Move Over IT: Global Capability Centres Emerge As The Real Job Growth Engine In India

Global Capability Centres (GCC) have emerged as a key job growth engine in India, outperforming IT hiring rates by at least four times, the Economic Times reported, citing data from Teamlease.

Latest data shows GCCs have been expanding headcount by 18-27% year-on-year, which is significantly higher than the IT headcount growth of 4-6%.

• 
  Indian Markets Turning Corner After Two Tough Years, Says Sandeep Tandon
• 
  NDTV Profit Ignite 2026: Experts See Opportunity In Equities, Stay Bullish For Long-Term
• 
  Buy Right, Sit Tight Does Not Work for Individual Stocks, Says Dinshaw Irani
• 
  'Worst Is Behind': Quant MF Sees Market Bottom, Flags 'Extreme Euphoria' In Midcaps
• 
  India's Mutual Fund Industry Could Become A $1 Trillion Opportunity, Say Fund Managers
• 
  'Foreign Investors Are Baraatis': Raamdeo Agrawal's Take On LTCG Tax
• 
  Stay Invested Through Market Cycles: Raamdeo Agrawal at NDTV Profit Ignite
• 
  Ramesh Damani Remains Bullish On India For Next 20-30 Years, Sees Bargains Amid Market Weakness
• 
  CAS Came After A Long Consultation Process: SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey AT NDTV PROFIT IGNITE
• 
  Aim To Cut FPI Onboarding Time From Mth To Five Days: SEBI Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey AT NDTV PROFI

This is indicative of the kind of growth GCCs have witnessed in India, especially at a time when more and more global brands are setting up bases in India.

Overall, GCCs employ nearly 2 million people in India right now, up from 1.2 million in 2022. The industry has created over 3 lakh new jobs annually.

To put things into perspective, the IT sector employed as many as 5.5 million people in 2022. Fast forward to 2025, that number stands at around 5.6 million. This amounts to 25,000-40,000 jobs added annually.

In FY25 alone, GCCs had added 1.6 lakh new jobs compared to just 11,000 added in the IT sector, although the numbers account for the top five IT companies only.

As of now, India has about 1,700 operating GCCs, 90 of which were added in FY25 alone. This rapid expansion has resulted in a job growth that has far exceeded the IT sector by a long margin.

ICRA expects the number GCCs to rise from 1,700 now to 2,500 by FY30, with the demand for data centres and backend hubs expected to sustain, even in the long run.

Essential Business Intelligence, Sharp Market Insights, Practical Personal Finance Advice, Daily Fuel, Gold and Silver Prices and Latest Stories — On NDTV Profit.