India's Global Capability Centres (GCCs) — in-house technology and operations hubs set up by multinational corporations — have taken the lead as one of the fastest-growing segments of the country's technology sector, outpacing the traditional IT services sector on several metrics. Behind the trend driving the rapid expansion of GCCs in India is the corporate need for control. Industry stakeholders say that the shift from outsourcing services to relying on in-house capabilities allows multinational companies to better manage intellectual property, proprietary technologies and sensitive data. India, currently the world's largest GCC hub with over 2,100 centres, employs around 2.36 million people while generating nearly $100 billion in revenue, driven largely by the country's deep and diverse talent pool, according to a report by Nasscom and Zinnov. By 2030, 2,500 GCCs are projected to employ 3.5 million.Read more: India tech jobs decline: AI, US immigration impact recruitmentWhat is driving the GCC boom?According to Rohan Lobo, Partner and GCC Industry Leader at Deloitte, “The original logic for outsourcing which is cost arbitrage has stopped being the only deciding factor. Benefits such as flexibility, ownership of IP, data protection, long-term talent, and institutional memory are increasingly being considered additionally to cost.”Explaining what has accelerated this shift, Lobo said three factors have sharpened the trend over the last 18 months. “First, AI and data — if a company's competitive edge is going to be built on proprietary models trained on proprietary data, you don't want that sitting inside a vendor's shared delivery centre. Second, regulation — global data and AI rules are tightening, making keeping processing and model development inside a captive entity cleaner for compliance than handing it to a third party. Third, the work itself has moved up the value chain — over half of India's GCCs now drive portfolio and transformation work rather than back-office support. GCCs are better suited for product-ownership mandates.”Read more: Companies face hardware talent crunch amid AI boomIndustry executives say India’s talent pool is also playing a key role in strengthening the GCC ecosystem. Himanshu Gandhi, Site General Manager at Cohere Health India, which operates a GCC in Hyderabad, explained that the availability of the right talent is enabling GCCs to bet on delivering capabilities out of India, whereas IT services are sometimes falling behind due to automation and emerging AI trends. “Multinational organisations are increasingly looking to retain greater control over core functions such as AI, cybersecurity, digital engineering, data analytics, product development, and customer experience transformation. This is not simply a hiring trend, but a broader evolution in operating models, where GCCs are becoming deeply integrated into global innovation plans and long-term enterprise strategy,” Sridhar Krishnan, Chief Operating Officer, MOAR Advisory, told ET Online.AgenciesReshaping India’s tech hiring marketThe shift towards GCCs is increasingly visible in hiring trends. According to TeamLease Digital, GCCs added nearly 200,000 net employees in FY26, compared with around 110,000 by IT services companies — nearly a 2:1 ratio. The gap has widened sharply from near parity in FY24, when GCCs added 60,000 employees against 50,000 by IT firms. With this, GCCs are now the single largest engine of specialised tech talent absorption in India. Unlike traditional IT services firms, whose hiring models rely heavily on fresher intake, GCCs are increasingly focused on specialised mid-level talent. Around 75–77% of the GCC workforce now consists of professionals with 3–8 years of experience. TeamLease Digital CEO Neeti Sharma said GCCs continue to hire freshers, but in a far more targeted manner, especially for AI, platform engineering and data security roles. “Demand for mid-to-senior talent across GCCs has increased from 60% in 2023 to over 77% in 2025-26. GCCs are projected to hire about 400,000 freshers cumulatively by 2030, about 130,000–140,000 annually.”The shift is also being driven by compensation. ANSR Research, a global firm specialising in the establishment of GCCs, told ET Online that GCC salaries are typically 15–40% higher than those offered by IT services firms, particularly in AI/ML, cloud, cybersecurity, semiconductor engineering, product management and data engineering roles. “Beyond higher fixed pay, GCCs also offer stronger overall value propositions through performance bonuses, stock or equity-linked benefits, global exposure, learning opportunities, and faster career growth,” ANSR Research said. According to Deloitte’s Rohan Lobo, “Demand for AI specialists has jumped over 300% since 2024, against an AI skills deficit of close to 50%, which is why AI, GenAI, ML, cybersecurity and cloud skills now command 30-40% premiums over equivalent non-specialised roles. This is also perhaps the reason GCCs hold a 15-20% pay differential over IT services firms for comparable jobs.” Rajesh Nambiar, President of Nasscom, said India’s GCC ecosystem is undergoing a “fundamental reset.” "The shift from scale to value is now well underway, with AI acting as the catalyst. GCCs are increasingly taking ownership of global products, platforms, and business outcomes, positioning India as a strategic nerve centre for enterprises worldwide. The next phase of growth will be defined by how effectively these centres can drive enterprise-wide transformation and deliver measurable impact," Nambiar said.Impact on IT sectorFor many technology workers, GCCs offer the best of both worlds — higher salaries and a chance to work on strategic, high-impact projects for global companies. That has made it tougher for traditional IT services firms to hold on to their most skilled employees.