India Inc wants younger leaders. And, it's not just newer industries like organised retail, aviation and telecom that want fresh blood at the top.

Traditional manufacturing companies from many Tata group companies to Larsen & Toubro are hungry to hire leaders in the 30-45 year old bracket. The only problem? They are not easy to find at a time when Indian companies need them the most.

Ironically, finding young people isn't an issue, after all, one in two people is younger than 25 years in the country today. "The demographic dividend of the country is such that youth comes easy in this country," points out Chandrasekhar Sripada, VP and head HR, IBM India, South Asia.

The challenge is to groom the finest talent among the youth into leaders. "The frontlines of a number of companies need to be filled up with young leaders, and that is why we need so many of them," adds Sripada.

Young leaders are also well placed to empathise with young consumers, understand their needs and speak and understand their language. "India Inc needs to have managers who understand the target audience out there," says Sonal Agrawal, CEO, Accord Group India , an executive search firm.

The advantages of a young leader are visible if you look at the success of some of the biggest global organisations. Bill Gates , Michael Dell , and the founders of Facebook and Google are just a few examples which demonstrated the power of young minds and their manifestations in the business envirornments and emerged as global top entrepreneurs.

Deepak Gupta, country head and MD of Korn/Ferry International , an executive search firm, says leaders with 8-10 years experience are most sought after. "It's good to get young leaders because in senior leadership roles they have a fresh way of doing things; they are willing to challenge the old methods and norms; they are more enthusiastic and energetic," says Gupta.

Perfect leaders would be the ones with close to a decade of experience across a variety of business verticals or functions, and who haven't, along the way, lost the passion for growth. All India Inc needs to do is find them.