Kotak Mahindra's Ramesh: People are moving from abroad to India

Help, Tarun!

The Sky Riders

Global investment banks like Barclays Bank, Citigroup Hong Kong, Credit Suisse First Boston, Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch couldn't seem to get their fill of Indian Institute of Management (IIM) grads this year; and the grads, for their part, didn't seem to mind at all.

At IIM Ahmedabad, Barclays emerged the clear favourite; 16 students accepted its offers. Lehman Brothers (12 acceptances) and Merrill Lynch (8 acceptances) followed in second and third positions, respectively. A full third of the Class of 2006 opted for jobs at multinational or Indian financial services firms. Result: traditional hotshot sectors like FMCG and consulting had to be content with second and third spots, respectively. The same story played itself out at management institute campuses around the country.

"There are thousands of lucrative jobs available in this sector. The problem lies at the other end; there is a dearth of talent in the market," says E. Balaji, Executive Director (Staffing Solutions) at Ma Foi Management Consultants, a leading executive search firm, which works with several high profile investment banks.

IN A NUTSHELL

WHO'S HIRING Edelweiss Capital, ASK, Motilal Oswal, SSKI, Enam Financial, Lehman Brothers, JP Morgan, Merrill Lynch, among others AT WHAT LEVELS Management trainees, Senior Managers, Equity Analysts, Commodity Traders and mid-top level executives in their investment banking divisions AT WHAT SALARIES Rs 2.5-6 lakh p.a. for freshers; Rs 15 lakh-plus p.a. for executives with at least 5 years experience; and Rs 4.5 crore p.a. for top management positions. WHAT QUALIFICATIONS ARE THEY LOOKING FOR MBAs, BBS (Bachelor of Business Studies), BMS (Bachelor of Management Studies), CAs, CFAs, CS and ICWA grads

"Most finance firms didn't hire significant numbers in the early 2000s; this has resulted in a shortage of mid-level human resources," says Sonal Agrawal, CEO of headhunter Accord. Result: poaching is quite common and attrition levels are rising. Consequently, employers-both Indian and multinational-are responding by offering top performers unbelievable salaries and bonuses. Million dollar (Rs 4.5-crore) annual salaries, though still rare, no longer raise eyebrows, and several talented professionals at mid-to-senior levels now get Rs 1 crore-plus packages. "Compensation in the financial services sector is driven by bonuses. This year, they have jumped by over 100 per cent," says Shiv Agrawal, Director, ABC Consultants, another leading head hunter. DSP Merrill Lynch, Citigroup and JP Morgan paid bonuses of 100-250 per cent (of salaries) last year, while leading Indian companies like Kotak Capital Market and ICICI Securities, among others, doled out incentives at the lower end of that scale.

This boom in both recruitments and salaries is driven by the sustained bull run in the stock markets (the impact of the current volatility will be felt after a time lag but only if it continues for some time). Business volumes have grown 200-300 per cent over the last 2-3 years; and new niches like wealth management services, portfolio management, private equity, mutual funds and insurance have created massive demand for qualified personnel.

Angel Broking's Phadke: Soaring salary packages may not sustain for long

Expectedly, leading Indian investment services companies like Edelweiss Capital, ask, Motilal Oswal, SSKI, Enam Financial and Angel Broking are on a hiring spree. "There's a war for talent," says Sangeeta Singh, a partner at Ambit RSM, an investment banking firm. Between them, these seven firms plan to hire over 100 researchers, analysts, dealers and other investment banking professionals this year. Add Kotak Capital, ICICI Securities and the multinationals to the equation (both for India-related and outsourcing work) and that figure rises exponentially. "We generally look for a mix of new people and the people growing with us," says S. Ramesh, Executive Director at Kotak Mahindra Capital Company. He also expects a reverse brain drain a la the IT sector to fill in the talent vacuum in this sector. Adds Vallabh Bhansali, Chairman, Enam Financial Consultants: "You have to build a brand to attract people in the financial services sector."

"The only constraint to creating more jobs is the limited talent pool. Every client wants the best for every position and does not mind paying high prices for the right candidate," says Agrawal. This shortage is likely to accentuate when the likes of Lehman Brothers, Goldman Sachs and half a dozen other global investment banks enter the Indian market with full-fledged operations (which they plan to do over the next 1-2 years). Their entry-and expansion by existing players-is expected to create at least 5,000 new jobs and result in a further inflation in wage rates.

ABC Consultant's Shiv Agrawal: Filling the clients' appetite with the best talent

The question, naturally, is: where will so many corporate finance professionals suddenly materialise from? Answer: from accounting and consulting firms. "We are also looking at people in the corporate sector with experience in planning and formulating strategies," says Sonal of Accord. The skill sets required for tracking the behaviour of stocks, after all, are the same.

Meanwhile, there are some voices that warn that the good times may not last for ever. "The market is quite overheated," says Balaji. And he's not referring to the BSE Sensex. Rajiv Phadke, Executive Director, Angel Broking, adds: "These soaring salary packages are not sustainable."

Bhansali disagrees. "Unless something drastic happens, the jobs market will continue to look buoyant," he says. ABC's Agrawal also believes that this buoyancy will sustain through the period of volatility. "As the pace of talent acquisition gathers momentum, the compensation packages may swell even further," adds Ambit's Singh.

For wannabe investment bankers-either straight from B-schools or from other sectors-the good times continue to roll, the tottering Sensex notwithstanding.

COUNSELLING
Help, Tarun!

Q: I am an engineering graduate and am interested in pursuing further studies from the University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun. What vistas would a course from such an institute open up for me? Is there any other institute in the country which offers similar courses?

After this course you will be able to join a petroleum/energy company. Though part of the energy sector is privatised, most jobs in this area are with government owned/nationalised companies. The jobs could be in various fields from operations to logistics to production.

Q: I am a 21-year-old BSc graduate pursuing an MBA (through a distance education programme) from the Institute of Business Management & Research (IBMR), Hubli (Karnataka). The institute is affiliated to Sikkim Manipal University. My friends tell me that MBA should only be pursued on a full-time basis. Also, my college doesn't have a placement cell in place. Please advise.

A part-time distance learning MBA does not really give your career a major boost. Hence, it is definitely advisable to pursue a full-time MBA. Look out for ones with decent placement history.

Answers to your career concerns are contributed by Tarun Sheth (Senior Consultant) and Shilpa Sheth (Managing Partner, US practice) of HR firm, Shilputsi Consultants. Write to Help,Tarun! c/o Business Today, Videocon Tower, Fifth Floor, E-1, Jhandewalan Extn., New Delhi-110055..

The Sky Riders
There's a massive demand for commercial pilots.

There's a dark cloud threatening the booming Indian aviation sector-shortage of commercial pilots. The expected addition to the Indian fleet over the next five years: 300 planes; the expected shortfall in the supply of pilots: 3,500. This demand-supply mismatch has led to salaries going through the roof. Private airlines like Jet Airways, Kingfisher Airlines and Air Deccan pay their captains (who need to have at least 2,500 hours of flying experience) about Rs 3-4 lakh per month, while co-pilots get about Rs 2-3 per month. "There is significant demand for pilots at the commander and co-pilot levels. The supply looks constrained at the moment, but we are hoping that the situation will improve in the coming months," says Surajit Banerjee, Vice President (hr), SpiceJet.

-Kapil Bajaj