MUMBAI, India — India’s Global Capability Centers are increasingly evolving into innovation hubs rather than traditional back-office operations, and their workforce remains overwhelmingly young, with 93 percent of employees belonging to Gen Z and millennial cohorts, according to a report released Thursday.
The study by Great Place To Work India said the youth-heavy workforce is intensifying competition for talent and highlighting the importance of strong workplace culture in attracting and retaining skilled professionals.
India continues to strengthen its position as the world’s largest hub for Global Capability Centers, or GCCs. The country hosts about 53 percent of the world’s GCCs and employs more than 1.9 million professionals in these centers, the report said.
GCCs are in-house global centers established by multinational companies to manage strategic, operational and innovation-driven work.
According to the research, 85 percent of employees working in GCCs report a positive workplace experience, placing the sector close to the broader India Inc. benchmark and underscoring the growing importance of workplace culture as these centers expand in size and complexity.
The GCC ecosystem in India is heavily concentrated in a handful of major cities. About 94 percent of centers are located in six key hubs: Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Pune and Chennai.
The number of GCCs operating in the country is expected to surpass 2,100 by 2028, growing at an estimated compound annual growth rate of about 8 percent through fiscal year 2028.
GCCs are also projected to account for roughly 35 to 40 percent of India’s total office space demand this year, reflecting their expanding role in the country’s economy and employment landscape.
“GCCs are no more IT support centres, but global hubs delivering high-value work across industries. GCCs have been creating an equitable workplace compared to the rest of India Inc., but the next steps are to bring them to the forefront of trust, growth, and recognition through decisive, time-bound action,” said Balbir Singh, chief executive officer of Great Place To Work India.
Trust levels within GCCs currently stand at about 82 percent, roughly in line with the information technology sector but trailing industries such as retail, healthcare and manufacturing.
The report said GCCs outperform much of India Inc. on several aspects of employee experience. Workers frequently cite world-class infrastructure, access to advanced technologies and flexible work models that support work-life balance as major advantages.
The sector also shows stronger representation of women, with female employees making up about one in three workers in GCCs, compared with the national average of roughly 26 percent. (Source: IANS)
