Engineers drive to motown, skip IT

22/04/2018

CHENNAI: As the IT sector loses some of its allure, engineers are getting back to the good old brick and mortar automobile industry. Top auto companies like Mahindra & Mahindra, Ashok Leyland and Maruti say that enquiries and CVs from engineers, many with IT experience, are on the rise. At the height of the IT boom, engineering graduates as well those with experience preferred the sector not only for the prospect of rising faster but also for the possibility of working abroad. But with big IT companies benching staff and US visa rules getting tighter, focus is back on manufacturing. HR experts say the increasing importance of big data and artificial intelligence in the automobile industry has made this segment interesting for engineers with an IT background.
“Earlier mechanical engineers were going to the IT industry but now they’re coming back. There appears a reverse brain drain happening and suddenly we’re getting lots of applications from this segment, much more than in the last 3 years,” said Gopal Mahadevan, CFO, Ashok Leyland. With top gear demand pushing auto companies to expand capacity and crank out new product platforms, hiring is up in this segment.
According to the Naukri Jobspeak data for March 2018, there has been significant hiring growth for the auto industry. The sector has witnessed a 33% growth in March 2018 compared to March 2017. Also, this sector has witnessed a healthy up growth throughout 2017, specifically from October onwards one can see a strong double-digit growth. “The IT allure is beginning to wear off as that segment has almost reached a saturation point. The pay growth is also not as good as it once was. So the attraction to join the auto industry is back,” said Rajan Wadhera, president-automotive division, Mahindra & Mahindra.
HR professionals see the shift as part of the industry undergoing tech transformation, having electric vehicles and incorporating self-driving cars into their system. “Product specialists are in demand and their experience levels are in the tune of 8 to 10 years or higher. The auto industry itself has stepped up its hiring by 30% and IT has been a major contributor,” said Thammaiah B N, MD, Kelly Services.

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