Massive layoff warning: Why Cognizant may cut 13,000 jobs in India alone

Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. is reportedly preparing for a significant global workforce reduction that could affect between 12,000 and 15,000 employees, with the majority of the cuts expected to occur in India.

According to a report from Moneycontrol, the Nasdaq-listed IT giant revealed on April 29 that it anticipates incurring severance expenses between $230 million and $320 million as part of its newly inaugurated "Project Leap." While the company did not specify the total headcount reduction in its initial announcement, industry analysts and back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest a wide-reaching impact.

Cognizant currently maintains a global workforce of more than 357,000, with over 250,000 employees based in India.

The Restructuring Calculus

The estimated job losses are derived from typical salary and severance structures across Cognizant’s primary operational regions.

• India Impact: With an assumed average annual salary of ₹15 lakh and a six-month severance package (roughly ₹7.5 lakh per person), the India-specific portion of the restructuring outlay could account for 12,000 to 13,000 roles.
• Global Impact: In higher-cost regions like the United States, where average salaries hover around $100,000, the cost per employee for a similar severance package rises to approximately $50,000. This higher per-capita cost means fewer positions can be eliminated for the same financial provision compared to India.

Chief Executive Officer Ravi Kumar S described the initiative as a "global programme" during a media briefing last week. "Various parts of the organisation will go through the process," he noted, adding that the company is transitioning toward "a broader and shorter pyramid" and a strategy that integrates "digital labour and human labour."

A Structural Shift in IT

The anticipated layoffs reflect a fundamental change in client demands. Industry executives report that customers are increasingly unwilling to finance the traditional "pyramid" staffing model, which relies heavily on entry-level "freshers."

“Customers are not okay with full pyramids anymore and don’t want to fund training of freshers,” one executive stated, pointing to a broader shift toward automation and AI-driven delivery.

Cognizant’s move follows a year of heavy restructuring across the software sector. In 2025, TCS reportedly reduced its workforce by 12,500, followed by similar manoeuvres at Accenture, HCLTech, and Oracle.

Historical Context

This is not Cognizant’s first major efficiency drive. The firm’s "NextGen" program in 2023-24 resulted in 3,500 job cuts and the vacation of approximately 11 million square feet of office space.

As discretionary spending slows and AI-led models gain traction, the pressure to optimise margins has left major IT firms increasingly reliant on automation over traditional human labour, even as "bench sizes"—employees between projects—remain high. Cognizant has not yet officially responded to requests for comment regarding the specific layoff estimates.