Chipmaker Lam Research cuts 600 jobs

LOS ANGELES: US chipmaker Lam Research Corp will shed 15 per cent of its workforce, or 600 employees, joining the list of technology companies t
rying to cope with declining sales and rising costs by cutting jobs.

The circuitry-etching tools company expects to save about $60 million a year through the job reductions. The company will be reducing other costs to achieve further savings of about $20 million annually.

The job cuts will affect regular, temporary and contract employees, and are expected to be completed by the first quarter of next year, the company said.

Last month, Lam Research posted a sharp drop in earnings and projected slow demand for the rest of this year.

A teetering economy and slumping consumer confidence have hit the semiconductor industry hard.

With demand in electronic goods plummeting, the semiconductor industry has made large-scale layoffs. Top chipmaker Applied Materials announced a 12 per cent cut of its workforce. National Semiconductor Corp cut up to 10 per cent, KLA-Tencor Corp up to 15 per cent, and Akamai Technologies Inc 7 per cent.

Courtesy: Times of India

Jet likely to announce a 20% cut in staff salaries

MUMBAI: With recession eating into its bottom line, private air-carrier Jet Airways is likely to announce a 20% cut in the salaries of its
pilots, engineers and some other staff.

"Chairman Naresh Goyal has convened a meeting of airline officials, pilots and engineers here tomorrow, to discuss the issue of salary cuts. An announcement to this effect is also likely," a source close to the development told reporters today.

The meeting is to be held at a five-star hotel in the metropolis, the source added.

Pilots and engineers to be affected by this move are understood to have expressed their opposition to it and are considering their response, the source said.

The airline employs around 13,200 personnel with around 2,000 of them drawing a salary of more than Rs 1 lakh a month. These officials comprise mainly pilots and maintenance engineers.

Despite repeated attempts, Jet Airways officials were not available for comment on the likely meeting tomorrow.

The air-carrier's move comes in the wake of steep losses and rising operation costs coupled with falling passenger demand.

According to aviation analysts, Jet Airways, which posted losses to the tune of Rs 384 crore in Q2 of the current financial year, is likely to post a net loss of Rs 1,890 crore in 2008-09.

In October, the airline had announced a lay-off of 1,900 employees as part of its drive to prune costs but had to retract, following political pressure.

Jet had, a few weeks back, terminated the services of 35 out of 240 expatriate pilots.

While taking back the 1,900 staff, Goyal had described them as his "children" and said that though cost-cutting initiatives would be pursued, there would be no lay-offs.

He had also said that he would sit with all of the airline's stakeholders to ensure that the airline was not grounded.

Courtesy: Times of India

Ten Best Tech Employers (India)

Courtesy: Times of India

Which are the best IT companies to work for and what is it that makes them so? Which are the companies which are setting new paradigms with their HR policy? The recent Dataquest's annual Best Employers survey, done in association with research firm IDC, has a few answers.

The survey sized up IT companies on various parameters, including employee strength, salary structure, training days, tenure of top management, growth opportunities etc.

Not surprisingly, the survey too felt the tremors of the present global economic turmoil troubling IT companies, with many of the tech biggies including Capgemini, IBM, Infosys, Wipro, Cognizant, CSC and Cadence refusing to be a part of the survey. Incidentally, it is for the first time in the survey's eight-year history that these companies have refused to participate.

Here's over to the winners.

1) iGate Global Solution


The top spot in the DQ Best Employers' ranking goes to iGate. Nasdaq-based iGate ranks high on infrastructure, policies and procedure, pride in saying that ‘I work for this company and work undertaken is crucial for the company's growth’.

The company has branded HR programmes like HAP-PSY-CAP (happy psychological capital) and I Love iGate to help boost employee satisfaction and instill a pride for working in the company. The company also has communities within iGate based around skills, regions as well as hobbies.

As for the challenges, company ranks at lowly #25 on the ‘independence to take decisions by the employees’ parameter. Also, according to the survey, ironically, while the company is seen by employees as an employer to be proud of, the outsiders give it a low score on a dream company to work for parameter.

2) RMSI

Next on the ranking is Geographic Information System (GIS) solution provider RMSI. The company which started as a joint venture with US-based Risk Management Software Inc (RMS) in 1992 has been a part of DQ Best Employers since 2003.

