New Delhi, January 2, 2017 /PRNewswire/ – The Year 2017 is bringing good news for job seekers, with an expected 10-15 per cent rise in hiring activity in 2017 as reported by over 2000 employers across India Inc in the TimesJobs.com Job Outlook Survey 2016-17.

This points towards a cheerful year for the hiring industry, as employers' expectations are greater than what they were last year. In the TimesJobs Job Outlook Survey last year (2015-16), employers had anticipated a lower 5-10 per cent rise in hiring while now they are upbeat about seeing a 10-15 per cent rise in 2017.

"There is a clear paradigm shift in the Indian Economy, with the support of the government's efforts and focus on IT, entrepreneurship and manufacturing, India Inc is steering itself for strong growth that is seen to be impacting job growth and employment in the country next year," says Nilanjan Roy, Head of Strategy, Times Business Solutions.

IT, Telecom, Healthcare and Manufacturing Sectors to be the top Employment Generators

In the TimesJobs.com Job Outlook Survey 2016-17, 30 per cent organisations felt the IT and telecom sectors will hire the biggest numbers, 20 percent said the healthcare sector and 15 per cent said that manufacturing will be the top employment generator. Another 15 per cent voted for automobile and 10 per cent for infrastructure and retail sectors.

The focus on gender diversity will also continue to take shape in 2017, as highlighted by India Inc. in the TimesJobs.com Job Outlook 2016-17 study. Over 70 per cent organisations plan to increase the ratio of women in their workforce. This is a significant 10 per cent rise in employer expectations as compared to that in 2016, showing a heightened awareness of the gender diversity challenge faced by India Inc.

About 60 per cent employers foresee a higher demand for women professionals at the middle level positions, 20 per cent see maximum hires at the entry level while another 20 per cent say they will hire women professional for CXO level leadership roles in 2017.