The Gems and Jewellery sector plays a significant role in the Indian economy, contributing around 7 per cent of the country’s GDP and 15 per cent to India’s total merchandise exports. It also employs over 4.64 million workers and is expected to employ 8.23 million by 2022. One of the fastest growing sectors, it is extremely export oriented and labour intensive.

Based on its potential for growth and value addition, the Government of India has declared the Gems and Jewellery sector as a focus area for export promotion. The Government has recently undertaken various measures to promote investments and to upgrade technology and skills to promote ‘Brand India’ in the international market.

India is deemed to be the hub of the global jewellery market because of its low costs and availability of high-skilled labour. India is the world’s largest cutting and polishing centre for diamonds, with the cutting and polishing industry being well supported by government policies. Moreover, India exports 75 per cent of the world’s polished diamonds, as per statistics from the Gems and Jewellery Export promotion Council (GJEPC). India's Gems and Jewellery sector has been contributing in a big way to the country's foreign exchange earnings (FEEs). The Government of India has viewed the sector as a thrust area for export promotion. The Indian government presently allows 100 per cent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the sector through the automatic route.

Gold demand in India rose to 338.70 tonnes between January to June 2018. India's gems and jewellery exports stood at US$ 13.18 billion between April - August 2018*. During the same period, exports of cut and polished diamonds stood at US$ 10.31 billion, thereby contributing about 78.22 per cent of the total gems and jewellery exports in value terms. Exports of gold coins and medallions stood at US$ 201.75 million and silver jewellery export stood at US$ 239.04 million between April – August 2018.

The gems and jewellery market in India is home to more than 300,000 players, with the majority being small players. Its market size is about US$ 75 billion as of 2017 and is expected to reach US$ 100 billion by 2025. It contributes 29 per cent to the global jewellery consumption.

India is one of the largest exporters of gems and jewellery and the industry is considered to play a vigorous role in the Indian economy as it contributes a major chunk to the total foreign reserves of the country. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) and monsoon will steer India’s gold demand going forward.

The Gems and Jewellery sector is witnessing changes in consumer preferences due to adoption of western lifestyle. Consumers are demanding new designs and varieties in jewellery, and branded jewellers are able to fulfil their changing demands better than the local unorganized players. Moreover, increase in per capita income has led to an increase in sales of jewellery, as jewellery is a status symbol in India.

The cumulative Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflows in diamond and gold ornaments in the period April 2000 – June 2018 were US$ 1.15 billion, according to Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).

Some of the key investments in this industry are listed below.

• Deals worth Rs 8,000 crore (US$ 1.19 billion) were made at the Indian International Jewellery Show held in August 2018.

• Companies such as PC Jewellers, PNG Jewellers, Popley and Sons, are planning to introduce a virtual-reality (VR) experience for their customers. The customer will have to wear a VR headset, through which they can select any jewellery, see the jewellery from different angles and zoom on it to view intricate designs.

• The Government of India would notify a new limit for reporting about transactions in gold and other precious metals and stones to authorities, to avoid the parking of black money in bullion.

• The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has revised the standard on gold hallmarking in India from January 2018. The gold jewellery hallmark will now carry a BIS mark, purity in carat and fitness as well as the unit’s identification and the jeweller’s identification mark. The move is aimed at ensuring a quality check on gold jewellery.

• The Government of India has planned to set up a Common Facility Center (CFC) at Thrissur, Kerala.

• The Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) to build India’s largest jewellery park in at Ghansoli in Navi-Mumbai on a 25 acres land with about more than 5000 jewellery units of various sizes ranging from 500-10,000 square feet. The overall investment of Rs 13,500 crore (US$ 2.09 billion).

In the coming years, growth in Gems and Jewellery sector would be largely contributed by the development of large retailers/brands. Established brands are guiding the organized market and are opening opportunities to grow. Increasing penetration of organized players provides variety in terms of products and designs. Online sales are expected to account for 1-2 per cent of the fine jewellery segment by 2021-22. Also, the relaxation of restrictions of gold import is likely to provide a fillip to the industry. The improvement in availability along with the reintroduction of low cost gold metal loans and likely stabilisation of gold prices at lower levels is expected to drive volume growth for jewellers over short to medium term. The demand for jewellery is expected to be significantly supported by the recent positive developments in the industry.

Recruitment process is the first step in creating a powerful resource base. The process undergoes a systematic procedure starting from sourcing the resources to arranging and conducting interviews and finally selecting the right candidates. Recruitment process in gems & jewellery Industry are as follows:

Recruitment Planning

Recruitment planning is the first step of the recruitment process, where the vacant positions are analyzed and described. It includes job specifications and its nature, experience, qualifications and skills required for the job, etc.

A structured recruitment plan is mandatory to attract potential candidates from a pool of candidates. The potential candidates should be qualified, experienced with a capability to take the responsibilities required to achieve the objectives of the organization.

Identifying Vacancy

The first and foremost process of recruitment plan is identifying the vacancy. This process begins with receiving the requisition for recruitments from different department of the organization to the HR Department, which contains −

• Number of posts to be filled

• Number of positions

• Duties and responsibilities to be performed

• Qualification and experience required

When a job vacancy is identified, it the responsibility of the sourcing manager to ascertain whether the position is required or not, permanent or temporary, full-time or part-time, etc. These parameters should be evaluated before commencing recruitment. Proper identifying, planning and evaluating leads to hiring of the right resource for the team and the organization.

Job Analysis

Job analysis is a process of identifying, analyzing, and determining the duties, responsibilities, skills, abilities, and work environment of a specific job. These factors help in identifying what a job demands and what an employee must possess in performing a job productively.

