Indian Work Culture

WadeJ

Dear all,

Our company has outsourced a design service to India for over 4 years. We have trained the designers via email and phone, but have never met them face to face. That is about to change. Myself and the head designer (a woman) will be travelling to Chandigarh soon to meet with the designers and to try and improve their quality with a week of training.

I'm asking this here as there seems to be some collective knowledge about India and indians. Will the Indian designers have difficulty accepting instructions from a woman? I'm 25, they may be older, will they have difficulty accepting instructions from me? Are there any specific work practices that I should be aware of?

Any help will be appreciated.

Wade

volga_volga

Hi,

you may look at this post: how India is saving capitalism
(start from post 11 to see discussion abt Indian work ethics)

I'd say, expect no problem with Indians taking instructions, i had none, although i am slightly older than you

but try to learn more about Indian culture before your trip - that is a universal advice i am sure you have been told that a hundred times before

shanshas

I dont think there will be any difficulty in the designers accepting your or your co-worker's instructions. It would be much more easier if you could establish your credentials / expertise / knowledge in the relevant area at the begining.

A major difference I have found in the work culture beteween Indians and Americans is that the Americans come across as quite aggressive as compared to the Indians. (I know this is a generalisation - but seems to hold true quite often). So I would suggest that you be a little more patient than usual.