Attrition prompts Voltas to go for massive recruitment

Increasing attrition rates and a severe talent-shortage at different levels may prompt engineering services company Voltas to go on a massive recruitment drive over the next three years.

The Tata Group company, which has a current staff strength of 6,500 employees, may recruit 5,000-10,000 more employees by 2011, said Anil J Gole, vice-president (human resources), Voltas.

"Creating and retaining a talent-base has become the biggest challenge. Similarly, increasing attrition rates at junior levels has also emerged as a major problem," he told PTI on the sidelines of a BCCI-organised seminar.

In the financial year 2007, the company witnessed as much as a 30 per cent attrition among its ranks. This financial year, however, the number is expected to decline to 20 per cent, said Gole.

Voltas has nearly 3,000 employees in the country now and proposes to increase it to 4,000 over the next two years, he said.

The refrigeration and air conditioning company also employs close to 3,500 employees in its overseas offices on a contract basis, he said, adding that this number too would be enhanced to around 7,500 in the next few years.

Voltas' had posted a 34 per cent jump in its second quarter sales at Rs 722.12 crore, against Rs 540.65 crore in the year-ago period. Net profits grew 114 per cent to Rs 53.58 crore from Rs 25 crore in the year-ago period.