In the previous quarter, the headcount had increased by 2,725. As of the end of June, the Noida-based IT giant’s total headcount stood at 219,401, down from 227,481 in the previous quarter. A year ago, from April to June, the number was 223,438.

In contrast, on Thursday, its larger peer and India’s largest IT company, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), added 5,452 employees for the April to June quarter, bringing its total employee count to 606,998.

In the fourth quarter of FY24, ending in March, HCLTech was the only large player to increase its headcount, adding 2,725 employees despite the industry trend of reducing employees.

For the full year in FY24, top IT companies TCS, Infosys, Wipro, and Tech Mahindra announced a combined headcount reduction of 70,704 employees. In Q1FY25, HCLTech hired fewer freshers, adding 1,078 compared to 3,096 in the previous quarter.

During the quarter, HCLTech’s attrition rate slightly worsened to 12.8%, up from 12.4% in Q4FY24. After market hours on Friday, HCLTech reported a 20.4% year-on-year increase in net profit for the first quarter of fiscal year 2024-25, ending June. The net profit was Rs 3,534 crore, compared to Rs 3,534 crore a year ago. Its revenue rose 6.7% to Rs 28,057 crore, compared to Rs 26,296 crore a year ago.

“We are excited to partner with MKS to deliver a technology-driven approach to fulfill its business goals and digital transformation roadmap,” Ajay Bahl, Executive Vice President, HCL Technologies, said.

MKS Instruments comes up with Instruments, systems, subsystems, and solutions for sophisticated manufacturing processes. 

Employees at MKS Instruments in nearly 60 countries will benefit from HCL’s huge network of global delivery centres and a broad range of technological solutions, including cutting-edge AI and automation frameworks and tools.

HCL Technologies signed a strategic relationship with Hancom Inc last week, on September 15, to exchange sophisticated software technology solutions and expand into the South Korean and Taiwanese markets.

In a flat market, HCL Tech shares were trading higher by 1% at Rs 1288 at 10:50 a.m. So far, the stock has traded at a low of Rs 1,276 and a high of Rs 1,315 intraday.

HCL Technologies aspires to be a leader in promoting diversity. It is a next-generation global technology firm that helps companies rethink their businesses for the digital age and is dedicated to advancing gender equality by promoting women into leadership roles.

HCL Enterprise’s Executive Director and CEO, Roshni Nadar Malhotra, has been named one of Forbes’ World’s 100 Most Powerful Women. She understands that diversity in the workplace brings about diverse perspectives that are a great asset to new dynamic workplace culture. “Diversity is embedded in HCL’s DNA, and we truly want women to become part of this journey.”

Only 10% of CEOs on the Fortune Global 500 list were women in 2015, and HCL believed it could help bridge the gap as a global technology leader. HCL recognised that equal participation would benefit women and communities, economies, and the world as a whole, and the Women Lead initiative was formed in 2015 to help achieve this goal.

So what exactly is HCL’s strategy in handling Gender Diversity?

HCL believes that there must be a firm commitment from the top and consistent campaigning to overcome unconscious bias in the workplace. They’ve done this by bringing on multiple stakeholders and driving the plan based on the unit’s diversity and inclusion goals. Since this framework is worldwide, the implementation is also global to meet the demands of various businesses and locations.
They have enabled two programs for women leadership development which are based on formal mentoring:

ASCEND – which calls for an increase in the number of women in senior management positions by various methods, including support programmes, peer mentorship and coaching at all levels, and venues for women leaders to learn and showcase transformational leadership.

STEPPING STONES – It is a targeted career development programme designed to help mid-level female employees realise their career objectives and potential while also assisting them in their professional development. It focuses on coaching new mothers who need assistance managing the unique demands at work and home.

HCL also operates a variety of other diversity-focused programmes to help them meet their gender diversity objectives, such as:

HCL Women Connect strives to engage and progress women through development programmes and advocate for a gender-neutral workplace by supporting relevant policies and promoting HCL as a preferred employer for women worldwide. The group also mentors and counsels aspiring young women professionals, discusses work/life priorities, and offers life coaching, on-site daycare, concierge services, and policies such as extended maternity leave, work from home, flexible jobs, and flexible jobs working hours.

Feminspiration is a forum supported by the HCL Women Connect Affinity Network. Successful female leaders are invited to speak to employees, share insights into successful leadership, and better understand gender issues.

Then there’s BlogHer, an internal forum where HCL and our employees can discuss gender-neutral policies in a constructive, non-hierarchical way, helping debunk workplace myths and preconceptions about gender, culture, and other topics.

As a result, the company’s overall gender ratio has held steady, while the middle management level has improved because of the varied gender diversity strategy and programs by HCL.

Women’s empowerment is a crucial component of HCL’s comprehensive diversity strategy, and they have proved to commit to making changes.

The salary increase also indicates that the country’s third-largest software exporter has abandoned its decades-long practice of being a cautious paymaster.

Vijayakumar, the company’s CEO since October 2016, was not on the board of directors. Last month, founder Shiv Nadar stepped down from the board of directors, allowing Vijayakumar to be named Managing Director, along with the titles of CEO and MD, for a five-year term beginning July 20.

The Noida-based company revealed its CEO’s remuneration in its annual report for the primary time, adding that Vijayakumar will bring home an annual base salary of $2 million for the year ending March 31, up to $2 million in variable pay, as well as $384,000 in perquisites and other benefits, taking his total compensation to $4.38 million.

In addition, he will receive $31.5 million available options and restricted stock units over the subsequent five years, from March 31, 2026, to March 31, 2026. HCL, on the other hand, did not provide the breakdown of stock options and restricted stock units (RSUs) Vijayakumar will receive each year.