Gen Z shift companies every 2 years:Scarcity of AI talent forces companies to pay up to 2.5 times more salary

The job market in the country’s Global Capability Centers (GCCs) is shining bright again. In the fourth quarter of March 2026, recruitment saw a significant increase of 12 to 14%. According to a Quess Corp report, this growth is more than double compared to the previous quarter’s 4-6%. However, there is a talent shortage of up to 42% in advanced skills like AI and data. Due to this, companies are offering salary packages 1.5 to 2.5 times higher to attract experts. Tier-1 cities continue to dominate in terms of recruitment. Metro cities account for 88-90% of total recruitments. Hyderabad has emerged as the fastest-growing hub. Bengaluru still remains number-1 in terms of appointments. Tier-2 cities are increasing their share. The share of cities like Coimbatore, Jaipur, Kochi, and Ahmedabad has increased to 10-12%. However, high-complexity major work is still confined to metro cities. 3 Major Changes: Replacement Hiring Increased; Craze for Contract Jobs Growing – Gen-Z workforce is staying in any role for an average of less than 24 months. Due to shorter employment cycles, the challenge of talent retention has increased. – For projects like AI and platform transformation, companies are now adopting flexible staffing instead of permanent jobs. 25% of hirings this quarter were on a contract basis. – 40% of total hirings are ‘replacements’. This means companies are creating fewer new positions, but are doing more hirings to replace those who leave their jobs. Big Skill Gap in AI According to the report, approximately 60% of new jobs are related to AI, data and platform skills. There is a large gap between demand and supply: Sector/Skill – Talent Shortage AI-Data – 38%-42% Platform Engineering – 32%-36% Cloud Infrastructure – 28%-32% Not Just IT, Real Estate and Infra Sectors Also Witnessing Growth This recovery happening in GCC is no longer limited to just IT or tech sector. Leading this is the real estate and infrastructure sector, which has seen 18% growth. Following this, professional services recorded 16% growth and the construction and engineering sector registered a 15% increase. The hospitality and logistics sectors related to travel and movement of goods have also seen 13% more recruitments. This trend is indicating that an all-round recovery is returning to the market. Country’s GCCs are now becoming strategic hubs, not just support Kapil Joshi, CEO of IT Staffing, believes that there has been a change in the way Global Capability Centers present in India operate. These centers are not limited to back-office support, but are making strategic decisions for businesses worldwide.