Dr. Sumit Mitra_CEO, Tesco Business Solutions
As artificial intelligence reshapes enterprise operations, Tesco Business Solutions is recalibrating its workforce strategy around skills rather than scale, CEO Sumit Mitra said. He added that the future of work will be defined by human–machine collaboration.
“It’s no longer about headcount. It is about skill count, hiring the right talent, at the right cost, in the right place, at the right time, to deliver the right outcome,” Mitra said, pushing back against what he described as the “random violence” seen in parts of the tech sector.
Tesco’s India headcount will remain in the 5,500–6,000 range even as it plans to add over 100 new roles this year, as AI increasingly automates processes such as reconciliation and supplier payments.
Mitra stressed that automation has not led to job losses. Instead, the nature of jobs is evolving. “Humans will become assurers. Their job will be to make sure AI is doing what it needs to do,” he said, adding that this is likely the last generation in which work is done by humans alone.
“Going forward, it will be human and machine. You need somebody to ensure the machine is not hallucinating, that the data and insights are clean. Yes, AI is generating insights, but humans will validate them.”
Tesco has been present in India since 2003, at a time when many global firms were only beginning to explore the country.
Today, its India operations span four areas, including Tesco Business Solutions and Tesco Technology, which together serve as the backbone of the retailer’s global operations, from architectural design for its 5,000 stores to supporting the opening of around 60 new stores annually.
“When a lot of companies were not looking at India, we decided to build our own capability,” Mitra said. Rather than outsourcing to third parties, Tesco chose to establish a captive model and invested in a 15-acre campus in Bengaluru.
Published on February 13, 2026