Inside Bangalore’s Talent Race: The Power of Purposeful Workplace Design

Bangalore, India, is experiencing a remarkable transformation. While Bangalore continues to face real challenges, such as aging infrastructure, relentless traffic, and a growing water crisis, the city is emerging as a strategic hub for global workplace expansion and a magnet for newcomers. According to Gensler’s City Pulse 2025 research, Bangalore is the number one city internationally (excluding the United States) attracting new residents, with a 25% rise in the last five years. The predominant demographic in the city’s migrant population is currently is young, tech-savvy professionals. With this influx, the competition to attract and retain top talent has become even more intense.

Both local startups and global companies have an opportunity to stand out in this tight labor market by designing workplaces that are contextually relevant to the city — with spaces that offer meaning, a sense of community, and opportunities to build emotional connections, while reflecting Bangalore’s unique cultural identity.

According to Gensler’s City Pulse Survey, emotional connection is what keeps people rooted in cities. As hybrid and remote work models remain popular in India, especially in the IT and tech sectors, workspaces can offer workers a compelling reason to come into the office by fostering emotional connections rooted in the city’s identity.

Another interesting takeaway from Gensler’s Workplace Survey 2025 suggests that only 14% of the global workforce desire a corporate workplace experience; the majority of respondents are craving new ones. In India specifically, the survey suggests that employees desire a professional hub that also offers a nature retreat experience, with spaces that rejuvenate and inspire.

Building on our City Pulse and Workplace Survey insights, helps us understand that experience and emotion go hand in hand. Workplaces today need to deliver emotional connections through experiences that are contextually relevant and resonate with shifting cultures.

Bangalore as a workplace

At Intuit’s Bangalore campus, we studied human behavior and well-being to design a workplace that supports employees throughout their daily journey — from focused work to moments of rest and social interaction. The design concept fuses Bangalore’s greenery with Indian-made furniture and finishes.

The new 7-Eleven Global Solution Centre in Bangalore is another such example. To introduce the iconic American brand to a new market as it made its first foray into India, the centre had to cohesively balance the brand’s global identity with local cultural attributes. To help the company attract talent in this highly competitive market, the new workplace embraces employee-centric design with social hubs, recharge zones, and amenities like a grab-n-go Tuk Tuk, an arcade, and a gym.

In another project we designed for a confidential tech client, we incorporated a fine dining experience with a live kitchen counter, offering fresh, chef-prepared meals all throughout the day. Additionally, a 24-hour convenience mart operates within the campus, ensuring essentials are always available for employees across different shifts and schedules.

To continue to attract new residents, appeal to top talent, and become a place where people want to stay, Bangalore must become a city with human-centric experiences — eclectic and magnetic, with workplaces and public spaces designed to build and deepen connections.

What sets the city apart is its unwavering optimism. People come here not simply for work prospects, but also for the hope of a brighter tomorrow, where startups can grow and ideas can gain traction. In this city resides a spirit of possibility, which transforms Bangalore into more than just a place to work.