Hiring shifts to tier-2, tier-3 campuses as companies expand beyond big cities to cut costs

New Delhi: Companies that are expanding beyond big cities are increasing hiring of talent from local, often second- or third-tier, campuses to man those operations. While this strategy helps lower cost, locally hired employees are also easier to retain, said industry executives and HR experts.

Executives at Flipkart, Godrej Consumer Products, Godrej Enterprises, PepsiCo, ITC and IT services firms said they are leaning more towards campuses that are not among the top ranked for entry-level hiring.

A dipstick analysis conducted by professional services firm Aon India for ET confirms this trend. According to Aon, information technology, financial services, health care and manufacturing firms are increasing their hiring from such campuses.
“We are seeing a trend over the last couple of years of companies expanding their hiring to tier-2 and tier-3 campuses,” said Roopank Chaudhary, partner and country head for talent and rewards consulting at Aon India.

For the 2026-27 batch, Flipkart is likely to onboard 1,200-1,400 interns and full-time graduates at its ecommerce business, logistics unit Ekart and Cleartrip online travel portal, said a spokesperson. The hiring will be for roles in engineering, data, product, design, supply chain, operations and business functions.
“Over the last few years, we have consciously expanded our campus footprint beyond tier-1 institutions to a much wider set of tier-2 and tier-3 colleges,” said the spokesperson. At present, a large chunk of entry-level hiring comes from these campuses, and this proportion has increased year-on-year.”A broader campus strategy also allows us to build more diverse teams and hire closer to operational locations, which often translates into better cultural fit and long-term retention,” the spokesperson said.

For its flagship management trainee programme called Gallop, Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL) recruits from tier-1 MBA campuses. But for its ‘Women in Sales’ programme, Aarambh, it partners with tier-3 MBA campuses.

“Through this, we are enabling access to ambitious, high-potential women professionals from smaller cities and towns where the company has a strong operating presence,” said its global head of HR, Vaibhav Ram.

PepsiCo is building a diverse future talent pipeline, particularly for roles in sales and supply chain, where local market understanding, operational exposure and on-ground agility are critical, said Pavitra Singh, vice-president and people leader at PepsiCo India and South Asia.

“We have been expanding our outreach to include select tier-2 and tier-3 emerging campuses, along with our continued engagement with top-tier B-schools,” Singh said.