindra Automotives
Mahindra Spares
Mahindra Tractors

76
Cement
ACC Cement
Adani Cement JK Cement
Ambuja JSW Cement
Nuvoco
Bharathi Cement Corp
Century Cement Ramboll
Cochin Cement Saurashtra Cement
Dalmia Cement Singha Cement
Gujarat Sidhee Cement Star Cement
Gulburga UltraTech Cement
Vedanta Cement
Heidelberg

Chemicals
Aditya Birla Chemicals
Godrej Agrovet
Air Liquide
allnex H.B. Fuller
Company
Amazon Papyrus Chemicals
Ashland Global Holdings Honeywell India
Aspen Aerogels, Inc. IMCD India
Jotun India
Avient
Axalta Coating Systems India Kluber Lubrication
BASF India Laxmi Organics
Birla Carbon Linde South Asia Services.
Lyondellbasell
Cabot Corporation
Connect Chemicals India Momentive Performance Materials
Corteva Agriscience NewMarket Corporation
Covestro SABIC
Sachem, Inc
Deepak Fertilisers And Petrochemicals
Corporation Seedworks International
SRF
Ecolab Food Safety& Hygiene Solutions
India. FMC Syngenta AG
Givaudan Toyo Ink India
Vertellus Specialties UK
W.R. Grace

Chemicals
Agoda
Alamy Images India
Alibaba Group Meesho
Nykaa
Amazon Development Center
Chegg, Inc. Saks OFF 5TH
Cimpress India Urban Company
Dunzo Digital Zomato
Ebay
Expedia Group
Ferns N Petals
Flipkart Internet
Kiranakart Technologies
Larsen and Toubro SuFin

77
Energy(Oil/Gas/Power)
Adani Green
GE Power
Adani Power
GE Renewables
Adani Solar Cell
GMR
Manufacturing Adani Total
Godrej
Gas
Helmerich & Payne,
Adani Transmission
Inc. Honeywell India
Air Liquide
JSW Energy
Aker Solutions
Kohler Co.
Apraava
Linde South Asia Services Pvt
Baker Hughes
Ltd. Mcdermott
BLOOM ENERGY
Premier Energies
British Petroleum
Sterlite Power
Burns & McDonnell
Canadian Solar Wood India Engineering & Projects
First Solar
Fortum

Engineering
Services Linde South Asia
Services. Louis Berger
Consulting.
Air Liquide
Mcdermott
Aker Solutions
Ramboll
Baker Hughes Rogers Corporation
Bechtel India
SiFive
Burns & McDonnell SNC-Lavalin
Cambium Networks TATA Consulting Engineers
Fluor Daniel India Wood India Engineering &
Godrej
Projects Worley India
Hitachi India
WSP INDIA
Honeywell India
ImageGrafix Software Solutions
Jacobs Engineering

Engineering/Manufacturing
ABB Honeywell India
Barry Wehmiller
Carborundum Universal
Caterpillar
CDM Smith
Century Group
CG Power and Industrial Solutions
Cummins Inc
Daimler Truck Innovation Center India (DTICI)
Ecolab Inc
Elkem South Asia
GE
GKN Fokker Elmo

78
Howd
en
Hubbe
ll Inc.
Husky
Technologies
IDEX
Corporation
Ingersoll Rand
Johnson
Controls Karl
Mayer Stoll
India
Kohler
Co.
Larsen
Toubro
Lennox International Inc
Littelfuse, Inc.
Mahindra Construction Equipment
Masco
Murata Electronics India

79
Nordson Corporation
SPX Flow, Inc.
On Semiconductor
Terex India
Otis Worldwide Thyssenkrupp AG
Corporation Rockwell Timken
Automation Rogers TPI COMPOSITES INDIA
Corporation Schaeffler Trane Technologies
Schneider Writgen
SKF India Xylem Inc
Socomec Zetwerk Manufacturing Businesses

Entertainment & Media

Aristocrat Technologies India
Electronic Arts
Entertainment Network (India)
Lionsgate India
NBC Universal
PVR
Zee Entertainment Enterprises

