Wanted: more C-suite execs to lead life outside a metro
Bengaluru: Leadership jobs are increasingly dispersing into tier II and tier III cities across India as local companies double down on expansion and corporates, including global capability centres (GCCs), push deeper beyond metros, said industry executives and experts.
“There’s been a clear increase in senior leadership mandates from tier II and tier III industrial hubs, particularly within promoter-led organisations and capital-backed companies,” said Preety Kumar, managing partner at executive search firm Amrop India.
The share of such jobs in senior leadership mandates is set to increase to 20-25% from about 10% at present, according to her.
Demand is emerging from industrial clusters such as Coimbatore, Mysuru, Rourkela, Dholera, Jaipur, the outskirts of Bengaluru and manufacturing belts across Gujarat including Rajkot, Vadodara and Surat–Valsad, as well as parts of Maharashtra’s industrial corridors. Several interconnected factors are driving this demand. “New strategic investment opportunities supported by government incentives, the availability of large land parcels and plug-and-play integrated industrial sites near cities or ports are key enablers,” said Kumar.
A Rajkot-based manufacturing company has engaged Amrop to build a CXO layer, along with advisory roles as part of its initial public offering-led scale-up. Other mandates include those from a private equity firm-backed specialty chemicals firm in a tier III location in southern Gujarat which is building a new senior leadership layer; from a regional telecom player focused on professionalising the organisation; and from a legacy manufacturing group headquartered in a tier II city in the Surat belt which is diversifying and requires full-scale leadership appointments including chief executive and chief operating officer.
K Sudarshan, managing director at EMA Partners India, who has placed leadership talent in locations such as Kumbakonam and Thrissur, said senior positions are opening up much more frequently in tier II and tier III cities.
Lower Salaries
This is primarily due to expansion by local companies or GCCs.
EMA Partners India is currently building a complete leadership team for a family-run business in Nagpur looking to go public. There are also positions in cities such as Coimbatore, Jaipur, Baroda and Bhubaneswar, according to Sudarshan, who said the momentum is set to build up further.
“As more companies gain scale, they are raising public capital, bringing on board talent. They may not always be able to attract tier-1 talent, but if the opportunity is big enough, that is also happening,” said Sudarshan.
However, he added, salaries, depending on location, can be up to 30% lower than in the top metros, which continue to be the hubs.
Agamjeet Dang, CEO of Executive Access, said the company has seen an almost 100% jump in such mandates from tier-2 and tier-3 cities, albeit on a smaller base. Salary levels are not less than 80-85% of what professionals make in a large metro, he said, and there are equity stock ownership plans and wealth creation opportunities at play as well.
Growing interest
While attracting talent remains challenging for tier-2 and tier-3 cities, primarily due to location perception, lifestyle concerns, lower salary and limited employer brand awareness, more professionals now willing to move — particularly empty-nesters, those looking to return to their roots or with family ecosystems in the region, and those seeking a better quality of life and opportunities away from the hustle and infrastructural challenges of big cities.
“High cost of living, creaking infrastructure and stress in large cities and a post-Covid interest in going back to hometowns and building a meaningful life, better work-life balance are fuelling interest,” said Dang. “Late-stage CXOs are also driving this trend, especially the empty-nesters.”
Citing the example of a financial services company CFO who shifted with his wife to a location about an hour from Kochi, he said, “A lot of times these candidates come from smaller city/town backgrounds and are much more open to such shifts.”
Amarpreet Singh Dua, who left his job at Reliance Jio in Mumbai and moved to Ludhiana with his family in January to take over as the group CEO of Jhajhar Group’s Fastway Transmissions and Netplus broadband, is another such example.
It was a big decision, especially given that the 44-year-old had spent 17-18 years working outside his home city and has children who are 13 and 18 respectively.
But the family is happy with the move, said Dua, and not just because the role is much bigger. “At Jio, I was heading one of many verticals. Now I’m heading the entire company. My skills are better utilised; I also feel more valued,” he said.
