Demand for tech-based talent is usually associated with booming cyber hubs and shiny metros, but the COVID-19 pandemic is driving demand for tech talent in non-metro cities as well. The rise of work from home (WFH) and hybrid working environments has created an ecosystem where companies are looking to set up smaller offices across India, away from their main headquarters and centres of activity, reported the Mint.

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“Hiring in tier-II and -III cities and rural areas is much more than just tapping into a talent base in these regions. It is about nurturing talent that is industry-ready," M.I. Sohail, Head of Talent Acquisition, Zoho, told Mint.

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The SaaS company is expecting to hire 1,000 people across rural locations, in addition to the 3,000 it had hired last year.

Companies like Tech Mahindra, IBM and others are also planning to bolster their tech base from tier II and tier III cities when India’s IT industry is ramping up hiring across all channels and a great talent war is being fought over more experienced employees.

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The rapid digitisation brought forth by the necessities of the COVID-19 pandemic has created a huge growth potential for IT companies, that are now looking to capitalise on this growth period by beefing up their workforce.

Emerging technologies like 5G, XDS, artificial intelligence, cloud, robotic process automation, blockchain, IoT, and cyber security are also creating the space needed for new graduates to specialise and command higher salaries with better job prospects.

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“We believe the salaries of job seekers with niche skills will increase by 1.5 to 2 times in comparison with their peers. Big data engineers, cloud architects, DevOps engineers, blockchain engineers, IoT architects and cybersecurity specialists will be in great demand across levels of expertise," said Yeshab Giri, Chief Commercial Officer, Staffing & Randstad Technologies, Randstad India.

The emergence of modern platforms that allow young professionals to upskill themselves remotely has also increased the scope of expanding the talent pool away from just metros for large IT companies.

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(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)