Challenges in setting and scaling up a GCC in India – A hiring Perspective

Over the recent weeks, we have been inundated with the news of GCCs going strong in India. Reports from Industry experts, Real Estate consulting firms, Business Advisory groups – all are in unison when they predict the boom within this space. GCCs will provide the next phase of exciting and accelerated growth and will literally act as the tide that lifts many boats.

As a GCC Hiring partner, supporting GCCs in their start up, growth and established stages, we have an outsider view to the one of the most complex pieces of the puzzle: getting the hiring right. Being in the market allows us to gauge the pulse of the market, in terms of both talent and opportunities availability.

With our experience of working with 15+ GCCs in India, here is our ringside view:

• Unique and Niche roles

Each role in a GCC is as unique as it gets. The usual sourcing platforms help only to a limited extent. This usually means that more creative ways of finding talent has to be deployed. Similarly, since the ask is different, screening questions are also different. The talent partner needs to understand these nuances thoroughly to be able to drive better time investment value for the GCC. This naturally leads us to the next point which is:

• Time Pressures on Hiring Managers

As the GCC sets up, global processes transition from their respective centers to the GCC. This means that the Center Heads and other Line Managers are occupied not only in the transition process, but also in parallel, are required to screen, interview, and select candidates. These two, business critical, but competing priorities are a difficult balancing act. Having the right talent partner can reduce the load in terms of better CV screening ratios and make life slightly easier for the hiring managers.

• Difference in Hierarchies

Each GCC has a different hierarchy, reflecting the parent company’s organizational structure. Across GCCs, people performing a similar role may be titled/positioned differently. This takes some convincing for the candidates, and can be mitigated if the talent partner understands these nuances. This makes it easy to show value in the role opportunity that is presented by one GCC and how it compares to other GCCs. Rightly done, this increases the talent pool available for selection.

• Compensation and Benefits

GCCs do come with deep pockets and pay better than IT Services companies. However, with the new age startups eco-system of India, and having exposed to never heard of compensations on offer within the Product space, candidates expectations on compensation have sky rocketed. A seasoned talent partner can provide the right inputs and guidance at the time of candidate selection, and ensure that if an offer is rolled out, it is accepted. Last minute shocks frustrate everyone involved in the process, and we do believe many of these are avoidable.

If you are looking to start or scale up your GCC presence in India and are looking to partner with a strategic talent partner, Antal is here to help. Having supported 15+ GCCs in their business-critical hiring needs across technology and support functions, #ThinkGCCThinkAntal.

To know more about our capabilities, contact [email protected]; [email protected] and learn how we can support your GCC aspirations for India.