IT firms look for PhD talent to meet technological advancement goals

The hiring strategy to onboard PhD talent is the same as it is for any senior talent hire. (Illustration by Suneesh Kalarickal)

Information technology (IT) firms are increasingly targeting PhD holders to drive innovation and technological advancements across verticals. Though comparatively few in number, staffing firms have seen demand for talent jump 3-10 percent year-on-year (YoY).

Most of the hiring is limited to tech verticals where niche skills are in focus. Interestingly, IT firms are opting for ‘tried and tested’ talent, targeting large private universities to woo PhD faculties.

A head of research and innovation at a private university with campuses in Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru said his department lost six PhD candidates within four months to IT and consulting giants and failed to retain them as the hike was "too high to match".

"PhDs in domains directly linked to the core offering and core innovation of the employer command a premium of 15-45 percent over non-PhD talent for the same role and level," said Anil Ethanur, Co-founder of specialist staffing company Xpheno.

However, he added that PhDs in a non-associated stream or domain do not earn a differentiator over a non-PhD peer.

Search is on

Enrolment in PhD courses has been increasing YoY. In 2020, more than 25,000 students were awarded PhDs, with science, engineering, and technology in the lead. According to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) data, India ranks fourth in the group by the number of PhD degrees awarded.

Staffing firm Randstad has seen a reasonable uptick of 8-10 percent in the demand for PhD holders in the IT sector and attributes this trend to the niche and specialised expertise of these individuals along with their ability to tackle complex challenges, especially at a time when the industry is facing skill-gap issues.

"IT firms are prioritising PhD holders who possess a combination of skills and expertise crucial to their innovation and technological advancement goals," said Sanjay Shetty, Director of Professional Search & Selection at Randstad India.

Where are they deployed?

Industry leaders say PhD talent is in demand because many companies across sectors are now looking more for business views and not just the underlying tech.

For instance, if a company deploys ChatGPT at work, it's not about the technology itself but ultimately about how that can help the company reduce labour-intensive work.

"If you can't speak the business language, you're gonna be left behind…..Ultimately, it comes down to the use case and not just the underlying technology," said Senthil Nayagam K, EVP of Global Revenue Assurance and Chief Learning Officer at IT firm Hexaware Technologies.

Currently, tech firms onboard and invest in PhD talent as part of developing a niche in a space and also to build high-value intellectual property rights (IPRs), Xpheno’s Ethanur said, adding that PhDs are onboarded as internal consultants at SMEs in the product research and engineering functions.

Phd hiring

The hiring strategy to onboard PhD talent is the same as it is for any senior talent hire.

"From looking up competitors to references, hunting through known networks, and engaging executive search consultants, enterprises go all out to spot talent," Ethanur said. Once a potential candidate is spotted, companies like to move fast to keep the talent hooked.

On the offer front, the strategy is also to pack a punch with ESOPs and Sign-on Bonuses depending on the width and depth of the mandate for the role, he added.