Financial Institutions
ACI Worldwide
CME Group
Aditya Birla
Coinbase
Finance
CPP Investments
Aditya Birla Sunlife Insurance
CredAble
Co ADV Partners
Crédit Agricole
Aegon Life Insurance
Credit Suisse
Ameriprise Financial
CSB bank
Angel One
DBS India
Assurant, Inc
Deutsche Bank AG
AU Small Finance Bank
Discover Financial Services
Aviva India
Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance
Axis Bank
Bandhan Bank Encore Asset Reconstruction Company
Equirus
Bandhan Bank Limited
Euronext
Bank of New York Mellon
FalconX
Better Mortgage Advisors
Blackhawk Network FIL India Business and Research Services
Finastra
BlackRock
Fino Payments Bank
BNY Mellon
FIS
BoB Financial Solutions
Franklin Templeton
Bread Financial
Fullerton India Credit
Broadridge
Co.
Canara HSBC Life Insurance
Future Generali India Life Insurance
Capital Group
Co. Glory Global Solutions
Capital One
(International) Goldman Sachs
Caterpillar Financial Services
HDB Financial
CCIL
Services HDFC Bank
Citco
HDFC LIFE
Citibank
HDFC securities
CLSA
Home Credit India Finance
80
HSBC_Financial Institutions Stripe
ICE Data Services India
Sumitomo Mitsui Banking
ICICI Bank
Corporation Suryoday Small Finance
ICICI Home Finance Bank Limited SVB
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance
Swiss Re
ICICI Venture Funds Management
Synchrony
IDFC First Bank
Tata AIA
IIFL Wealth Management
Tata AIG General
IndiaFirst Life Insurance Company
Insurance Tata Capital
Invesco
Tata Motors Finance
Jana Small Finance
TD Bank Group
Bank JM Financial
Temasek International
JM Financial Asset Management
Temenos Group AG
JP Morgan Chase & Co.
The Bank of Nova Scotia
Julius Baer
Toppan Merrill LLC
Kotak Mahindra Bank
Toyota Financial Services
Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance
TransferWise
Company Lendingkart Finance
Transunion
LendingKart Technologies
UnitedHealth Group
Liberty Mutual Insurance
UNS AG
Link Group
UOB
MetLife
Moodys UPL Financial Services
Varthana Finance Private
Morningstar
Visa Inc.
MSCI
Nasdaq, Inc. Waterfield Advisors
Wells Fargo & Company
National Bonds Corporation
Western Union
Nomura
Yes Securities
Northern Arc Capital
ZestMoney
Northern Trust
Nuture Farm
Ocwen
PayPal
Paysafe
Piramal Enterpirses
PNB Metlife
Pramerica Life Insurance
Principal Global Services
pSemi Corporation
Q2
Rabobank
Raheja QBE General Insurance Co Ltd
RapiPay
Reliance Nippon Life Insurance
Religare Housing Development Finance
Corp. Repco Home Finance
Sanctum Wealth
SBI Life Insurance
SBICAP Ventures
SBICAP VENTURES LIMITED
Shriram Housing Finance
Ltd Societe Generale
Standard Chartered Bank
Star Union Dai-Ichi Life
Insurance State street
Corporation
StockX

81
FMCG/FMCD
AB InBev
McCain
Abbott Nutrition
McCormick
ACCO Brands
Mondelēz India Foods
Amway India Enterprises
Nestle India
Asahi India Glass
New Balance Athletics, Inc.
Asian Paints
Nike
Bajaj Consumer Care
NIVEA India
Ball Corporation
Nokia OY
Bata India
Olam food Ingredients India.
Bauli India Bakes &
Sweets Berry Global, Inc. OmniActive Health Technologies
PepsiCo
Bosch
Perfetti Van
Bose Corporation
Melle Pernod
Britannia
Ricard Philips India
Industries Brown
Piramal Enterpirses
Forman Capital
PM IN Wholesale Trading (Philip Morris
Foods Cargill India
Int) Reckitt
Carrier
Samsung India Electronics
Chanel Inc
Signify
Coca-Cola India
Colgate-Palmolive India Snap One
Sony India
Dabur India
Steelcase Inc.
Del Monte Foods
Tata Consumer Products
Dell
Dyson The Estee Lauder
Companies Titan Company
Freudenberg Gala Household
Product General Mills Tropical Industries International
TTK Healthcare
Givaudan
Godrey Phillips India Twinings
Groupe SEB VST Industries
Whirlpool Corporation
H&M Hennes & Mauritz
Zebra Technologies
India Happilo
Zydus LifeScience
Herbalife Nutrition
Zydus Wellness
Herman International
Hershey India
Hilti Manufacturing India
Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages
Hindustan Unilever
Hitachi India
ITC
JR Simplot
Kohler Co.
Lee Kum Kee
Lenovo
Levi Strauss & Co
Lifestyle International
Logitech
Luminous Power Technologies
Marico
Marks and Spencer Reliance
India Mattel, Inc.

