Corporate India is likely to witness annual salary hikes in the range of 6%-15% this year, depending on the industry, role criticality, and niche skills and this figure may touch as high as 40% for emerging skills and critical leadership roles, according to the Michael Page 2025 Salary Guide and the Press Trust of India.

The study noted that India’s job market has shown resilience in recent months, offering increased opportunities across sectors compared to early 2024.

“Annual salary hikes in India generally vary from 6%-15%, and salary increments for promotions typically range from 20%-30%, with critical leadership and emerging skill roles seeing hikes of 30% to 40%,” it stated.

Over a dozen new global private equity, sovereign, venture capital, real estate, and infrastructure funds have expanded their operations into India, marking the country’s growing significance in the global investment landscape, it added.

“Some of the exciting roles on salary growth perspective are AI, ML (machine learning), cyber security, data privacy, then head of manufacturing, chief operating officers, then our senior roles within GCC, which could be the head of shared services or functional heads in GCC (global capability centres), or it could be roles across financial services, in banking, fintechs and BMCs and private equity venture caps,” Ankit Agarwala, managing director of PageGroup said.

The banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) sector continues to drive demand for professionals across multiple areas, particularly in risk management, finance, compliance, and technology.

Organisations are also increasingly adopting agile hiring strategies and offering employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs) and long-term incentives, especially for senior roles.

Moreover, a growing emphasis on diversity and inclusion is evident, with many companies targeting 50% female representation through competitive compensation packages and flexible work options.

“Organisations that make decisive moves, provide clear career progression and offer competitive compensation will not only attract top talent but also retain it in an increasingly competitive market,” said Nilay Khandelwal, senior managing director at Michael Page Singapore and India.