What Next? Is the IT Industry Dead—or Just Evolving in a Way We Can’t Ignore?

In a country where IT once stood as the poster child for economic growth, global relevance, and aspirational careers, something strange is unfolding. The latest Economic Times report has jolted the very perception of this once-coveted sector: real monthly wages for IT employees in 2023-24 are lower than they were in 2017-18—even as corporate profits soar to a 15-year high.

Let that sink in.

The Productivity Illusion

What’s going wrong? The answer lies not in a lack of work, but in a shift in what the work is valued at. Companies today are obsessed with increasing productivity—not hours. In theory, this sounds ideal. Work smarter, not harder. But in practice, it has translated to doing more with fewer people, delaying salary hikes, and trimming the so-called “middle layer.”

Indian IT firms, once generous with salary hikes, promotions, and overseas opportunities, are now focusing heavily on automation, AI integration, and cost-optimization. The result? The industry is squeezing higher output from its workforce without proportionately rewarding it.

Profits Rise, People Fall

According to ET’s data, IT companies have never been more profitable. And yet, wage stagnation—and in real terms, a wage drop—tells a different story for employees. This glaring gap between profits and pay highlights a larger economic imbalance: value is being extracted, not created with the workforce, but at the cost of the workforce.

It raises a bigger question: Is the Indian IT industry eating its own future?

The Death of the Dream?

While the phrase “IT industry is dead” might sound exaggerated, it’s not far-fetched if we’re talking about the dream that once attracted millions of students to engineering colleges, coding bootcamps, and late-night project sprints.

• The promise of job security? Fading.
• The idea of upward mobility? Slipping.
• The potential of creating impact through technology? Hijacked by repetitive backend services and client support tasks.

What Needs to Change?

1. Reimagine Career Growth: Employees are no longer content with generic job roles. Companies need to invest in real skill growth—AI, data science, Web3, cybersecurity—and reward those who lead transformation.
2. Share the Pie: If profits are booming, it’s only fair that the creators of value—the employees—get their due. Equity sharing, profit-linked bonuses, or ESOPs need to become the norm, not the exception.
3. Redefine Productivity: Instead of squeezing output, redefine productivity to include employee well-being, innovation, and purpose. Let’s not automate humans in the name of automating work.

Final Thought

No, the IT industry is not dead. But it is at a crossroads.

It can either evolve into a sustainable, fair, and innovative engine of progress—or collapse into a profit-driven ghost of its former self, haunted by burnout, attrition, and lost talent.

The choice lies with leadership. And perhaps, with every young techie who dares to ask, “Is this all there is?”

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