E-commerce seen creating 1.5 lakh jobs in 2-3 years

The fast pace of growth of e-commerce in India, which is expected clock growth rates of 20-25 per cent over the next two-three years, is projected to generate at least 1.5 lakh jobs.

The industry, which is currently pegged at an estimated Rs18,000 crore, is also expected to reach Rs50,000 crore by 2016, according to experts.

''We are extremely bullish on the e-commerce sector. There are nearly 200 start-ups flush with PE/VC funds in this area and several hundred that are treading the same line. We believe over the next two-three years, this sector will create at least 1,50,000 jobs,'' Antal International Network India managing director Joseph Devasia said.

''The industry is very bullish. The main players - Amazon, eBay, Flipkart and Myntra - are regular recruiters from BITS and have increased the number of hiring this year,'' Mani Sankar Das Gupta, chief of placement unit at BITS Pilani, said.

As of now, there is a severe dearth of talent at all levels and to attract and retain key talent, top players are shelling out huge salaries, he said.

 ''In India, most e-commerce players increased salaries by 10-40 per cent between 2013 and 2014 and are now paying salaries of Rs10-23 lakh. At mid and senior levels too salaries are rising by 10-15 per cent every year, besides the offer of stock options that makes employees millionaires'' Gupta added.

"Salaries in this sector are likely to see a higher degree of ESOPs and performance based rewards as compared to other industries," Jayesh Pandey, managing director, talent and organization at Accenture India.

Rajiv Srivatsa COO & co-founder, Urban Ladder, said, "We are at par with most other e-commerce companies in terms of salary. Along with the salary component, employee stock options attract a lot of talent since the industry is on a massive growth path."

Indian Staffing Federation executive director Suchita Dutta said, "E-commerce hiring is extremely bullish with the sector alone ready to hire over 15,000 in the next 5 months. The upscale is largely driven by robust positive sentiment both amongst consumers as well as the industry."

The indicative salary outlook for junior employees is Rs1.45-3 lakh per annum, while for mid-management it is between Rs12-30 lakh per annum, Dutta added.