A Study On Employee Retention Strategies in Information Technology IT Industry With Special Reference To Chennai City

Abstract

Employment relations, irrespective of the industry, time, place, and people engaged, and culture, is mutual, reciprocal, and interdependent. An important aspect of all employment relations is continuity. But neither the employer nor the employees are assured of that continuity in mutual relations for reasons that may be involving both or either of them. At a time of economic and employment stability the relationships between the two are stable. It also promotes a sense of commitment and loyalty toward the organization and the job. But in a volatile environment or in an atmosphere of fast industrialization the conditions change. The growth and development of new industries while providing opportunities to the management and the employees pose many problems and challenges. Organizations in the new industry always face the scarcity of right kind of manpower. This situation often brings in many challenges to the employer while providing wide opportunities and benefits to the employees (job seekers). Though this study primarily aimed to cover the IT industry in Chennai on a sample basis, it was finally decided to have the case study approach. Accordingly ten IT organizations were selected taking into account the constraints of time and preoccupation of the management people with their executive responsibilities. These ten Cases, to a large extent, do represent the IT industry in Chennai. They include organizations of different size (ranging from 200 to 120,000 employees), the organizations in different domains of IT business, organizations belonging to Indian entrepreneurs and multi-national companies. These ten cases were studied also using the analytical-descriptive study method and collecting data through questionnaires and interviews, websites and organizations own literature. The data gathered and analyzed are presented in seven chapters. The researcher has given suggestions and recommendations for employee and employer related to employee retention strategies.