Re-inventing the IT recruitment
This NY-based entrepreneur has taken his problem-solving acumen a notch higher and tweaked IT companies’ HR recruitment game plan. Chitiz Agarwal, Founder and CEO of Company Bench and CEO, Techila Global Services relies on his drive and expertise in delivering solutions to technology-driven companies. Instead of connecting with individual IT software developers and aspirants for placements, Chitiz pitches for IT companies directly for deploying their seasoned ‘bench’ professionals to others in the sector or anyone willing to avail their services. He draws the IT hiring drive from his previous associations with global IT corporations like Accenture, IBM, and the likes.
Corporate Citizen gains an insight into the recruitment space where Chitiz has moved the traditional IT ‘bench’ concept, showcasing the strength and capability of IT companies into an online niche portal for immediate hiring of skilled IT professionals. Agarwal shares the resurgence and transitions gained in re-engaging ‘bench’ workers post the pandemic and its future reliability
“Company Bench is a platform/marketplace, which showcases client jobs and vendors across India, says Chitiz Agarwal, Founder and CEO, Company Bench. He says that the vendor can submit a relevant CV or resumes, and the client can access the required IT-trained resources quickly through the portal in comparison to the existing conventional hiring portals. Chitiz has also co-founded Techila Global Services, a Pune-based salesforce development company, and is a Salesforce Consulting Partner. He also runs the Techila Academy for aspirants in developing their skills and knowledge in the Salesforce domain.
Being on the bench
Chitiz’s Company Bench derives its name, business, and the concept from the ‘bench’ system, prevalent in the IT sector. A ‘bench’ comprises of employees without any project but are a part of the reserve team and are on the company’s payroll. Employees often go on a ‘bench’ in between projects in the IT sector.
A ‘bench’ has been considered a show of strength for IT companies to display their pool of trained talents, especially software development, to bag more new projects and businesses.
However, the pandemic has posed a problem, and this very strength seems to have become a liability during the different pandemic stages.
Industry data indicates that since the lockdown, the size of the bench staff has increased from 7% to 8%. The estimate for smaller IT companies is even higher, with their bench size now increased to double digits as they have a smaller employee base.
And it is this ‘bench’, which forms part of Chitiz’s talent pool too. His venture aims to interconnect the existing IT benchers across organisations, primarily software developers trained in Salesforce, Swift, Python, Node, React, DevOps, Angular, Android, Machine Learning, and Data Engineering as some of the key subsets.
The portal is essentially a pool of IT specialists who have been mastering multiple technologies as per the clients’ needs and help fill in resource gaps cost-effectively for the companies that need them.
Corporate Citizen gathered a few nuggets on the advent of ‘bench’ recruiters, its future, and the post-pandemic appeal with Chitiz Agarwal.
"Currently, in the general hiring lifecycle, it takes 2-3 months to onboard a new employee and the joining ratio of niche skills have fallen to 10-15%. We provide resources who are already working on our vendor’s payroll. So, once the potential recruits clear the client’s screening interview, it’s a sure shot that they can start immediately"
Bench appeal
CC: How old is the ‘bench’ concept of HR functionality in the IT sector?
Chitiz Agarwal: While the system is not new, ‘bench’ exists in almost all IT companies. We have revolutionised the concept by quickly acquiring qualified, certified IT resources or ‘bench’ associates and breaking the stereotype of the traditional hiring process.
CC: Is the concept similar to ‘Contract Hiring’?
Hiring contractors has become quite common among companies. While big corporates do not want to increase their bench too much, they try to keep 30-40% of people as contractors, which does not come with any obligations. With our approach, a company can easily scale up or, more importantly, scale down its workforce without damaging its brand appeal.
CC: How has your 'bench' concept revolutionised the hiring system?
Company Bench is tech-led and works on the SI (System Integrator) model. We are the only marketplace in India to hire contractors rather than employees. So, whenever companies need a contractor, they come to us.
CC: Why did you launch the 'bench' recruitment concept?
Our venture was a by-product of the pandemic, as the market had turned upside down which limited the opportunities available while expanding the resource market. The companies too, had an unutilised budget during the pandemic. The direct deployment of professionals through the online portal allowed companies to prevent undue revenue outflow and optimise the available resources for IT and technology-driven companies.
CC: How did the pandemic impact IT hiring?