“There has been a considerable slowdown in newer deals being won by Indian IT Services companies , majorly due to cautious global spending. Hence the workforce requirement with the IT services companies have been lower than before, however they continue to hire talent with AI & AI adjacent skill sets in lower volumes. On the other hand, GCC’s growth has seen a much higher talent requirement,” TeamLease Digital’s Sharma told ET Online. “Volume hiring is surely not coming back in the IT services companies anytime soon. Tech jobs are not going away; what is changing is who is hiring and what skills they get hired for.”According to Lobo, the rise of AI is amplifying structural advantages that GCCs enjoy over traditional IT services firms. “The core advantage is alignment of incentives. An IT services firm's traditional business model is people-on-projects — revenue scales with headcount. Traditional IT services firms now need to automate themselves out of its own revenue and that is a disincentive. A GCC has no such conflict.”What employees seekAmid slowdown in hiring, engineers and developers are drawn to higher salaries, perceived stability and prestige associated with working directly for global corporations. While the balance between outsourcing and captive operations has historically shifted with changing costs and business priorities, the current wave appears more dramatic with the rising gap between hiring. “The most significant movement is among software and application engineers with five to twelve years of experience. Professionals making this transition consistently cite four motivating factors: greater ownership of outcomes, deeper technical engagement, mandate stability, and alignment with global innovation agendas,” Sanju Ballurkar, President-Experity at staffing firm ManpowerGroup India, told ET Online. According to TeamLease Digital, freshers entering GCCs in AI and GenAI roles are earning median salaries of 7-8 LPA compared to 5 LPA in equivalent IT products and services roles, a 30-35% premium on the first offer itself. Over time, the gap widens as GCCs typically offer higher growth trajectories linked to specialised skills and business ownership.“The highest salary premiums are seen in areas such as AI/ML, cloud, cybersecurity, semiconductor engineering, product management, data engineering, and platform engineering, where GCCs compete directly with global technology companies and product firms for talent. Beyond higher fixed pay, GCCs also offer stronger overall value propositions through performance bonuses, stock or equity-linked benefits, global exposure, learning opportunities, and faster career growth,” said ANSR Research.Commenting on the shift in the tech job market, Raghu Pareddy, CEO & Founder of Wissen Technology, said, “There is definitely strong competition for specialised digital talent today, particularly in AI, cloud, cybersecurity, data engineering, and platform-led roles. GCCs are often able to attract talent because they offer opportunities to work on global products, innovation-led programs, and high-ownership engineering work.”Challenges facing GCCsDespite their strong growth momentum, GCCs continue to face operational and talent-related challenges. ANSR, which has clients including Wells Fargo, FedEx, Delta Air Lines and American Airlines, said one of the biggest challenges facing the GCC sector is sustaining strong, future-ready talent pipelines in an environment where technology and business models are evolving rapidly.“Key challenges include attracting and retaining specialised talent, building leadership capabilities for globally integrated roles, managing continuous reskilling at scale, and adapting to faster cycles of technology adoption and enterprise transformation. Another major challenge lies in balancing rapid innovation with organisational agility and workforce readiness.”According to Quess Corp’s fourth-quarter FY26 report, the GCC ecosystem is grappling with a widening shortage of specialised AI and data talent, with the skills gap now estimated at 38–42%, making it one of the biggest constraints to growth.Additionally, Cohere Health India’s Himanshu Gandhi said junior-level attrition continues to strain operations. “In complex fields like health tech AI, teams need structured training and strong knowledge transfer to manage the steep learning curve.”Sridhar Krishnan of MOAR Advisory said GCCs also face challenges in balancing rapid innovation with organisational agility and workforce readiness. However, he added that the rise of GCCs does not diminish the importance of IT services firms, which will continue to play a critical role in large-scale transformation, implementation and scalable execution.Ultimately, the long-term success of GCCs will depend on their ability to build adaptive cultures, strengthen future-ready leadership models, and develop resilient technology and talent ecosystems that can evolve alongside changing global business priorities.