Now Reading: AI reshapes Standard Chartered global workforce, India hiring up
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AI reshapes Standard Chartered global workforce, India hiring up
AI reshapes Standard Chartered global workforce, India hiring up
Standard Chartered Plc is reshaping its global workforce as it adopts artificial intelligence, and expects to increase hiring in India, its Chief Operating Officer Tanuj Kapilashrami told Bloomberg TV. The bank's global…
The Story in Brief
Standard Chartered Plc is reshaping its global workforce as it adopts artificial intelligence, and expects to increase hiring in India, its Chief Operating Officer Tanuj Kapilashrami told Bloomberg TV. The bank's global capability centre in India employs about 22,000 people out of a total global workforce of just over 81,000. Kapilashrami said the bank is bringing more sophisticated work to India and has trained about 50,000 employees worldwide in AI. The bank had earlier said it plans to cut about 8,000 support roles over four years.
Goldman Sachs Chief India Economist Santanu Sengupta told Bloomberg that India faces a lower risk of large-scale job losses from AI compared to other countries. He cited the large workforce employed in mechanical and physical jobs, with construction and retail trade accounting for about 40% of employment. However, AI could impact service sector jobs, especially in call centres. Goldman Sachs estimates AI could boost India's productivity by 0.4 percentage points over the next decade if adopted gradually.
The Indian Opinion
The narrative that AI will massively destroy Indian jobs is too simplistic. Goldman Sachs rightly points out that India's vast informal workforce of construction workers and shopkeepers is not going to be replaced by an algorithm tomorrow. But the same report flags real pressure on call centres and IT services. Standard Chartered's plan to kill 8,000 support roles while also hiring more in India shows the truth: AI is a job reshuffler, not a job eliminator. The real test is whether India can retrain the workers whose roles vanish and keep those new jobs onshore, not offshore to another AI hub. That number to watch is not the unemployment rate, but how many of those 8,000 laid-off staff find a new role at the same bank.
Sources (2): bazaar.businesstoday.in, bazaar.businesstoday.in (2)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