After the pandemic, there has been an enormous surge in contract employment and a shortfall in obtaining skilled candidates. This gap enabled us to intervene in the recruitment business and resolve the problem with the vast pool of available IT developers and IT-skilled resources.
CC: How relevant has it become post-the pandemic to utilise the ‘company bench’ to fill vacancies?
It is the need of the hour, as demand for projects and resources have shot up with the high demand for technology across sectors, and companies are trying to retain the developers. We provide a pool of quality-driven and certified resources to IT companies.
Bench v/s Traditional job portals
CC: How do you differentiate yourselves from the regular job portals?
We are very different from any other job portal like Naukri and provide immediate contractors who can start the job the same day itself. In comparison, a full-time employee’s hiring lifecycle can take anywhere between 2-3 months. Ours is a quick, one-stop shop for all IT hiring needs, saving time and cost for an organisation.
CC: Can you validate the speed competency of your service in the recruitment process?
Currently, in the general hiring lifecycle, it takes 2-3 months to onboard a new employee and the joining ratio of niche skills have fallen to 10-15%. We provide resources who are already working on our vendor’s payroll. So, once the potential recruits clear the client’s screening interview, it’s a sure shot that they can start immediately. Clients save time such that instead of taking 20 interviews for one joinee, they can wrap up the process with just 1-2 interviews.
CC: How do you ascertain the quality of the listed contractors on your portal for a particular job-fit?
That is the value addition we provide as we screen these candidates internally and rank them so that the client has real-time feedback of the resource as per their profiles which speeds up their hiring.
CC: How different is the compensation criteria for the bench recruits?
Payment has to be made to the vendor who eventually pays the candidate. For a better understanding of the flow of monies, the client pays Company Bench, we then pay the vendor, and the candidate gets his dues from the vendor.
"We choose and train underprivileged individuals and help generate jobs for them. Secondly, if we find excellent resources amongst these trainees, we hire them as part of our recruitment portfolios"
Chitiz AgarwalCC: Do you have a role to play in the compensation criteria?
We drive the compensation as per case-to-case basis.
CC: What is the current hiring trend within companies that helps you to benchmark your services?
There is a huge gap in the demand and supply of professionally trained candidates. As per the available study, all major companies are trying to have 30%-40% of their staff in the form of contractors. With the work dynamics having shifted to work from home or contractual employment, we expect to fulfil all demands related to the contract-led hiring pattern.
CC: What is your survival edge in the recruitment/HR portal market?
We do not provide the standalone IT resource or contractor but make sure they are certified, IT-skilled individuals.
Bench in the gig world
CC: Do you work towards knowledge inclusivity for aspirants to participate in the rising IT gig economy?
There is a considerable shortage of full-stack developers. The cost of training software developers is very high in any certified university and ill-affordable for many. Our company has taken a step ahead and offers training at marginal prices to such aspirants keen on learning various technologies. We have groomed a few of our office boys and other underprivileged individuals by giving them a learning platform to develop themselves.
CC: What is the future of your venture and the bench concept?
Our company has been well ahead of the breakeven point with 35% profitable margins, and we are in a comfortable space where every company is struggling to hire or retain talent. IT companies are sure to get immediate talent through our portal model, and I believe that the concept is here to stay.
CC: What are the advantages of the bench recruitment model for the future?
It is getting hard for companies to maintain a large pool of resources and it is quite cumbersome to either scale up immediately or scale down in the absence of relevant projects. We are their ‘bench’ whenever they need it but don’t have to pay for it until they use it.
CC: What are the most immediate aspirations for the company?
We aspire and aim to be a B2B (business to business) marketplace rather than in the B2C (business to commerce) space.
Personal bench
CC: What is your role as a member of the Forbes Tech Council?
I am on New York Technology Council, connecting with everyone and helping companies in their technology advancement skills.
CC: Do you engage in training-based CSR activities?
We train around 1000 people free of cost every year as part of our community service. Many companies and coaching enterprises provide Salesforce training with a fee ranging from Rs.30,000 to Rs.1,00,000 for a six-week training module. As part of CSR, we provide similar training but we don’t charge anything because we are not technically a training firm. We choose and train underprivileged individuals and help generate jobs for them. Secondly, if we find excellent resources amongst these trainees, we hire them as part of our recruitment portfolios.
CC: Do share a few tips for young corporate/IT aspirants?
Dream big, work hard, and be humble.
CC: What are your interests or hobbies to work-life balance?
Playing basketball and golf, travelling, networking, and adventure sports.