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Work Culture in India
‘When in Rome do as the Romans do’ A friend moved to Dubai recently and I called her on a Sunday morning expecting to find her just getting out of bed. Instead she sounded rushed and busy and quickly put the phone down saying she’d call back later. At first I was surprised at her abrupt manner on the phone but later realized the reason for it. In Dubai and the Middle East, Sunday is the first day of the week and Friday and Saturday make up the weekend. The customs and culture of a nation are bound to seep in and influence the culture of organizations within its borders. In India work culture is determined by many factors – huge differences exist between public sector and private sector companies with each having its own distinctive flavor. Then again the parent industry would play a significant role in determining culture. For instance organizations within the newer IT, Telecom, and banking industries are rather different from the older manufacturing firms. Some of the more generic aspects common to most Indian organizations are enumerated below - Hierarchy – Indian organizations tend to be top down in their approach. Individuals don’t often disagree with the boss and usually yield to his or her point of view. It is a little more flexible in the more modern IT and banking sectors. But right from a very young age Indians are taught to respect authority figures and this carries on into their professional life. So Senior Managers expect to be treated in a certain way and subordinates readily fall in line. People versus process – Indian organizations tend to be people driven rather than process driven. On the positive side this allows for greater flexibility, but it could be a little stressful for a newcomer until he gets acquainted with the job and this style of working. Dependence on colleagues and those around will be high. Since processes are not clearly defined you are not likely to find a manual or process document in place. So ask a lot of questions, take notes wherever necessary and double check to make sure you’ve got it right Time Management & Deadlines – Timelines are not always strictly adhered to in Indian companies. Call for a meeting at 10 AM and there will still be those trickling in 15 or 20 minutes after 10. ‘Indian Standard Time’ is not a myth but a sad reality. Again timelines with regards to completion of work can be stretched a bit sometimes. So it’s a good idea right at the beginning to set clear deadlines and emphasize the importance of completing work on time. In fact if it’s a critical task then follow up mid-way to ensure that things are on track. Better this way than to get a rude shock when the deadline arrives. The problem in India is that people tend to make commitments easily but fail deliver when the time comes. This is not too say that Indians are not hardworking or an intelligent set of people. Think of Einstein, brilliant but not very organized and sometimes a little forgetful! Leave and vacation – In most Indian organizations vacation or annual leave is 4 weeks. Apart from that sick leave and casual leave are about a week each. Notice period (when you quit the organization) is generally between a month to 3 months depending on seniority, criticality of the role etc. Another aspect to keep in mind is that people hail from different religious backgrounds and hence leave will be taken at different times in the year depending upon the community (Hindu, Muslim, Christian..) to which they belong. So if you are in a team lead or in a managerial position you would have to plan allocation of work in your teams keeping this in mind. Socialization between Colleagues – In India colleagues often invite each other over to their homes. Invites are also passed around for important religious or family functions, so don’t be surprised if you are invited for a child’s naming ceremony (christening) or ‘Diwali’ party at a colleague’s place. Asking personal questions is not considered taboo either. People often ask questions about marital status or whether you have children and how many. But on the whole people are quite helpful, so ask for help when required – where to get your provisions, places to see, public transport and other things that you may need assistance on. Indians are not always very direct or open while expressing disagreement. If they have to communicate something unpleasant they try to do it in an indirect or gentle manner. So without letting work suffer try phrases like ‘scope for improvement’ instead of an outright ‘this will not work’ This should be enough to help you sail through most situations that your are likely to face at the workplace in India. So work hard but don’t forget to have fun and enjoy the ‘India Experience’. Chillibreeze's disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views of Chillibreeze as a company. Chillibreeze has a strict anti-plagiarism policy. Please contact us to report any copyright issues related to this article.
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