Why many GCC leaders are taking months to land the next role (India lens)

Rajesh, 48, once headed BU Operations at a Hyderabad GCC. After HQ’s consolidation, he assumed the next move would come quickly. Two quarters on with solid references but no offer, he finds himself in yet another Knowledge City café, scrolling through LinkedIn posts that all echo the same line: “Open to new opportunities.”

His story mirrors thousands of senior executives across India's Global Capability Centers from Knowledge City's gleaming towers to Electronic City's sprawling campuses. The very centers that promised to elevate India beyond back-office operations are now creating a new category of unemployed leaders.

What’s really happening: Cost-arbitrage centers aspire to be “innovation hubs,” but HQs often don’t fully empower local leadership. Capabilities get built, then strategic work is insourced back home.

As Everest Group warns: if your GCC isn’t solving CEO-level problems, its future is fragile. Many seniors gained titles and comp, but limited strategic authority—a temporary arbitrage now ending.

What You Should Do Now (While Job Searching):

Reframe Your Value Proposition:
- Quantify enterprise impact: "Delivered $45M in cost optimization across 12 global markets"
- Demonstrate strategic thinking: "Led digital transformation initiative that became company template for 23 international locations"
- Show cultural bridge-building: "Managed $200M P&L across US, Europe, and Asia-Pacific operations"
- Write a 90-day plan template (what you’ll fix/build/scale). Package 3 case studies with numbers and references.

Stop networking randomly—network with intent. Focus on 30 target stakeholders who can influence hiring decisions in your target market segments. Treat the search like a program, weekly goals, metrics (reach-outs, meetings, shortlists), retros, iteration. Maintain energy—sleep, routine, exercise.

Take interim/advisory/fractional mandates (6–12 weeks) to produce current impact. Offer a tightly scoped transformation sprint.

Build Your Personal Brand Around Problem-Solving: Don't lead with your title or company, lead with the problems you solve. The most successful career transitions focus on outcomes delivered, not positions held.

Replace mass applications with tailored notes + a value teaser (“In 180 days I’ll move X, Y, Z; here’s a 6-slide outline”).

Opportunities exist,but they are concentrated and evidence-driven. Leaders who show repeatable outcomes, trust-ready governance, talent gravity, and a clear 90-day plan move to the front of the line.