India’s burgeoning semiconductor sector is facing a surge in demand for talent, fuelled by new investments and the government’s ambitious plan to transform the country into a chip manufacturing hub. The government recently approved $15 billion worth of investments into the sector including from the Tata group.

There is a total demand of 40,000-50,000 employees across job roles in 2024, a 25-30% increase over last year, says staffing company Randstad. The sector is expected to see more than 800,000 to 1 million job openings over the next five years.

“The demand for talent in the sector has reached an all-time high to build infrastructure, industrial parks, testing systems and R&D,” said Yeshab Giri, chief commercial officer, operational talent solutions, Randstad India.

There is increased hiring for entry and middle-level employees in locations like Gujarat, Bengaluru, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Assam for roles like sales, field application engineer, equipment service engineer, and purchase managers. A huge uptick is expected for roles in semiconductor chip design, semiconductor fabrication, and assembly, testing, marking and packaging facilities in the next few years.

“On the C-suite side, there is a consistent demand for VP and director-level positions in field engineering, operations management, project management, and product innovation as many global companies prepare to set foot in India,” said Giri.

Despite being a late entrant, the government is aggressively pushing to make India a major player in the global semiconductor space through initiatives like the India Semiconductor Mission. However, the industry faces a significant hurdle: a talent shortage.Given this scenario, companies are looking not just at lateral and campus hires but also bringing in expats for leadership roles, particularly in technology.Salaries range from Rs 15-20 lakh for entry-level design engineers to Rs 2.5 crore-plus for top talent, excluding incentives like restricted stock units (RSUs) and joining bonuses, said Murali Mohan, partner at executive search and talent advisory firm ABC Consultants.

“Talent is scarce in semicon manufacturing and OSAT (Outsourced Semiconductor Assembly and Test). The major hiring is in the 4 – 12 years’ experience range,” he said.

Companies scaling up
L&T Semiconductor Technologies (LTSCT) is building a global team of semiconductor professionals, fuelled by its goal to establish India as first pure-play Integrated Circuit (IC) product multinational corporation for designing and delivering smart devices.

“Our hiring strategy for semiconductor talent is ambitious and growth oriented. We plan to onboard over 350 professionals in India in 2024 and expand our global team significantly in the US, Europe, and Japan,” Sandeep Kumar, chief executive, LTSCT told ET. The company is actively seeking both fresh and senior talent, leveraging multiple hiring channels, including campus recruitment, lateral hiring, and attracting expatriates, he added.

US chipmaker AMD, which in July 2023 announced plans to invest $400 million in India over five years and create 3,000 new engineering roles, said it is hiring engineers across levels from similar hi-tech companies, partnering with academia for fresh engineers and hiring through employee referrals.

“We are hiring across the spectrum of hardware, software, and AI skills. We have multiple openings for AI/ML Engineers, Silicon Design Engineers, Software System Design Engineers, Systems Design Engineers etc,” said Fathima Farouk, HR head, AMD India.

“India is a growth market for AMD from a talent perspective,” said Farourk, adding that senior roles AMD is hiring for include Principal Member Technical Staff, Fellows, Director, and Senior Director.

“The next chapter of semiconductor growth is ready to witness increased emphasis on advanced skilling, job creation and Samsung Semiconductor India Research (SSIR) will lead actively on all these fronts,” said Shivendra Srivastava, Head of People, Samsung Semiconductor India.

SSIR plans to hire more than 700 people including fresh graduates as well as lateral hires across teams in India –from semiconductor industry experts to fresh talent from leading campuses like IITs, IISc, NITs, BITS, IIITs among others.

“The semiconductor industry has grown at a breathtaking pace in recent years. As demand for semiconductors rise rapidly, so does the need for skilled professionals, further intensifying the talent shortage,” said Srivastava.