82
Hi Tech/Information Technology
247.ai
Caterpillar
91Springboard
CDK Global (India)
Accenture
Adidas Celestica
Cerence
Adobe Systems Incorporated
CGI
Advance Auto Parts
Chegg, Inc.
Agoda
Chubb India
Airbnb
Ciena Corporation
Akamai Technologies
Cisco
Alamy Images India
Citco
Alef Mobitech
Citrix Systems
ALIBABA GROUP INC
Cloudera
Alight Solutions Cloudflare Inc
Amadeus Software Labs India
COFORGE
Amazon Development Center India (Customer
Cognizant
Service)
Coinbase
AMD
Colruyt IT Consultancy India
Amdocs Concentrix India
AMETEK, Inc
Condeco Software
Ampere Computing
Continental Automotive Components(India)
Analog Devices
CredAble
Aon
Credit Suisse
API Holdings (PharmEasy)
CSG SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL INDIA
Apple
Cummins Inc
Arctern Consulting Cvent India
Aristocrat Leisure
CyberArk
Aristocrat Technologies India
Daimler Truck Innovation Center India (DTICI)
AT&T
Danske IT & Support Services India
Atlassian Inc.
Dassault Systemes
Aura Semiconductor DealShare
Automation Anywhere
Dell
AVL INDIA
“Deloitte U.S. India Firms
Axelerant Technologies Deutsche Bank AG
Baker Hughes
Deutsche Telekom Digital
Bank of New York Labs DIGITUP SOLUTIONS
Mellon Basware India
DMI
Bechtel India
Dunnhumby
Birlasoft
Dunzo Digital
Blackhawk Network
DXC Technology
BlackRock Ebay
BMC Software eClerx Services
Booking.Com
Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance
Bosch Global Software Electronic Arts
Technologies Broadcom
Ensono Technologies
Broadridge
Entertainment Network (India)
Browserstack
Entrust
Bureau Veritas Envoy Global India
Cadence Design Systems EPAM Systems India
Cambium Networks Epsilon India
Capgemini Technology Services India Epson India
Capital One
Equifax, Inc.

83
Equinix Imagination Technologies
Ericsson
Imec
Esper
Incedo
Eurofins IT Solutions India
Infineon Technologies
EXL
Infinera Corporation
Expedia Group
Infinite Computer Solutions
Experian
Infor
APAC EY GDS
Infosys
F5 INC
Intel
FAI First American India InterContinental Hotels Group
Fair Issac Corporation Intuit
FalconX Invesco
Ferns N Petals IQVIA
FIL India Business and Research Jones Lang LaSalle
Services JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Finastra Juniper Networks, Inc.
First Advantage Global Service Kaspersky
Centre Firstsource Solutions KFin Technologies
FIS Kiranakart Technologies
Fivetran, Inc Knowles Corporation
Flatworld Solutions Kohler Co.
Flextronics Technologies KPMG India
Flipkart Internet Kroll
FMRI Kyndryl
Forcepoint Lam Research
Forgeahead Solutions Lattice Semiconductor
Franklin Templeton Leap (OutLeap Technologies)
Freight Tiger Lenovo
Freshworks Lenovo India
Frontdoor Lifestyle International
Garmin Technologies LinkedIn
Gartner Lionsgate India
Genpact Lockheed Martin
GEP Worldwide LogicMatter India
GitLab Logitech
GlobalFoundries Inc Lowes India Services Private
GoDaddy Manhattan Associates India Dev
Goldman Sachs Centre Marvell
Goto Group Mastercard
Great West Global Mavenir
GSK Maveric Systems
H5 Asia Pacific MediaTek Inc.
Harman International Meesho
HCL Technologies Mercedes Benz Research and Development
Here Technologies India
Hewlett-Packard Enterprise Meta
Hilti Technology Solutions India MetLife Global Operations Support
Hitachi India Center MetricStream, Inc.
Honeywell Intl. Micro Focus
HP India Microchip Technology Inc.
HSBC India Microland
Hubbell Inc. Micron Technology
Hughes Systique Corporation Microsoft
Huron Consulting Group Mobily Infotech India
IBM Mobis India
Icertis MongoDB
IDFC First Bank

