The COVID-19 crisis has brought about fear and insecurities about global economic growth and hence hiring across companies. Many companies are laying off or implementing pay cuts in salaries amid the probable economic downturn that many experts foresee. Tech sector is not averse to it and has either frozen its hiring or downsizing its workforce. However, Analytics India Magazine has also observed that many companies have seen a minimal effect on their ongoing hiring process. We reached out to Tiger Analytics, advanced analytics and AI consulting company that is, in fact, looking to hire more over the next 4-6 months.
In a conversation with Pradeep Gulipalli, Co-founder, Tiger Analytics, he shares the company’s hiring plan and how they plan to accomplish it in the current circumstances.
Analytics India Magazine: Most companies are either laying off or implementing pay cuts amid COVID 19 crisis. How is the data science hiring panning out at your company?
Pradeep Gulipalli: The COVID-19 crisis has affected businesses globally, and along with it the data science industry as well – some sections are seeing layoffs and pay cuts. To better understand the impact, let’s categorize all data science initiatives into two broad buckets. The first are more operational in nature – related to making operations more efficient and productive. The second is more strategic in nature – related to key business decisions that might define the journey of a business.
In a significant disruption like the current crisis, the operational analytics programs might not be of value because the status quo has changed, while the strategic analytics programs (and real-time analytics) are very valuable because they guide the way forward.
A significant amount of consulting engagements at Tiger are strategic in nature. This means that we are tightly integrated with clients as they navigate the post-COVID-19 landscape and our work becomes even more valuable.
At Tiger Analytics, we plan to add about 150 data and analytics professionals to our team over the next 4-6 months.
AIM: What data science-related roles that you are looking to hire?
PG: We will continue to hire across the spectrum – data scientists, data engineers, ML engineers, analytics consultants, full-stack developers etc.
We have a strong demand for mid-level roles –techno-functional people with 5-10 years of experience. Consulting roles require strong analytics translation and value articulation skills, while technical roles involve ability to solve unstructured data science problems, ability to architect large scale data / ML systems etc.
AIM: Do you foresee a situation of recession, especially in the Indian tech firms?
PG: To a large degree, the Indian Tech industry is quite integrated with the global market. Experts are expecting a global slowdown, and such a slowdown will have an effect on all domestic tech firms as well, whether or not they have exposure to the global market.
At the same time, we see governments providing large fiscal stimulus to avoid a potential recession. We can only hope that this dampens the effects of a recession.
AIM: How will you accomplish hiring amid speculated recession?
PG: Actually, we believe this is the best time to hire. A great candidate is a great candidate, recession or not. We certainly do not want to miss out on such candidates just because of the market scenario.
The overall slowdown of the job market will give us the breathing space to spend quality time with candidates to understand their expertise and motivations.
Similarly, candidates will not be in a rush to make decisions. So, it might be a win-win. Moreover, we’re opening these roles to any location, and not necessarily to cities where our offices are.
AIM: What will be the long term impact of this crisis on technological developments? How do you plan to cope up with it?
PG: Below are a few impacts we anticipate:
- Resistance to digital will be a thing of the past: All industries that have to deal with customers constantly are rapidly identifying digital engagement mechanisms- online shopping, telemedicine, AR/VR, etc. These digital mechanisms will then become permanent in companies’ scheme of things.
- Use of data in decision making will see a surge: The current situation is unprecedented and decisions need to be made based on access to real-time data. Once the data engine kicks in and value is seen, companies will continue to invest further in this space.
- Government hurdles in the adoption of data will reduce: Governments will figure out how best they can use data to detect and manage populations. These will be with the purpose of providing greater security for law & order, improved contact tracing in the case of epidemics, enabling quick disbursal of funds to beneficiaries, among others. Once the value of AI is proven at this level, any government resistance should reduce.
AIM: Are data science and analytics functions averse to this crisis? In what ways could it be affected?
PG: At the macroeconomic level, all industries will be impacted to varying degrees and the data analytics industry is not immune to it. However, the data analytics industry is mature and has proven its value. Organizations today know that it can deliver significant value to their businesses. So, we expect any setbacks to be temporary. The investments in AI & analytics should continue at full throttle once the crisis settles. In the interim, different organizations will have different budgets depending on how bad the crisis hits them.
