Our Bureau
Mumbai
The Global Capability Centres (GCCs) of India have shown a sudden rise of 8%-10% in hiring volumes in the first quarter of the fiscal year 2026. This is an unexpected surge in hiring rate as at the end of fourth quarter of FY25 the hiring volumes were declining by 3%-6%. This surge reflects a return to strategic, skill-focused recruitment practices.
As per a report by staffing and workforce solutions provider Quess Corp, the GCC sector of the country is now moving on from the practices of volume hiring. It is being reported that the sector is rather looking at hiring individuals who excel at Artificial Intelligence, data engineering, and cybersecurity.
The Quess IT Staffing CEO Kapil Joshi said, “Q1FY26 marked a steady return to growth for India’s GCC sector, with hiring volumes increasing by 8-10 per cent quarter-on-quarter after a muted Q4…Rather than scaling teams broadly, organisations are now hiring selectively for skills that drive innovation and long-term value.”
“Companies are actively seeking professionals who bring expertise in artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and data engineering. These roles are no longer seen as support functions, they are at the heart of digital transformation,” he added.
The surge in the hiring volumes in the first quarter of FY26 was driven on the back of high-growth verticals such as BFSI (Banking, Financial Services, and Insurance), Manufacturing, Automotive & Energy, and Technology & Hardware. The BFSI sector that accounts for around 20% of the total GCC market continued to be the largest hirer. The demand in the sector is heavily driven by the AI-led credit risk analysis, cybersecurity, and digital lending.
On the other end, the Manufacturing, Automotive, and Energy sector ended the quarter with the highest demand growth at an impressive 31% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ). This growth was driven heavily by the investments in smart factories, Industrial IoT, and electric vehicle (EV) platforms.
