Xpheno Targets ₹500 Crore Revenue Milestone in its 9th Year of Operations: 80% Specialist Hiring, and Global Expansion
Bengaluru, India, 3rd April 2025: Xpheno has announced its meticulous expansion, and specialization plans over the next two years as it prepares for its IPO, strategically positioning itself as the leading specialist staffing partner for the next 200 potential Greenfield Global Capability Centres (GCCs) to be established in India over the next 2-3 years.
As part of this growth initiative, Xpheno has appointed Francis Padamadan a new Chief Executive Officer – CEO-Designate role by streamlining responsibilities previously handled by co-founders Kamal Karanth and Anil Ethanur. This move enhances structural solidarity and strengthens Xpheno’s agility leading to its IPO.
With 22 years of experience in the staffing industry, Francis has held leadership positions at two marquee recruitment firms – the NASDAQ-listed Kelly Services and the UK-based TritonExec’s Executive Search. His expertise spans executive search, recruitment process outsourcing (RPO), and global staffing operations, making him a key asset to Xpheno as it scales its business.
“We are at a pivotal stage in our growth, and anchoring our leadership team with Francis is a crucial step to be a dominant player in the specialist staffing space,” said Kamal Karanth, co-founder of Xpheno. “Francis Padamadan brings a rare combination of expertise in staffing, executive search, and scaling Greenfield GCCs in the banking and automotive sector. His deep understanding of GCCs, RPO, and Executive Search makes him a crucial hire for us to scale and deliver at speed.”
“I am elated to join Xpheno at an inflection point of acceleration,” said Francis Padamadan, CEO Designate of Xpheno. “The opportunity to drive growth in the specialist staffing segment, build strategic global GCC partnerships, and expand into new geographies aligns perfectly with my experience and aspiration. Xpheno has a strong reputation in the industry, and I look forward to working with the founders and leadership team to achieve our plans to lead the GCC recruitment space.”
“As Xpheno steps on its 9th year, it has set ambitious milestones, including surpassing INR 500 crore in turnover, establishing partnerships with over 100 GCCs for tech staff augmentation, completing one or two acquisitions in RPO or Executive Search, and expanding operations into Europe to support Greenfield GCCs exploring India,” Anil Ethanur, co-founder of Xpheno.
The company’s leadership is focused on strengthening partnerships with Greenfield GCCs, expanding RPO services through both organic growth and mergers and acquisitions, and broadening its Executive Search business beyond GCCs to BFSI and consumer industries.
“Xpheno’s data driven and experiential approach to recruitments has allowed us to scale more than 40 Greenfield GCCs with the right specialised skills with speed” Anil added. “We have built deep relationships with the GCC ecosystem, and with our strategic roadmap in place, we are set to leverage our specialist recruiting strengths and stride towards our IPO”
“Xpheno is the first large specialist staffing company in India, with unparalleled access to Greenfield GCCs. Over the next five years, 300 + GCCs are expected to enter the Indian market. Xpheno’s specialist credentials with over 400 established GCCs combined with U.S. presence offers a distinct advantage to partner with more Greenfield GCCs. The company’s high margin business mix and scale set a new industry benchmark for profits, making it a compelling proposition for investors as we move towards an IPO.” Adds Kamal.
With over 4,500 tech leaders in GM, VP, and Director roles changing jobs in the last year alone, the demand for executive search services is growing significantly. Additionally, as more than 80% of hiring for GCCs and product companies revolves around niche skills, domain-heavy RPO services are becoming the industry norm which plays into its specialist strength.
India’s $6 billion specialist staffing market is evolving rapidly, with over 40 new GCCs entering the country annually hiring about 20,000 new headcounts from existing IT pools, while more than 50,000 software engineers migrate out of India each year. This dynamic presents unique staffing opportunities for Xpheno.
