Axis Bank is planning to increase campus recruitment to between 12,000 and 12,500 employees in FY27, compared with around 11,500–11,600 hires in FY26, as the bank strengthens its early-career talent pipeline while adapting roles to the growing use of AI and automation.
The planned increase comes even as the bank’s overall employee headcount declined during FY26. Axis Bank reported 101,337 employees at the end of FY26, compared with 104,453 a year earlier, representing a reduction of 3,116 employees.
Despite the lower year-end workforce, the bank hired 31,665 employees during FY26, indicating significant movement within its workforce.
Focus on Early-Career Talent
Rajkamal Vempati, Group Head-HR at Axis Bank, said the bank continues to invest in early-career employees as technology changes the way different functions operate.
AI and automation are increasingly being used for repetitive transaction processing and certain operational activities. However, the bank is reviewing roles individually rather than automatically replacing every position affected by automation.
Vacancies are being assessed when employees leave, while redeployment is also being considered where employees can move into areas with changing business requirements.
Demand Shifts Toward Specialist and Customer-Focused Roles
As technology handles more routine activities, Axis Bank is placing greater emphasis on functions requiring customer engagement, professional judgement and specialised knowledge.
Areas receiving increased talent attention include commercial banking, wealth management, MSME banking, risk, compliance, audit and cybersecurity.
Relationship-management positions remain an important part of the bank’s hiring strategy because they involve customer understanding and trust, areas where human interaction continues to play a significant role.
Internal Mobility Gains Importance
Internal movement is another key component of Axis Bank’s workforce strategy.
The bank said approximately 65% of employee movement currently takes place internally, compared with an estimated industry average of 25%–30%.
Axis Bank has also reduced the minimum tenure required before employees can apply for another internal opportunity. The period has been brought down from three years to 16 months.
Its AI-enabled career platform, Thrive, is designed to match employees with internal vacancies based on their skills and experience.
Employee Attrition Declines
The bank’s attrition rate also declined during FY26. Attrition fell to 22.4% in FY26, compared with 25.5% in FY25.
The reduction comes as the bank increases its focus on internal career opportunities and workforce redeployment.
AI Being Used Within Existing Jobs
Axis Bank is also incorporating AI into employees’ existing roles rather than limiting its use to workforce automation.
Its Siddhi platform uses customer information to provide targeted prompts to employees. Other AI-based systems are being used to analyse customer interactions and support employee productivity and decision-making.
Most Campus Hires Will Be Outside Technology
Interestingly, technology specialists are expected to represent only a small portion of the planned campus intake.
Of the projected 12,000–12,500 campus recruits in FY27, approximately 150–200 are expected to join technology roles. The majority of new hires are expected to enter business, customer-facing and governance functions.
The hiring strategy indicates that Axis Bank’s response to AI is extending beyond technology recruitment. The bank is simultaneously building its entry-level talent pool, increasing internal mobility and directing recruitment toward functions where customer relationships, judgement and specialised expertise remain important.
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