84
Moodys RR Donnelley
Morningstar India Sailpoint Technologies
MPS Saks OFF 5TH
MSCI Service India Salesforce.Com
Nagarro SAP Labs
Nasdaq, Inc.
Schlumberger India Technology
Natwest Group
Centre Seagate Technology
NetApp
Secureworks
Netscout Systems
Semtech
News Technology Services ServiceNow
Nexperia
Siemens Digital Industries Software
Nihilent
Sigmoid Analytics
Nokia OY
Signify
Nomura
Silicon Labs
Northern Arc Capital
Singapore Telecommunications
Northern Trust
SKF India
Novo Nordisk India
SLK Software Services
NTT DATA
Smarsh India
Nucleus Software Exports Limited
Smart Global Holdings
Nutanix, Inc.
SNic Solutions India
Nvidia
Societe Generale
NXP Semiconductors
SopraSteria
Nykaa
Spirent Communications Inc.
Ocwen
Standard Chartered
Olam Information Services
State street Corporation
OmniVision Technologies Inc.
Sterlite Technologies
ON Semiconductor
STMicroelectronics
OpenText
StockX
Optiv, Inc.
Stripe
Oracle India
Swiss Re
Outbrain
Synaptics
Palo Alto Networks
Synchrony
PayPal
Target
Paysafe
Taskus
PepsiCo
Tata CLiQ
Perceptiviti Data Solutions
Tata Communications
Philips India
Tata Consultancy Services
Pitney Bowes Inc
TATA Technologies
Pluralsight
Priceline Tavant Technologies
Tecnotree Corporation
PricewaterhouseCoopers Service Delivery
Telstra India
Center
Temenos Group AG
Principal Global Services
Teradata
pSemi Corporation
Publicis Sapient Texas Instruments
Thieme Medical & Scientific Publishers
Qlik
Thomson Reuters
Qualcomm India
Thoughtworks
Quantum Corporation
Thryve Digital Health
Quinnox Consultancy Services
LLP Thyssenkrupp AG
R1 RCM Global
TIBCO Software
Rakuten Group Inc.
Tieto India
Rambus
RapiPay Timesys Technologies
Reckit Toast, Inc
Red Hat, Inc. Toppan Merrill Technology Services
TP Vision India
Resideo Technologies
ROHM Semiconductor Indi Transparent Value
Transunion

85
Tredence Analytics Solutions
Visa Inc.
TresVista Financial Services
VMware, Inc.
Trimble Volvo Group India
Truecaller International LLP
Wells Fargo International Solutions
Truminds Software Systems
Wipro
T-Systems
WNS Global Services
TTEC Holdings Inc. Wolfspeed Inc.
TurboHire
Workday
Twilio Yahoo
Udemy
Yash Technologies
Ugam Solutions Yellow.ai
UiPath
Zebra Technologies
Unisys India
Zee Entertainment Enterprises
UnitedHealth Group
ZestMoney
Unity Technologies
Zomato
Urban Company
Zoom Video Communications,
UST Global Inc
Inc. ZS Associates
Verisign, Inc.
Zynga Game Network India
Verisys Global
Verizon

Hospitality/Restaurants
Hyatt Hotels Corporation
InterContinental Hotels Group
Tata Starbucks
Yum! Restaurants, India

