GCC Setup Location Analysis 2024 | Global Talent Hotspots

What’s in the report?

Recessionary storms and supply chain disruptions rage, fueled by major conflicts in Asia and Europe. Yet one imperative rises above the chaos – the unrelenting demand for skilled engineering and digital talent. This talent stands as the last line of defense, helping companies create a defensible moat against external disruptions. The Global Capability Center (GCC) model has emerged as the go-to strategy, allowing companies to tap into under-tapped talent pools.

But where do these talent pools lie? Beyond traditional borders are promising new frontiers – Argentina, Chile, India, Costa Rica, and Taiwan. These locations aren’t just home to large talent pools of engineers and tech professionals, but also offer a relatively stable and welcoming environment for global firms to set up GCCs. As geopolitical tensions reshape immigration landscapes, a fierce contest plays out across Europe, Asia, Latin America, and North America for the prize of human capital.

Moreover, these emerging talent hotspots provide access to fresh global talent, proving pivotal as companies pursue transformational digital journeys, catalyze innovation, and unleash the potential of Generative AI. The rising tide of AI and machine learning adoption, particularly in Fintech, Healthcare, and e-Commerce, has ignited a frenzy for AI/ML professionals. This feverish demand has concentrated top AI/ML talent in North America (35%) and Asia-Pacific (38%), rendering them irresistible talent magnets.

In this dynamic landscape, leaders must chart their course wisely – pinpointing AI/ML talent clusters, identifying locations brimming with scalable talent pools, and zeroing in on ecosystems primed for setting up global centers. This comprehensive study maps out the global talent hotspots, arming leaders with the knowledge to establish full, scalable software product engineering and IT teams at competitive costs while driving rapid business growth and innovation.

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Key Insights from the Study

Global talent hotspots where companies can build scalable and full Software Product Engineering teams, have a mature technology ecosystem with a higher ease of doing business, and enable building teams at affordable costs.
Global trends such as increased adoption of AI/ML across verticals, geopolitical tensions in Asia and Europe that have prompted talent migration, and salary normalization in the wake of post-COVID rightsizing are forcing companies to explore newer talent hotspots.
To minimize risks and ensure business continuity in the face of external disruptions, companies should adopt a multi-hub strategy that enables skills-based hiring at affordable costs.
India (3.3Mn) and China (3.36Mn) are neck and neck in software engineering talent, with the US ranking a distant third at 1.6Mn software engineering professionals.
APAC has witnessed a 13% increase in its talent pool over the last year, driven primarily by several global companies from Europe, North America, and the Middle East setting up GCCs in countries like India, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Malaysia.
Although the global AI/ML engineering talent pool across the identified hotspots stands at 3Mn, the bulk of it is concentrated in North America (35%) and APAC (38%).
A comparative analysis of a 100-member Software Product Engineering team that houses key roles in each of the identified 23 countries, relative to costs in the US, provides a comprehensive view of countries where teams can be scaled easily.
Strong ecosystem collaboration between existing GCCs, and with local start-ups (including unicorns), Service Providers, and academia, make for a compelling case for global companies to continue to leverage these global talent hotspots.
This in-depth analysis of the 23 identified countries across North America, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and Asia Pacific evaluated across key parameters, empowers CXOs and decision makers to build full, scalable, high-performing teams within new GCCs.

Global Software Engineering Talent availability and cost

Center Of Excellence Hotspots Global Map

Why download this report?

Get insights on top locations to build world class GCCs where you can:

Build scalable, full Software Product Engineering and IT teams
Leverage a mature ecosystem of dynamic start-ups, Technology Service Providers, and universities
Benefit from high ease of doing business
Build teams at affordable costs

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To get access to the full report, please drop us a note at info@zinnov.com

Zinnov evaluated the 23 identified countries across the following 4 parameters:

Talent Availability
Software Engineering Ecosystem Maturity
Ease of Doing Business
Cost Analysis

While all 23 countries in this analysis have proven software engineering capability, in terms of building scalable GCCs, India, Canada, China, Mexico, and Poland are the Top 5 Talent Hotspots of the World, for the fourth year in a row.