From defining the founding team charter to closing your VP Engineering — the WeHireIn playbook used by 300+ GCC launches in India.
The first 50 hires in any GCC define its trajectory for years. Get them right and you build a culture, a talent brand, and a foundation for scale. Get them wrong and you spend the next two years firefighting attrition and culture misfits.
Phase 1: The Founding Trio (Hires 1–3)
Before you hire anyone else, you need three people: a GCC Head, a Head of Engineering, and an HR Business Partner. These three set the tone for everything that follows.
- GCC Head: Must have prior GCC leadership experience — not just a senior manager moving up. Look for someone who's navigated matrix reporting to global stakeholders.
- Head of Engineering: Hire for culture-add, not just technical depth. This person will interview your next 200 engineers.
- HRBP: Often the most underestimated hire. They define the EVP, compensation structure, and onboarding experience.
Common Mistake
Over 60% of GCC launches delay the HRBP hire, treating it as a support function. The centres that do this consistently report higher early attrition and weaker culture.
Phase 2: The Seed Team (Hires 4–20)
With leadership in place, focus on the seed team across your core functions. For a typical tech-led GCC, this means 8–12 engineers across your primary workstream, plus 2–3 QA/DevOps engineers, and functional leads for Finance and Operations.
Phase 3: Scaling to 50 (Hires 21–50)
- Set 48-hour first response SLA for all incoming applications
- Define a 3-round interview structure maximum — more rounds lose candidates
- Build a referral programme early — seed team referrals are your best early source
- Communicate offer in writing within 24 hours of verbal offer — delays kill acceptance rates