Besides, commute time has reduced sharply and the quality of life has improved. “We have an active social life; my children too are now much better connected to their grandparents and larger family,” said Dua.
“There’s been a clear increase in senior leadership mandates from tier II and tier III industrial hubs, particularly within promoter-led organisations and capital-backed companies,” said Preety Kumar, managing partner at executive search firm Amrop India.
The share of such jobs in senior leadership mandates is set to increase to 20-25% from about 10% at present, according to her.
Demand is emerging from industrial clusters such as Coimbatore, Mysuru, Rourkela, Dholera, Jaipur, the outskirts of Bengaluru and manufacturing belts across Gujarat including Rajkot, Vadodara and Surat–Valsad, as well as parts of Maharashtra’s industrial corridors. Several interconnected factors are driving this demand. “New strategic investment opportunities supported by government incentives, the availability of large land parcels and plug-and-play integrated industrial sites near cities or ports are key enablers,” said Kumar.
A Rajkot-based manufacturing company has engaged Amrop to build a CXO layer, along with advisory roles as part of its initial public offering-led scale-up. Other mandates include those from a private equity firm-backed specialty chemicals firm in a tier III location in southern Gujarat which is building a new senior leadership layer; from a regional telecom player focused on professionalising the organisation; and from a legacy manufacturing group headquartered in a tier II city in the Surat belt which is diversifying and requires full-scale leadership appointments including chief executive and chief operating officer.
K Sudarshan, managing director at EMA Partners India, who has placed leadership talent in locations such as Kumbakonam and Thrissur, said senior positions are opening up much more frequently in tier II and tier III cities.
Lower Salaries
This is primarily due to expansion by local companies or GCCs.
EMA Partners India is currently building a complete leadership team for a family-run business in Nagpur looking to go public. There are also positions in cities such as Coimbatore, Jaipur, Baroda and Bhubaneswar, according to Sudarshan, who said the momentum is set to build up further.
“As more companies gain scale, they are raising public capital, bringing on board talent. They may not always be able to attract tier-1 talent, but if the opportunity is big enough, that is also happening,” said Sudarshan.
However, he added, salaries, depending on location, can be up to 30% lower than in the top metros, which continue to be the hubs.
Agamjeet Dang, CEO of Executive Access, said the company has seen an almost 100% jump in such mandates from tier-2 and tier-3 cities, albeit on a smaller base. Salary levels are not less than 80-85% of what professionals make in a large metro, he said, and there are equity stock ownership plans and wealth creation opportunities at play as well.
Growing interest
While attracting talent remains challenging for tier-2 and tier-3 cities, primarily due to location perception, lifestyle concerns, lower salary and limited employer brand awareness, more professionals now willing to move — particularly empty-nesters, those looking to return to their roots or with family ecosystems in the region, and those seeking a better quality of life and opportunities away from the hustle and infrastructural challenges of big cities.
“High cost of living, creaking infrastructure and stress in large cities and a post-Covid interest in going back to hometowns and building a meaningful life, better work-life balance are fuelling interest,” said Dang. “Late-stage CXOs are also driving this trend, especially the empty-nesters.”
Citing the example of a financial services company CFO who shifted with his wife to a location about an hour from Kochi, he said, “A lot of times these candidates come from smaller city/town backgrounds and are much more open to such shifts.”
Amarpreet Singh Dua, who left his job at Reliance Jio in Mumbai and moved to Ludhiana with his family in January to take over as the group CEO of Jhajhar Group’s Fastway Transmissions and Netplus broadband, is another such example.
It was a big decision, especially given that the 44-year-old had spent 17-18 years working outside his home city and has children who are 13 and 18 respectively.
But the family is happy with the move, said Dua, and not just because the role is much bigger. “At Jio, I was heading one of many verticals. Now I’m heading the entire company. My skills are better utilised; I also feel more valued,” he said.
Besides, commute time has reduced sharply and the quality of life has improved. “We have an active social life; my children too are now much better connected to their grandparents and larger family,” said Dua.
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