Private sector insurer MetLife India on Sunday said it plans to hire about 2,000 managers as well as 30,000 advisors and double its branch network by March – a move that comes in the midst of talks about wide-scale layoffs and trimming of businesses due to a global financial crisis.

"India promises phenomenal growth opportunities for the insurance business in the long term and to realise its potential, it is the right time to acquire resources as they are available at lower valuations due to economic slowdown," MetLife India Insurance Co's Managing Director Rajesh Relan said in an interview in New Delhi.

Asserting that the right time is here for expansion, be it in terms of opening new branches or adding to the manpower, Relan said that insurance was a long-term business and its growth strategy should not be affected by a temporary blip.

"We will take our network to 191 branches by March 2009, up from 96 at the end of the last month," Relan said, adding that 18 new branches have already been opened so far this month and 77 more branches would be added over the next five months.

Besides, MetLife India plans to hire about 2,000 sales managers and 30,000 financial advisors by March, which would nearly double the two workforces, the company chief said.

Currently, MetLife India has about 2,220 sales managers and more than 30,000 financial advisors working for it, which would grow to a strength of about 60,000 advisors and more than 4,200 managers by March next year.

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