Shortage of IT Workers in India Leads to Fear of Higher Wages
By: Mick, April 7th, 2007
The perception of India in the United States is often one of an infinite well of IT and technical talent, usually willing to work for wages below those of their American counter-parts. All of the talk of outsourcing and the growing demand for H-1B visas for foreign workers to enter the U.S. certainly contributes to this perception. But the reality, apparently, is quite different. IT firms in India are experiencing the same problems finding good people that companies in the western world have been dealing with for years.
An article from the Associated Press talks about the shortage of IT workers in India and how the explosive growth of the Indian IT industry over the last quarter-century has finally drained its talent pool. In only the last several years, the problem has been greatly compounded:
“This is really the Achilles heel of the industry,” said James Friedman, an analyst with Susquehanna Financial Group, an investment firm based in Bala Cynwyd, Pa., who has studied the issue.
“When we first started covering the industry, in 2000, there were maybe 50,000 jobs and 500,000 applicants,” he said. Now there are perhaps 180,000 annual openings, but only between 100,000 and 200,000 qualified candidates.”
And the biggest fear of leading IT companies in India is that the shortage of available talent will result in higher wages (NOoooo!!). Higher wages for workers would mean that Indian IT firms would have to bring their rates more in line with what competing western firms must charge for services. This might hurt the nation’s standing as the outsourcing capital of the world and could bring other developing IT nations into the game.
IT companies and educational institutions are scrambling to try to train software engineers and IT specialists to fill the growing vacancies and help keep the Indian IT gravy train rolling along. Given the limited utilities infrastructure in many parts of India and its effect on many leading IT universities, it will be an incredible challenge for India to maintain its stranglehold on IT outsourcing and under-priced labor.
Tags: IT in India, IT job market, IT jobs, IT outsourcing
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December 7th, 2007 at 7:46 am
Enjoyed your story. I am surprised to hear that there is a possible shortage of IT experts in India. As you rightly say, India is viewed as an endless supply of IT talent in the western world. India has certainly driven many areas of IT and outsourcing over the last few years.