Job analysis helps in understanding what tasks are important and how to perform them. Its purpose is to establish and document the job relatedness of employment procedures such as selection, compensation, and performance appraisal, HR training.

The following steps are important in analyzing a job −

• Recording and collecting job information

• Accuracy in checking the job information

• Generating job description based on the information

• Determining the skills, knowledge and skills, which are required for the job

The immediate products of job analysis are job descriptions and job specifications.

Job Description

Job description is an important document, which is descriptive in nature and contains the final statement of the job analysis. This description is very important for a successful recruitment process.

Job description provides information about the scope of job roles, responsibilities and the positioning of the job in the organization. And this data gives the employer and the organization a clear idea of what an employee must do to meet the requirement of his job responsibilities.

Job description is generated for fulfilling the following processes −

• Classification and ranking of jobs

• Placing and orientation of new resources

• Promotions and transfers

• Describing the career path

• Future development of work standards

A job description provides information on the following elements −

• Job Title / Job Identification / Organization Position

• Job Location

• Summary of Job

• Job Duties

• Machines, Materials and Equipment

• Process of Supervision

• Working Conditions

• Health Hazards

Job Specification

Job specification focuses on the specifications of the candidate, whom the HR team is going to hire. The first step in job specification is preparing the list of all jobs in the organization and its locations. The second step is to generate the information of each job.

This information about each job in an organization is as follows −

• Physical specifications

• Mental specifications

• Physical features

• Emotional specifications

• Behavioral specifications

A job specification document provides information on the following elements 

• Qualification

• Experiences

• Training and development

• Skills requirements

• Work responsibilities

• Emotional characteristics

• Planning of career

Job Evaluation

Job evaluation is a comparative process of analyzing, assessing, and determining the relative value/worth of a job in relation to the other jobs in an organization.

The main objective of job evaluation is to analyze and determine which job commands how much pay. There are several methods such as job grading, job classifications, job ranking, etc., which are involved in job evaluation. Job evaluation forms the basis for salary and wage negotiations.

Recruitment Strategy

Recruitment strategy is the second step of the recruitment process, where a strategy is prepared for hiring the resources. After completing the preparation of job descriptions and job specifications, the next step is to decide which strategy to adopt for recruiting the potential candidates for the organization.

While preparing a recruitment strategy, the HR team considers the following points −

• Make or buy employees

• Types of recruitment

• Geographical area

• Recruitment sources

The development of a recruitment strategy is a long process, but having a right strategy is mandatory to attract the right candidates. The steps involved in developing a recruitment strategy include −

• Setting up a board team

• Analyzing HR strategy

• Collection of available data

• Analyzing the collected data

• Setting the recruitment strategy

Searching the Right Candidates

Searching is the process of recruitment where the resources are sourced depending upon the requirement of the job. After the recruitment strategy is done, the searching of candidates will be initialized. In some cases companies take proper guidance from top manpower agency.

Searching involves attracting the job seekers to the vacancies. The sources are broadly divided into two categories: Internal Sources and External Sources.

Internal Sources

Internal sources of recruitment refer to hiring employees within the organization through −

• Promotions

• Transfers

• Former Employees

• Internal Advertisements (Job Posting)

• Employee Referrals

• Previous Applicants

External Sources

External sources of recruitment refer to hiring employees outside the organization through −

• Direct Recruitment

• Employment Exchanges

• Placement Agencies

• Advertisements

• Professional Associations

• Campus Recruitment

• Word of Mouth

Screening / Shortlisting

Screening starts after completion of the process of sourcing the candidates. Screening is the process of filtering the applications of the candidates for further selection process.

Screening is an integral part of recruitment process that helps in removing unqualified or irrelevant candidates, which were received through sourcing. The screening process of recruitment consists of three steps −

Reviewing of Resumes and Cover Letters

Reviewing is the first step of screening candidates. In this process, the resumes of the candidates are reviewed and checked for the candidates’ education (Education Consultant), work experience, and overall background matching the requirement of the job.

While reviewing the resumes, an HR executive must keep the following points in mind, to ensure better screening of the potential candidates −

• Reason for change of job

• Longevity with each organization

• Long gaps in employment

• Job-hopping

• Lack of career progression

Conducting Telephonic or Video Interview

Conducting telephonic or video interviews is the second step of screening candidates. In this process, after the resumes are screened, the candidates are contacted through phone or video by the hiring manager. This screening process has two outcomes −

• It helps in verifying the candidates, whether they are active and available.

• It also helps in giving a quick insight about the candidate’s attitude, ability to answer interview questions, and communication skills.

Identifying the top candidates

Identifying the top candidates is the final step of screening the resumes/candidates. In this process, the cream/top layer of resumes are shortlisted, which makes it easy for the hiring manager to take a decision. This process has the following three outcomes −

• Shortlisting 5 to 10 resumes for review by the hiring managers

• Providing insights and recommendations to the hiring manager

• Helps the hiring managers to take a decision in hiring the right candidate

Evaluation and Control

Evaluation and control is the last stage in the process of recruitment. In this process, the effectiveness and the validity of the process and methods are assessed. Recruitment is a costly process, hence it is important that the performance of the recruitment process is thoroughly evaluated.

The costs incurred in the recruitment process are to be evaluated and controlled effectively. These include the following −

• Salaries to the Recruiters

• Advertisements cost and other costs incurred in recruitment methods, i.e., agency fees.

• Administrative expenses and Recruitment overheads

• Overtime and Outstanding costs, while the vacancies remain unfilled

• Cost incurred in recruiting suitable candidates for the final selection process

• Time spent by the Management and the Professionals in preparing job description, job specifications, and conducting interviews.