Things to keep in mind while visiting your Indian Software Outsourcing Team

9th February, 2010 - Posted by bryan - No Comments

IT Outsourcing to India has reached its prime. It is no longer just an easy way to cut back on costs or to enhance staff resources. Increasingly, American companies are looking at their Indian outsourcing partners as viable value additions. Employees from both ends of the globe also travel frequently between India and America for furthering their business interests. If you are an American visiting your off-shore partner in India for the first-time, here are a few pointers to keep in mind while dealing with your Indian Software team, as well as the friendly Indian public:

Focus on greater transparency in the workplace: Indians, in general, like to please their employers. They say ‘YES’ a lot more than American employees. While Americans thrive on being frank and state their opinions straight to the face, Indians have a tendency to agree with the client, a whole lot. This is because they have long been used to the hierarchical set-up at the workplace and elsewhere.

However, this lack of assertiveness is slowly changing, especially in the IT set-up. At Indiansoftwareoutsourcing, we train our employees to be very forthright and clear in their communication with the clients. Our employees are trained to be transparent in their communications and actions in order to cater to a global clientele.

Indians can get a little personal: If it’s your first visit to India, you may be surprised that people keep enquiring about your wife, your kids and your dog. This is mainly because Indian society is strongly family-oriented. These days, IT employees are trained on American etiquette. But if a personal question does come along, just take it easy and enjoy the personal attention that you get.

Restrict physical contact: Indians are not really touchy-feely people. And hugging in public is really not a norm here. So, restrict physical contact to hand-shakes. You’ll be just fine.

Expect some language issues: Most IT outsourcing firms train their employees on a neutral accent and most of them have a commendable knowledge of the American English. Nevertheless, there is always the slip of the tongue. Also, you need to converse with Indians outside your outsourcing firm. So, be prepared for some communication glitches while in India. Like out-of-town is out-of-station in Indian English; gas station is the petrol bunk; and STD is long-distance dialing and not a health condition.

Plan ahead or you’ll definitely get delayed in traffic: Be very prepared for the maddening Indian traffic. Most Americans cringe while travelling on Indian roads for the first time. And most of them have never really seen a cow grazing in the middle of a national highway. That’s just the way India travels. Signals are not meant to be followed and you cannot travel above 20 kmph in city traffic. So, if you have scheduled an important meeting with your Indian outsourcing team, leave an hour early, even if you have to travel just 5 miles. Or else you’re sure to be late!

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