Indian firms more agile and AI optimistic despite pay challenges: Report

New Delhi, April 7 Indian companies are far ahead of global peers on organisational agility, restructuring plans and AI adoption, but leaders must also focus on fair pay to retain talent, a report said on Tuesday.

The report from Mercer said 54 per cent of C-suite leaders in India expect AI’s primary role to be transforming the business and driving innovation in the next two years compared to 42 per cent globally. Further, 66 per cent of HR leaders planned work redesign to achieve optimal human-machine capability.

The report, based on nearly 12,000 global respondents including 650 from India, revealed that 80 per cent of India’s C-suite plan to simplify reporting lines, significantly ahead of the global average of 59 per cent, while 76 per cent intend to flatten hierarchies, compared to 44 per cent globally.

Around 64 per cent Indian respondents expect to create self-organising teams, versus 49 per cent globally. Overall agility scores in India are also marked higher, with 48 per cent rating their agility as high compared to just 29 per cent worldwide, particularly in business agility at 52 per cent and product agility at 42 per cent.

Gen Z accounted for 43 per cent of India’s workforce compared to 33 per cent globally.

Meanwhile, 54 per cent employees cited pay as the top reason for plans to leave the organisation, even while Indian employees place exceptional value on purpose.

Around 74 per cent respondents said working for an organisation with a purpose they are proud of helps them thrive, compared to 42 per cent globally.

Around 44 per cent of employees felt their pay to be unfair. “The drive for fair and competitive compensation is also evident in employees' desire for internal equity, with 37 per cent wanting assurance that they are paid the same as peers for similar work,” the report said.

To address this challenge, HR leaders in India are significantly more likely than their global peers to plan to address pay equity gaps between recent hires and longer-tenured employees in 2026, the report noted.

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