The company ranks no. 1 on salary hikes and at no. 2 on transparency of appraisal system and relevance of perks and benefits. During the past year (2007-2008) year, the company undertook distinct orientation towards leadership development, career development and open communication, according to the survey.

The company was also able to bring down its attrition rate from 14 per cent in the year previous to 11 per cent. The company also boasts of fourth highest rate of retention among the surveyed companies. Among the challenges, the company ranks `relatively poor' at no. 15 on HR front.

3) HCL Infosystems

At no. 3 in DQ Best Employers' survey is HCL Infosystems. Part of one of the country's largest IT group, HCL Infosystems is an IT products and infrastructure major.

The company ranks at no. 2 on recognition of initiatives and efforts at the time of appraisal and constructive feedback from manager/superior. The survey also gives the company second position on people, company image and job content. The company's two broad HR programmes include iLearn and iLead.

On the challenges front, the survey says that there seems to be dissatisfaction brewing among employees with the kind of work, with many employees terming it monotonous. The company recently announced plans to expand its systems integration (SI) business, with three new verticals defence, security and education. HCL Infosystems is also beefing up its exports portfolio.

4) Rolta India



Here's an IT company termed ‘outperformer' by a leading stock broking company recently. Rolta offers engineering design and geospatial information services (GIS) to clients in the infrastructure, oil & gas, power and defence sectors.

The company ranks at no. 4 on fairness of appraisal system and appropriate salary hikes. Last year the company invested heavily in training and infrastructure development according to the survey.

On the challenges front, as the company's employee base grows, it is foreseeing automation of its HR process. With the Indo-US nuclear deal back on track, the Mumbai-based technology company aims to double revenues from its power plant design and automation (PDA) practice by 2011.

5) Microsoft India


At no. 5 on the list is the Indian subsidiary of global software giant Microsoft. First MNC in the list, the company ranks at no. 1 on overseas opportunity and company image parameters.

The company employees also rank it fairly high on ‘relevance of perks and benefits' and quality of training parameter. On the challenges front, the employees rank the company low on `manager genuinely cares about my professional and personal growth' and `manager is always available when I need help or advice' parameters.

However, Microsoft India claims that it is replicating some of its global practices to resolve these issues. The company recently announced the appointment of ex-Dell chief Rajan Anandan as its MD.

6) Tata Consultancy Services



At no. 6 is India's largest IT services company TCS. Mumbai-based company gets top marks on overseas opportunity and company image parameters. The company also scores high on job security/stability parameter.

Last year saw the company go full stream ahead on its HR digitisation plan. The company also automated its appraisal system SPEED and learning system iCALMS (integrated competency and learning management system).

The company has also put in place a role-based structure that aims to capture the job profile across various functions. On the challenges side, the company seems to be under strain due to the current global economic crisis. The employees also gave the company low marks on salary, fairness of appraisal system, relevance of perks and benefits parameters.

The company's recent decision to delay promotions too seems to have created anguish among employees.

7) SAS India



Among the best workplaces to work for globally, SAS's India subsidiary seems to have successfully implemented its global HR practices in India.

The company scores highest on (1) job content parameter. The employees also rate the company relatively high on relevance of training (3), relevance of training to professional and personal growth (4) and relevance of perks and benefits (4).

Some of the global HR practices implemented by SAS India include flexible working hours, day-care benefits, concierge services and adoption assistance policy. The company also has a global online recruitment portal which helps employees seeking intra-company transfers across the globe.

On the challenges front, the employees rated the company relatively low on growth opportunities (9) and freedom to speech at meetings (9) parameters.

8) Synechron



At no. 8 is Synechron, a software solutions and service provider for capital markets, mortgage banking and insurance. The company gets top marks on salary and compensation parameter. The employees also rank it high on overseas opportunity parameter.

Last year company automated its HR repository by implementing HRMS system across all branches. The company also managed to reduce its attrition level and revamped its training module.

On the challenges front, the employees rated the company low on manager's concern about employee's professional; positive work environment; and personal growth and encouragement from managers to speak and express freely during meetings parameters.

The company plans to enter new geographies such as the UK, European Union, Australia, Gulf and South East Asia markets targeting BFSI clients.

