Layoffs at Capgemini continue

CHENNAI: Consulting and outsourcing firm Capgemini has laid off nearly 100employees at its Chennai centre. The pink slips were issued for employees mostly in the middle management positions. This comes on the back of reports that said Capgemini sacked 600 employees in Hyderabad and Pune. The company has nearly 20,000 people working in India. An employee said the layoff across centers was because of the overall economic slowdown, which was impacting the company’s project flow and clients. “While some clients have ramped down on the size of contracts, other projects, like theLehman Brothers account closed after the company’s collapse. Apart from the middle management, some employees on probation were also asked to leave,” said the employee at one of the company’s locations, who did not wish to be named.

When contacted, Capgemini India’s chief people officer Cyprian D’Souza told ET through e-mail, “India is central to our global delivery model and we are in the process of mapping our existing skills with the business in hand and the business outlook. The economic condition is tough and no company is immune to its effects.”

Mr D’Souza added that the industry was seeing an overhaul within all the affected verticals. “The process though tough, has to be undertaken to align our business with global economic realities, optimise operational efficiency, ensure financial health and enable future growth.”

For the first quarter of 2009, Capgemini group posted consolidated revenues of Euro 2,205 million, up 0.9 % compared with the year-ago period.