Protection for the Digital Talent
Cognizant, a renowned IT service provider has recently said it would protect employees with digital skills from layoffs even if they remain under-utilized during the ongoing economic crisis. The company earns around 38% of its $16.8 billion revenue from its digital businesses, which include helping clients shift applications to the cloud, marketing online and on social media and building applications for smartphones and maintaining them at scale.
Earlier this year, Cognizant announced a voluntary separation package for its US employees earlier in May wherein it would let go staffers who are not in active projects. The company also said that around 7000 jobs would be axed. However, staffers with digital skills are likely to be spared through the recession brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Critical Growth Program
Karen McLoughlin, the Chief Financial Officer of Cognizant said, “Even if, for some reason, we have digital talent that becomes unutilized during this timeframe, assuming that they have the right skills and capabilities and so forth, we will protect that talent for the recovery.” The company said it continues to see a strong pipeline for digital deals in its first quarter results commentary. The bench, at many technology services companies including Cognizant has swelled with staffers from differed or discontinued client projects.
The company said those with skills that are ‘fairly reasonable and easy to replace in the marketplace’ are currently on the bench and they could opt for the package. As part of company’s ‘Critical Growth Program’, most underutilized resources would be let go by the middle of the year. IT services companies faced a significant attrition of employees with digital skills last year, as demand for professionals who could deliver work in areas such as cloud, analytics and cyber security shot up globally. Furthermore, as more clients shift work to the cloud during COVID-19 induced crisis, demand for people with such skills are on the rise.
