Learning India

Making sense of the subcontinent

Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, #CustomerIsAlwaysThere, #GreyIsWhite, #PowerPlays, Daily Living

The Art of ‘Jugaad’: Everyday Life

Editor’s Note: Today is the first guest post on LearningIndia.in. I’ve asked Arjun ‘John’ Buxi to give us a few articles to understand what Jugaad is and how to use it. 

 

Jugaad Monkey

 

Problem. Obvious solution. Better life.

Simple, right? But everyone in India knows it’s not always like that.

Take Rhesus monkeys for example. For years now, these monkeys have been entering neighborhoods, stealing food, and even harming people. Simple response, right? Get rid of the monkeys. Not so easy!

The monkey in India is associated with the Hindu god, Hanuman, who is depicted as a monkey king and devotee of Rama, protagonist of the Ramayana epic. Because many folks see the monkey as holy, the Municipal Government is a bit loath to ‘take care’ of the problem, and people continue to feed the monkeys. Sure, you could buy an ultrasonic monkey repellant, but they are too expensive for most folks. So what can ‘Average Joe’ do? [Read more…]

Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, #PowerPlays, #See1See100, #ThinSkinned, #TimeIsEternal, Daily Living

13 ways to be a gracious god in India

Being a good god

Marty was a bit nervous about his first trip to India. He was visiting a team he had worked with for a few months, and was delivering some additional training to them.

A driver with Marty’s name greeted him at the airport and tried to take Marty’s bags. Marty felt a mix of suspicion and do-it-yourself-ness, and got into a small tug-of-war match to take his bags away from the driver.

When he walked into the office after freshening up, the entire office stood up with smiles to greet him. Marty gave a mostly blank look and tried to quickly find a place to set his things down. The head of the office came and asked if he’d like to join him for tea. “No thank you, I’ve got to get a few things organized here first,” Marty said.

After getting settled, the team took Marty out to lunch. On the way, Marty said he was still feeling a little jet-lagged and wasn’t very hungry. After looking over the menu, Marty selected a single bowl of soup. “Don’t you want some rice or Indian breads?”, the team asked. “No thank you, I’m trying to watch my carbs and my wife says I need to eat less gluten.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, #GreyIsWhite, #PowerPlays, #ThinSkinned, Parent Leadership, Podcast, Team Management

Episode 4: Arjun Buxi

Podcast

You have identified an ideal partner for your business in India: strong financials, common interests, and experience in the field. The company is an older family-run business. You soon realize that the key to sealing an agreement is a meeting with the patriarch, an older man who doesn’t come to the office much anymore. His blessing is essential, but you are having a lot of trouble getting his attention. What do you do?

In this episode of Working With India, I talk with Arjun Buxi. Arjun is a native Indian who grew up in a Punjabi family business, and is now a Communication Consultant and Educator in the San Francisco area. Arjun is a true expert in the field of Indian business culture, especially when it comes to how family dynamics affect things. His knowledge is both experiential and scholarly.

Here are a few of my favorite moments in this show:

  • What an HUF is and why it’s central to understanding Indian business
  • How to ‘investigate the hierarchy’ of an Indian family business #PowerPlays
  • Practical tips on how to correct someone of higher status than you #ThinSkinned
  • Really insightful rules for gift-giving
  • Why Jugaad is essential for your ability to navigate Indian businesses #GreyisWhite, #ChaosBeatsLogic

Here are some of the links mentioned in the show: [Read more…]

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Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, #GreyIsWhite, #PowerPlays, Podcast

Episode 2: Nick Mitchell

Podcast

It doesn’t take long to realize India’s potential. Given the amazing population advantage, the language advantage, and the commitment to serious work hours, India is in shape to be a major player.

But what about you? If you take up a role in India, are you subjecting yourself to isolation from the home office or are you gaining a chance to grow faster than your peers? Will your time in India be merely a chance to gain some global exposure, or can it be much more than that?

This month’s Working With India podcast features Nick Mitchell, Managing Director of Phenomenex in Hyderabad. [Read more…]

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, #PowerPlays, Team Management

Building Ownership in Indian Teams

Indian Team

I want my Indian team to take more ownership. Can you do a training session on that?

This is a common request from many cross-cultural managers. How do you get Indian employees to take more ownership over the work of the organization?

You may see associates constantly passing on calls and tickets to their managers instead of dealing with them directly. Your office feels like a revolving door, with people constantly coming to ask questions and seek approval. You wish people would just stand up and take a decision without you.

I was talking with a British manager in India who gave his team the task of preparing a presentation. The team booked numerous meetings with him to make sure everything was done exactly as he wanted. Their insecurity in being able to complete the project on their own led him to a much deeper involvement than he wanted.

“Since then, I’ve tried to teach them to have more autonomy,” he said.

“Is that working?” I asked.

“No.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, #PowerPlays, #ThinSkinned, Communication

The Golden Rule for Choosing the Best Forms of Business Communication in India

Woman on the phone

You know that feeling you get when your inbox gets to zero?

You feel like you really accomplished something. Like you are on top of your game. Like you really earned your money today.

 

In India, that feeling can be deceptive.

You can have an empty inbox, but never do any actual business. You can reply to all your messages and SMSs, but never reach any of your targets. You can send a hundred emails a day, but never be any closer to your goal.

Why?

The problem might lie in choosing the wrong forms of business communication in India.

 

When it comes to communicating with India, there is one Golden Rule you must always remember: [Read more…]

Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, #PowerPlays, #TimeIsEternal, Parent Leadership

The Most Important Quality When Working for a Parent Leader

Image of Clock Tower

…is loyalty.

And the most important way your Parent Leader will evaluate your loyalty is…

availability.

You get no awards in India for having great time management. You get no praise for submitting weekly reports on all your tasks. No one will mention you at a celebration if you manage to save an hour a day by not checking email until noon. Time is not something that can be spreadsheeted.

The only truly important question about time in India is:

Were you there in the Moment of Need?

What is the Moment of Need? It’s the moment when your boss or your team members are freaking out because something has gone terribly wrong and the world might end.

The assessment of your loyalty is most dependent on how completely you are available in the Moment of Need.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: #ChaosBeatsLogic, Into India

Things the average Indian is better than you at…

 

Indians dancing

Flickr: Tim Whelan

 

I started this list recently, but I figured it would be better if everyone contributed instead of just me. Please share some of your own ideas and I’ll add them!

Dancing – I have yet to meet a young Indian man who is not both willing and able to break into smooth dance moves at any moment of the day.

Singing in Public – Similarly, it takes very little coaxing to get any Indian aunty or uncle to break out in a classic film song.

Giving an impromptu one hour speech – No preparation, no notes, no slides. Just talking. I can’t make it more than 5 minutes.

Making children laugh and feel comfortable – Every Indian feels it is his/her duty as a citizen of the country to make every child within a 1 kilometer radius have a smile on their face. [Read more…]

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© Neil A. Miller, LearningIndia.in, and Madras Media Marketing LLC 2013-2015. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given.