India Survival Kit: About Life in India for Expats and others Visiting or Moving to India

Doing business in India:

Inter-personal Relations and Communication

In traditional firms employees address their bosses as “Sir” or “Madam”. However, being on a first name basis with your boss is catching up. This trend began with the arrival of the BPO & IT industries in India.

Indians communicate with a combination of English and Hindi or some other regional language. The typical Indian is born inquisitive. Most will not shy away from inquiring about your marital status, family, health, dogs, cats or anything else that may fuel their curiosity. Some will even offer unsolicited advice on your personal life.

The secret to enjoying a good working experience in India is: Infuse a few words of Hindi or some other local language into your speech. It exudes a semblance of brotherhood and gains you acceptance by your colleagues especially in a place like Mumbai. Try to be tolerant of distorted time-schedules. Indians don’t believe in speed. So, take your time and smell the roses.

Since most people here are family-oriented; so, inquire about your colleagues families. This will help you score brownie points with them.e departments, your odds of getting in are not too bright. Anyway, the work culture in these organizations leaves much to be desired.

Click here to read a summary of this ebook: India Survival Kit

Back to List of Sample Reports