Unicorns Lead India’s Hiring Boom: What A 35% Spike Says About 2025 Jobs

India’s white-collar job market closed November 2025 on a high note as unicorn companies ramped up hiring by a striking 35% year-on-year, while non-metro and emerging cities led the charge in fresher recruitment with a 30% jump.

Overall Hiring Rebounds Strongly Post Festive Season

According to the latest Naukri JobSpeak Report, after a typical festive-season slowdown, white-collar hiring in November 2025 shot up 23% compared to November 2024. The consolidated October-November period still recorded a healthy 6% YoY growth, keeping the fiscal year trend within the steady 6-7% band.

Dr. Pawan Goyal, Chief Business Officer, Naukri, observed: “The growth in Indian white collar hiring continues to be in the 6-7% range this fiscal & this period was no exception. Shift towards Non-IT sectors & demand for high-value roles, continues. One early trend we are observing on the platform is the increased digital hiring adoption among smaller businesses."

Unicorns Lead Aggressive Talent Hunt

Indian unicorns stepped up recruitment aggressively, posting a 35% YoY increase in job postings. The surge was most prominent in Chennai, Hyderabad and Delhi/NCR, reflecting continued investor confidence and expansion plans in new-age businesses.

Freshers Find More Opportunities Outside Traditional Hubs

Entry-level hiring (0-3 years’ experience) grew 30% nationally, with non-metro cities stealing the show. Ahmedabad and Coimbatore emerged as the top destinations for fresh graduates, while Jaipur, Gandhinagar and Vadodara also recorded strong double-digit gains.

Service-led sectors played a big role: Hospitality jobs for freshers soared 75%, followed closely by Education at 71%.

Non-IT Sectors Drive Broader Recovery

Sectors such as Education, Real Estate, Hospitality & Travel and Insurance posted some of the strongest growth numbers. Marketing & Communications roles across industries jumped 32%, signalling heightened focus on branding and customer outreach.

Global Capability Centres Continue Expansion

Hiring by Global Capability Centres (GCCs) rose 18% YoY, with demand concentrated in specialised technology and analytics roles. Kolkata stood out with a massive 102% increase in GCC-related job postings, underlining its rising status as a preferred GCC destination.

Senior Talent in Demand Across Healthcare and IT

Professionals with 16+ years of experience saw hiring grow 27% YoY. Healthcare led the segment with 36% growth, while even the IT sector, despite broader caution, registered a respectable 19% uptick for senior roles.

City-Wise Standouts

City-wise, Gandhinagar emerged as the undisputed leader with a remarkable 56% year-on-year growth, making it the fastest-growing job market in the country. Both Raipur and Surat followed strongly with 35% year-on-year hiring growth. Lucknow showed 32% hiring growth.

The report noted, "Emerging cities like Ahmedabad and Jaipur led the charge in fresher hiring, witnessing a +41% and +31% growth respectively."

Pune, Kochi and Ahmedabad clocked impressive 31% growth, while Hyderabad continued its steady rise with 30%.

According to the report, "Kolkata witnessed a +21% YOY hiring surge overall, with an impressive +102% growth in hiring by GCCs."

Chennai recorded a healthy 25% increase, closely followed by Delhi/NCR at 23%. Even the traditionally dominant IT hubs of Bengaluru and Mumbai posted solid gains of 22% and 20% respectively, reflecting broad-based recovery across both tier-1 and emerging centers.

Bottomline 

The Naukri JobSpeak Report for November 2025 paints a picture of a resilient and diversifying job market, where non-IT sectors, unicorns, GCCs and tier-2 cities are collectively powering India’s next phase of white-collar employment growth.

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