By Rudra Narayan Sahoo, Mumbai: Indian CEOs are quite optimistic on headcount growth over the next three years while they are also concerned that automation is likely to replace an estimated 5% of their workforce during the same period. KPMG’s India CEO Outlook 2016, which is released today, revealed these while mentioning that CEOs are focused on talent management by creating developmental opportunities for employees.
The survey mentions that 85% CEOs surveyed in India says that they are in favor of increasing workforce by less than 10% over the next three years. However, 52% of CEOs in India think their headcount will moreover remain same over the next 12 months. CEOs appear to be more aggressive on adopting technologies to drive efficiencies in the system. Hence, they believe automation is on the store and is likely to be adopted, which will replace 5% of their manpower.
As per the survey the top three strategies CEOs employ to attract are: opportunities to learn, develop and work with people in the same field (35%), flexible work arrangements (30%), and the chance to innovate or work in a collaborative environment (30%). While the top three strategies employed by CEOs in India to retain their employees are as followed: promotion possibilities (42%), non-financial incentives (38) and the chance to innovate or work in a collaborative environment (35%).
Commenting on the skill gaps, the CEO Outlook finds that Indian CEOs don’t foresee major skill gaps in any of the industries in the next three years. To achieve this target, they believe it is essential to manage skill gaps in the interim period. The top four measures that CEOs surveyed plan to undertake to achieve this are: enhance the focus on agility and problem-solving skills (25%), focus on automation (23%), create presence in high skill areas (22%), and organize internal training (22%).
The KPMG CEO Outlook survey covered 125 CEOS in India while global sample size was 1268. In the survey, they are asked to present their views on prospects of the economy, with almost equal representation from Europe, Asia Pacific and the US.