9) Tavant Technology



Tavant Technologies, an IT solutions and services company ranks at no. 9. Tavant has been ranked no. 9 in the overall ranking and no. 2 in organisation culture/work climate and interpersonal relationships.

According to the survey, the company follows a fun-at-work model and lays stress on fulfilling the interests of employees. The company also has a forum called M-team that aims to take the employee feedback and raise various employee-related issues to the management.

On the challenges front, the company is rated low on company's leadership's contribution to the growth of the company, training and relevance of benefits and perks parameters by the employees.

Tavant specialises in building solutions and providing end-to-end services in the domains of service operations, consumer lending, ebusiness and trading and securities.

10) Span Infotech India

Next in the ranking, at no. 10, is outsourcing services company Span Infotech. EDB, a Norway-based IT company, recently acquired 50.1 per cent stake in Span Infotech.

The company is ranked highest (5) on exciting growth opportunities parameter, followed by amount of training; training and its relevance for professional and personal growth; company image; and company culture parameters. The employees give the company a rating of 7 on all these parameters.

The employees seems to have grouse over fairness of the appraisal system, transparency of the appraisal system and relevance of perks and benefits, with employees rating the company low on these parameters.

Span has been offering specialised services to ISVs and is strong in the insurance and financial services sector along with serving system integrators (SIs) and start-ups.

What makes BPO jobs hot?

NEW DELHI: Today freshers have multiple options, ranging from the IT industry to BPO, from retail to telecom to banking. So what should they cho
ose and why?

The BPO industry is among the most attractive industries. First, the industry changes personalities for the better. There are numerous examples of people who have been armed with life skills exuding confidence about their future after being in a BPO.

While functional skills can be acquired in any profession, developing life skills is a significant leap. Second is the exposure to the global best practices.

BPOs provide the headstart in terms of ‘process maturity’ and hence helps shape the thinking of young workforce. The third is the opportunity to learn international cultures.

Interacting everyday either with customers as in a call centre or being part of a team that works with international teams, today’s youngsters get the opportunity to experience what it is like to work as a global professional.

The fourth is the opportunity to grow in the industry itself. An interesting aspect is that many employees grow on to managing multi-million dollar businesses at a young age. From an entry-level position to a managerial position there are several examples of growth.

Then there are benefits of travelling outside the country, as part of the functional requirement. All this is in addition to the benefits of a good pay.

So why, then, are many freshers still not clear about making BPOs a career choice? One cause is the perception about the industry.

For an industry that has grown to Rs 50,000 crore in eight years, there has been a lot of talk about what this industry has to offer. There are always many positives and some negatives.

However, the negatives have caught the attention of people. One is the fact that unlike retail or IT which was largely associated with technical qualifications, higher pay and travelling abroad, the BPO industry came as a huge shock to society.

Here was an industry willing to pick up freshers, not requiring specialised educational qualification, paying them Rs 15,000 as starting salary, working at different times of the day and night and creating massive employment.

It defeated all conventional norms of employment. It was a contrarian industry which created quite a stir. The larger society could not digest the pace and quantum of change.

Instead of good things getting highlighted, the focus went on to some of the drags like rash driving BPO cabs, possible health issues of late night working and whether the social fabric will change with so much money at the disposal of a young workforce. This got highlighted rather than the huge good that the industry has created.

The consequence, BPOs got positioned as good for a stop-gap, not for a long-term career. How untrue. With over 8 lakh people employed, it represents a vibrant India. This is the place of action.

Courtesy: Times of India

IT cos to go slow on hiring

BANGALORE: As the first quarter results for FY09 start pouring in from IT companies, starting with Infosys Technologies on July 11, expectations on the human resources front would be very muted.

Despite being one of the largest employers of formal education sector, the mood in the Indian IT industry is frozen in terms of hiring, on account of weak economic signals from US, its largest market.

It is expected there will not be any 'big' hiring numbers for the first quarter from the large IT services companies. The curiosity in hiring numbers is because any organisation’s revenue growth is directly related to number of people employed.

Some of the HR belt-tightening steps that large IT firms are keenly following are lower increments, slimmer bench (as low as 5 per cent in many cases against an average 20 per cent in the heydays), greater operational efficiencies in hiring and, in some extreme cases, even outplacements.

HR industry watchers say companies are not rushing to hire and are keeping an external bench instead. For instance, if a project requires 1,000 people over a period, they would hire 300 and guage the progress.