IT Enabled Services
247.ai
7 Eleven Global Solution Coforge
Center Accenture Concentrix India
Accurio Health CPP Investments
Aeries Technology Group Credence Resource Management
Alight Solutions Credit Suisse
Amazon Development Center India (Customer Deloitte U.S. India
Service) Firms Deutsche Bank
ANSR AG eClerx Services
Aon Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance
athenahealth Technology Egon Zender
Axis Bank Eli Lilly Services India
BA Continuum India (Bank of Ericsson
America) Bain & Company EXL
Bank of New York Mellon EY GDS
Bechtel India FAI First American India
BlackRock FIL India Business and Research
Boston Consulting Group Services First Advantage Global
Capgemini Technology Services India Service Centre Firstsource Solutions
Capita India Private Limited FMRI
Capital One Franklin Templeton
Clifford Chance Business Services Gartner
Gartner Inc

86
Genpact Ocwen
GEP Worldwide Olam Information Services
Goldman Sachs PepsiCo
Great West Global
PricewaterhouseCoopers Service Delivery
GSK Center (Kolkata)
Harman International
R1 RCM Global
Hashedin by Deloitte
Randstad India
Hays Business Solutions RR Donnelley
HGS Healthcare Saks OFF 5TH
HSBC Bank Sigmoid Analytics
ICE Data Services SKF India
India IDFC First Smarsh India
Bank Infogain Societe Generale
Infosys Standard Chartered
Invesco Standard Chartered Research & Technology
IQVIA India
Jones Lang LaSalle State street Corporation
JPMorgan Chase & Stripe
Co. KPMG India Sunlife Financial - Asia Service
Kroll Centres Swiss Re
Lockheed Martin Synchrony
Lowes India Services Private Target
Manipal Business Solutions Tata Communications
MetLife Global Operations Support Tata Consultancy Services
Center Midland Credit Management Thryve Digital Health LLP
Moodys Toppan Merrill LLC
Morningstar India Transunion
MSCI Service India Tredence Analytics Solutions
Nasdaq, Inc. TresVista Financial Services
Natwest Group UnitedHealth Group
Nomura UST Global Inc
Northern Arc Capital Wells Fargo International Solutions
Northern Trust Wipro
Novo Nordisk India WNS Global Services
NTT DATA ZS Associates

Life Sciences
Abbott India Becton Dickinson India
Abbott Bio Red Laboratories
Medical BIOCON
AbbVie Inc. Boehringer Ingelheim
ACG World Carestream Health
ACM Global Laboratories Carl Zeiss AG
Agilent Technologies Inc Charles River Laboratories
Alcon Laboratories Cipla
Alkem Laboratories Cytel Inc
Amgen Danaher
Apotex India Dentsply Sirona
Ascensia Diabetes Care Holdings Dr Reddys Laboratories
AG AstraZeneca Pharma India Edwards Lifesciences
Aurobindo Labs Fresenius Kabi India
Avanos Medical Galderma
Baxter International

87
GE Healthcare India Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co.
Gilead Sciences Grasim Industries Limited - Pulp & Fibre
Glenmark
Granules India
GSK
Hollister Incorporated
ICON, plc
IDEXX Laboratories
India Medtronic & Medtronic Engineering
&
Innovation Center
Intas Pharmaceuticals
Intuitive Surgical
IQVIA
Jubilant Drug Discovery Services
Jubilant Pharmova
Labcorp
Lonza Biologics PLC
Lupin
Merck Group
MSD pharmaceuticals
Mylan (A Viatris
Company) Novartis
Healthcare Novartis India
Novo Nordisk India
Novus International
OmniActive Health Technologies
Otsuka Pharmaceutical India

Metals & Mining

Adani Enterprise
AMNS India
Arconic
BLUESCOPE
Dalmia Refractories
Hindalco Industries

Other -
Manufacturing
ABB
Air Liquide
Alok Industries
Arvind
Asahi India Glass
Ashirvad Pipes
Aspen Aerogels, Inc.
Avery Dennison
Carborundum Universal
Carborundum Universal Limited
Frames Process And Energy Systems

