Resilience. Hunger. Resourcefulness. These qualities thrive in abundance across India’s tier-2 and tier-3 towns, where limited resources inspire innovation and fierce determination breeds excellence. Yet corporate India has long overlooked this wellspring of talent, fixating instead on metropolitan graduates. InsuranceDekho, a digital insurance marketplace, recognised this untapped potential and created GAIN (Gauge, Align, Inspire, Nurture)—a recruitment programme that harnesses small-town ambition whilst reimagining what it means to truly build for Bharat.
When corporate India scouts for talent, attention typically centres on prestigious universities in metropolitan hubs. InsuranceDekho chose a different path. Its GAIN initiative upends recruitment orthodoxy, seeking graduates from educational institutions that rarely feature on most corporate itineraries.
“Kids in the metros have zillions of opportunities knocking at their door,” shares Divya Mohan, CHRO, InsuranceDekho. ““But when you talk about talent from tier 2 and 3 towns, they have high aspirations, strong intent and deep competence. All they need is an opportunity.”
“We saw a jump in gender diversity-because hiring from campuses in smaller towns helped us reach female talent that is often overlooked by corporate recruiters. And there’s thought diversity too—these kids are fearless, hungry and resilient. They bring different ideas, fresh perspectives and a relentless will to succeed.”
Divya Mohan, CHRO, InsuranceDekho
The central premise is refreshingly straightforward: Bharat—India beyond the metropolises—deserves a chance. These smaller cities and towns harbour young people with aptitude and drive, but often lack access to blue-chip employers. InsuranceDekho’s response was to engage colleges beyond the traditional circuit, bringing opportunity to places where corporate recruiters seldom venture.
The numbers tell a compelling story: over 300 recruits have joined through GAIN thus far. More significant than the quantity, however, is the programme’s philosophical underpinning. GAIN represents a deliberate investment in building leadership pipelines from previously untapped regions.
New joiners undergo a comprehensive two-month induction programme—described internally as a “bootcamp for business”—that combines industry immersion with role-specific training. The curriculum covers everything from motor insurance mechanics to life and health policy intricacies, and the operational dynamics of agent partnerships. But InsuranceDekho didn’t stop at just skills. “We trained them on behavioural aspects too—because coming from campus to corporate is not just a career shift, it’s a mindset shift,” notes Mohan.
This was followed by a three-week shadowing experience—buddies and mentors guiding them through real roles, showing what a day in operations, sales, or call centre support looks like. This experiential learning-built confidence and grounded theoretical knowledge in everyday practice.
And the support didn’t stop there. The company invested heavily in both online and offline learning formats. From bite-sized e-learning modules accessible on demand, to classroom training focused on product, process, and leadership skills — every angle was covered. A buddy system ensured emotional and functional support as recruits transitioned into their full-time roles.
Notably, GAIN was never conceived as a cost-cutting exercise. These recruits receive compensation packages comparable to graduates from tier-1 institutions. By nurturing this cohort through a six-month development journey, the company creates a pool of job-ready professionals who can fill roles without drawing from the typically more expensive reservoir of experienced lateral hires.
This strategic shift has yielded unexpected dividends. “We saw a jump in gender diversity—because hiring from campuses in smaller towns helped us reach female talent that is often overlooked by corporate recruiters,” Mohan explains proudly. “And there’s thought diversity too—these kids are fearless, hungry and resilient. They bring different ideas, fresh perspectives and a relentless will to succeed.”
Like any pioneering initiative, GAIN has evolved through learning. The company discovered that different roles require different temperaments; interacting with agents demands a different disposition than back-office operations. This insight has informed refinements to the programme structure, including recalibration of induction length, pacing of target assignments and even campus selection based on retention data.
“We’ve identified which campuses gave us better stickiness. We’re aligning our strategy accordingly. It’s about refining the funnel, making onboarding even more robust, and improving assimilation,” observes Mohan.
Parallel to reimagining recruitment, InsuranceDekho is also overhauling performance assessment. With 40 per cent of its workforce comprising Generation Z and an average employee age of just 28, the traditional annual appraisal cycle felt anachronistic. The company responded by implementing quarterly performance reviews, recognising that younger employees expect more frequent feedback.
The philosophy behind this shift is particularly noteworthy. Rather than categorising employees in binary terms, InsuranceDekho introduced a “transitional performer” classification. This creates space for development without prematurely labelling someone as underperforming—reflecting empathy and recognition that performance improvement is a journey rather than a fixed state.
To ensure this intensified feedback cadence does not become overwhelming, the company has simultaneously invested in managerial capability building. This has been institutionalised through an internally-curated learning academy called called ID Gurukul, launched last year, comprising four key developmental pillars.
The leadership training is also stratified across levels. For early-stage leaders, the Evolve programme helps them understand the fundamentals of team management, providing training in giving constructive feedback, holding meaningful performance conversations, managing biases, and nurturing trust within teams. For mid-level managers who oversee team leaders, the Elevate programme steps in. This course covers the nuanced challenges of managing leaders rather than just individual contributors, and focuses on building the competencies needed for strategic people management. Finally, for senior and executive leaders, customised programmes aim to strengthen situational leadership, trust-building, and the creation of a performance-driven and collaborative culture.
This quarterly model isn’t about policing progress — it’s about providing consistent mentorship, identifying support needs, and aligning expectations in real time. For a young and ambitious workforce, that kind of responsive ecosystem is not just a perk; it’s essential.
What GAIN has achieved extends beyond recruitment metrics—it offers a blueprint for inclusive corporate growth, where building for Bharat means building with Bharat. InsuranceDekho has not only unlocked a new talent pool but begun reshaping organisational culture to be more empathetic, agile and diverse.
With GAIN, InsuranceDekho honours the dreams of small-town India whilst reminding the corporate world of something vital: the next big innovation may emerge from the smallest of places. As Mohan reflects, “The true return on investment is that spark in their eyes when they realise—’I made it.’ And not just made it; I belong here.”
