most Wanted
1000 CEOs, 2.3 m IT experts

With economy booming, India is running short of 1,000 chief executive officers (CEOs) across industries as it requires a projected 2.3 million professionals for Information Technology and IT-Enabled Services by the year 2010.

This is the opinion of the 27 international headhunters consultancy firm, who gathered at Panaji in South Goa recently as part of the IMD International Search and Consulting's 3-day global conference to discuss strategies to identify the proper human resources for different companies of the world.

''India needs over 1000 CEOs across industries and many of them in new emerging sectors such as the SEZs, Aviation, Airport management and Retail,'' according to an estimate of the IMD, which is a consortium of more than 150 leading HR consulting firms across the world.

Tom Fuller, managing director, Espen Fuller, USA and a partner of the IMD, told mediapersons on the sidelines of the conference that India, being the second fastest growing large economy in the world after China, was now attracting a large number of global managers with opportunities on the rise, whereas the West used to lure India's best for the last five decades.

The US alone, he said, had more than 5000 executive search firms engaged in a whooping $ six billion business as the role of human resources had definitely evolved playing a strategic role in business promotion and decision-making,'' Fuller said.

Sherilyn Shackell from the UK said, ''This trend of homecoming to India has just begun and would continue for five more years with exciting professional opportunities on rise in India and expatriates willing to comeback, even from the USA and UK.'' Peter Mukherjee, director, INX Executive Search Pvt Ltd, Indian partner of the IMD, said all of their partners were uniquely placed to help Indian and global companies in sourcing competent professionals from around the world.

Asked about the role of government in this task, Mukherjee said the government had been playing as a 'facilitator' besides reducing the constraints such as in travel, forex and related matters including FDI rules involving the concerned ministries.

The shortfall of top executives could be about 20 to 40 per cent in the next 10 to 15 years in India and even China which had been rated the fast emerging economies. The demand was rising even in Poland, South Africa, Australia and West Asia.

Of the 2.3 million IT and ITES professionals India required by the year 2010, 1.4 million were for BPO and 0.8 million for the IT sectors which required globally competent management professionals.

The increased demand was that most of the countries, including the UK, were keen to invest in India and ready to transfer knowledge, particularly in pharmaceutical, fashion, airlines and other sectors like manufacturing, travel and outsourcing products and services.

The executives acknowledged the talent pool in India was of a high calibre and the products of the high-end business schools were also encouraging. — UNI