88
Parexel International Corporation
PerkinElme Manipal Technologies
r Pfizer Moog, Inc
Piramal Enterpirses Piezo Technology India
Premier Research Group (India) Piramal Enterpirses
QIAGEN
Sanofi
India
Servier
India
Siemens Healthcare
Smith and Nephew
Sun Pharma
Syngene
Teleflex Medical
Terumo Blood and Cell
Technologies Thermo Fisher
Scientific
Thieme Medical & Scientific Publishers
Thryve Digital Health LLP
UCB Pharma
USV
Varian Medical
Systems
VETOQUINOL SA
West Pharmaceutical Services
Zimmer Biomet
ZimVi
e
Zoeti
s
Zydus LifeScience

JSW Steel
Rio Tinto India
Tata Steel
thyssenkrupp
AG Vedanta

Business
Grasim Industries - Pulp & fibre
Greif
Hilti Manufacturing India
International Distribution Network Co.
(Double A)
IPG Photonics
Jenoptik AG
KONE
89
PM IN Wholesale Trading
The Goodyear Tire and Rubber
Signify
Company Tubacex India
SRF
WIKA Alexander Wiegand SE & Co. KG
Swiss Singapore Overseas Enterprises Pte.

Other - Services
Airbnb
NIIT
Axis Securities
Novo Nordisk Service Centre (India)
Cambridge University Press and Assessment OneAssist Consumer Solutions Pvt.
Celebi India
Ltd. Parkway Healthcare India
DNV Shared Services India PATH
Dorling Kindersley Publishing
Pitney Bowes Inc
Dynata
POPULATION COUNCIL
First Advantage Global Service
Property Solutions (India)
Centre GATX India
SAGE Publication India
GIA India Laboratory Private
Swiss Singapore Overseas Enterprises Pte.
Limited Heifer International
Taskus
Hireright
The International Association of Lions
IDP Education
Clubs Times Internet
Indian Public Schools Socitey - The TVS Mobility
Doon School
TVS Supply Chain
Institute of International Education (IIE)
Solutions UCB INDIA
Lenzing Fibers India Prv.
Udayan Care
Magnasoft Consulting India.
Vital Strategies
Max Healthcare Institute
Water For
Morinetech India
People
ZestMoney

Professional Services
ANSR ICF International
Bain & Company KPMG India
Boston Consulting Group Kroll Associates
CHATURTH BUSINESS SOLUTIONS Mindcrest India
P PERSOLKELLY India
EY India PricewaterhouseCoopers
Gartner Inc Randstad India
Helma Solutions India TMF Group
Huron Consulting
Group

Real Estate/Infrastructure
Adani Real Estate
Jones Lang LaSalle
Altisource Business Solutions (JLL) Kalpataru
Arvind Smart Services Lodha Group
CEC International Corp. Re Sustainability
India Corning Services TATA Projects
GMR
GMR Group
Godrej Properties
90
Retail (incl. Wholesale & Distribution)
adidas
LT Apparel
Aditya Birla Fashion &
Marks and Spencer Reliance
Retail Bata India
India Nike
Carrefour Trading Asia
Chanel Inc NorthernTool + Equipments
India Nykaa
Dabur NewU
Tesco India
H&M Hennes & Mauritz
Titan Company
India Levi Strauss & Co
V Mart Retail
Lifestyle International

Telecommunications Services
Airtel
Sterlite Technologies
AT&T
Tata Communications
Ericsson
Tata Teleservices
Singapore Telecommunications
Telstra India

Transportation Services/Logistics
Air France KLM
Dachser SE
DHL Global Forwarding Freight
Shared Services India LLP
Freight Tiger
Gati-Kintetsu Express
GMR
GXO Logistics, Inc.
United Airlines Holdings, Inc.

ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTORS
Anushka Pandit
Pritish Routray Vidushi Thapar
Daksh Kumar
Ratnesh Agrahari Rudraksh Sharma
Pankaj Jajoo
Sahiba Khurana Sanatvikram Singh

89
Learn More About Human Capital Solutions :
https://humancapital.aon.com/
For further information you may reach
out to:
Prateek Gupta
prateek.gupta11@aon.com
Vishakha Kalra
vishakha.kalra@aon.com
Aaradhya Sharma
aaradhya.sharma@aon.com

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