India faces record talent shortages: 80% of employers struggle to fill roles

India’s employers are grappling with a talent crunch in 2025, as 80% of them report difficulty finding skilled professionals, far exceeding the global average of 74%. According to the latest Global Talent Shortage Survey by Manpower Group, the challenge is most acute in South India, where 85% of employers face hiring difficulties, and industries like IT, Energy, and Healthcare are under the greatest strain.
While demand for talent remains robust, with hiring needs reaching 53% globally and 84% in India’s IT sector, employers are increasingly turning to upskilling strategies to bridge the gap.
The survey also reveals that to find, attract, and recruit talent, employers are offering more upskilling and reskilling opportunities to current employees (39%), as they aim to reduce recruitment costs by promoting internal mobility. Increasing temporary recruitment is favoured by only 22% of employers as they show preference in targeting new talent pools (38%) and increasing wages (29%).
Also Read:
- 6 Key essentials to manage a smooth year-end payroll process
- How industry collaboration can fix the talent shortage
- TCS faces talent crisis: 80,000 open jobs highlights critical skill gap
Highlighting the top challenges to fully leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI), employers cite training staff, finding qualified talent, and offering more location flexibility (hybrid, remote) as the top challenges.
The survey points out that company size plays a notable role in talent acquisition challenges, with large organisations (250-999 employees) and very large enterprises (1,000-4,999 employees) reporting an 82% difficulty in filling positions, while the largest organisations (5,000+ employees) face slightly fewer challenges at 80%.
The survey collected data from more than 3,000 employers across the 4 regions of India. The IT sector leads with the highest hiring demand 84%, followed by Energy & Utilities and Healthcare and Lifesciences at 81% each.
The top five most in-demand skills are IT & data, sales & marketing, engineering, operations & logistics, and manufacturing/production.
"The persistent talent shortage, with 80% of organizations struggling to fill roles in 2025, underscores the urgent need for collective action, said Sandeep Gulati, Managing Director, ManpowerGroup India and Middle East.
“Industries like IT, Energy, and Utilities are feeling the greatest strain, with demand for specialised skills like data and IT continuing to rise. Addressing this challenge will require a robust partnership between businesses, governments, and educators to build a future-ready workforce,” said Sandeep.