In the meantime, they would engage recruitment agencies to keep a database for the remaining numbers for hiring at short notice.

The current situation has led to the growth of innovative models and greater focus on recruitment process outsourcing (RPO). Today, providers o
f outsourced IT services are seriously looking at outsourcing their HR requirements.

This has started with companies asking recruitment agencies to be more aligned with their requirements and keep a talent pool ready. Wipro Technologies, for example, has aligned its recruitment agencies, to a particular business vertical so that they could also share the risks and rewards of hiring.

Ambletek Solutions Group CEO, Kannan Ramaswamy, says companies under pressure to reduce hiring costs are actively looking at RPO solutions. He feels there is a skilled talent pool available at costs lower than current levels. Companies are borrowing from manufacturing best practice, just-in-time (JIT) inventory for staffing.

Satyam’s HR head, SV Krishnan says, “We are looking at a lot of new models and JIT is one of them. Besides, we are also keen to have a diverse employee profile and our global workforce is increasing.”

Today, some companies are employing the concept of outplacements. Under this, a company retains a recruitment firm to actually headhunt its own employees it no longer needs and this applies to corporations on a rightsizing drive but focussed on staff welfare.

Outplacements is still quite a new concept in the Indian labour market. While outplacements is not a trend in the IT sector so far, there are some stray cases that recruitment firms report. Says Kris Lakhshmikanth of the Headhunters, “We have been engaged with a few such cases in the last quarter.” And, it will pick up momentum if distress signals continue, they add.

Courtesy: Times of India 2 Jul, 2008

Cost cutting starts at Google

SAN FRANCISCO: Internet search giant Google Inc is known for hosting the most extravagant holiday parties in Silicon Valley, often drawing crowds of over 10,000 and prompting some employees to post ads for party dates on classifieds website Craigslist.

But even Google has decided to scale back its holiday celebrations this year due to a global economic downturn and an ever-expanding workforce that had grown to 20,000 in October, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Silicon Valley has few reasons to celebrate this year as companies, including Hewlett Packard Co, Yahoo Inc, Sun Microsystems Inc and Applied Materials Inc, have cut over 140,000 jobs in the last few months because of the bleak economy, according to Challenger, Gray and Christmas consulting group.

Google has fared better than most tech companies, but departments at the Internet company will have smaller events this year to encourage camaraderie between employees and celebrate more economically, said the source. Team holiday activities will include spending an afternoon volunteering followed by evening social activities such as dinner parties and museum outings in San Francisco.

This is a striking difference from previous years, when Google holiday parties included ice sculptures of the company's logo, virtual reality video game stations, karaoke booths, sushi buffets and burlesque dancers.

Last year a party crowd of 10,000 spread throughout the Shoreline Amphitheater, near Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, said workers -- called Googlers. A handful used the Web to find dates.

But this year only one looked for a companion in a recent search on Craigslist. Google declined to comment on this year's change.

Courtesy: Times of India 22 Nov, 2008

Microsoft to add jobs

PERU: Not everyone is slashing jobs in these grim economic times. Microsoft Corp has no plans to cut back on research spending and plans to add workers in the coming year, senior executive Craig Mundie said.

“Right now we're still on a plan to complete 100 per cent of our college recruitment plan globally,” he said. “The ability to get top talent has actually improved” as the world enters what could be a punishing recession.

Nor is Microsoft, which has 90,000 employees and more than $20 billion in cash on hand, decreasing its global budget for educational programme -- which affects 100 countries, said Mundie, the software giant's chief research and strategy officer.

Mundie said in an interview during a 21-nation Pacific Rim economic summit that top management decided a few weeks ago it would slow hiring. But he said its $8 billion research budget wouldn't be trimmed.

“Our position at this point is that we hope to continue to actually still have some growth in our employment through the course of the year. But we're monitoring the situation carefully,'' he said.

Mundie said he believed Microsoft could actually benefit from the global downturn as people decide to hold meetings online rather than get on airplanes -- or save on phone costs by relying more on voice-over-Internet technology.

“I think we might see some movement toward those things that have an almost immediate payback in terms of productivity or cost containment,” he said.

Mundie was attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, whose members account for half the global economy and include China, Japan, the United States and Russia.

Courtesy: Times of India 22 Nov, 2008