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Hiring for niche qualifications such as chartered accountant (CA) and chartered financial analyst (CFA) continues to see growth in India as companies take a cautious approach to campus hiring, a report showed on Wednesday. 

Hiring volume for CAs and CFAs increased by 47 per cent in the fiscal year 2024, followed by interns at 46 per cent and lateral hiring at 40 per cent, while 38 per cent of MBA graduates and 30 per cent of diploma holders, including those who have completed vocational courses saw the least increase compared to the fiscal year 2023, according to the report by Aon, a leading global professional services firm.

Also, there has been an increase in hiring volumes of interns with more than 80 per cent of organisations offering pre-placement interviews or pre-placement offers to promising candidates upon successful completion of an internship, with the highest prevalence for graduates of master’s in technology.

“Business sentiment looks positive for India, with 69 per cent of organisations expecting a high to moderate growth. The sectors driving this growth are financial institutions, life sciences and consumer goods,” the report mentioned.

Campus hiring is a strategic opportunity for organisations to build a diverse, skilled and future-ready talent pipeline.

“However, the campus hiring market in India is undergoing a rapid transformation due to the changing expectations of the candidates, the evolving skill requirements of the organisations, and the impact of the global slowdown,” said Roopank Chaudhary, partner and Head of Reward Solutions in India for Aon.

Furthermore, there is a direct correlation between company culture and performance and organisations, therefore. must have policies and frameworks in place to align culture with employee expectations to ensure stickiness of the new hires, said Chaudhary.

According to the report, organisations are focusing on performance incentivisation through variable pay, which ranges between 11-13 percent. MBA graduates are typically seeing a combination of incentives with more than 90 percent of organizations offering a joining bonus plus variable pay.

Also, there has been an increase in hiring volumes of interns with more than 80 per cent of organisations offering pre-placement interviews or pre-placement offers to promising candidates upon successful completion of an internship, with the highest prevalence for graduates of master’s in technology.

However, the study revealed that early attrition is a cause of concern among MBA and bachelor’s in technology graduates, the top reason being competitive pay.

“While there is a clear focus on strategic hiring, companies must prioritize building a strong employee value proposition that aligns with the expectations of the new generation,” said Saachi Verma, senior consultant, Talent Solutions in India for Aon and the study’s lead.