What is it like to work for an Indian company?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I work for an Indian company and, like any company, there are pros and cons.

As a US-born white male, it's been an interesting and educational cultural experience to be an ethnic minority at a company. There are some common American expressions that can get you in serious trouble with the Indians (e.g., saying that someone was "monkeying around" can be very offensive)

The people here (onshore) and the people back in India (offshore) have a culture that involves working long hours, and those who are onshore are frequently on the phone with offshore into the wee hours of the morning.

Indian companies tend to be fairly centralized and hierarchical, and things frequently have to get escalated fairly high to get approvals.

From a corporate perspective, because there are so many people in India competing for jobs, the corporate culture tends to be one of "you're lucky we're employing you," rather than one that really values employees, because in India they tend to be pretty fungible - especially at the lower levels.

Look carefully at the benefits. It your company is one that follows a model of having people here in the US and then going back to India, there are likely issues for the company's 401(k) plans.

Getting used to the accents takes a while, and since the names aren't natural for me, it's sometimes hard to keep track of who's who, even after dealing with it for a while.

Paragraph 5 is very true. You have 1.2 billion people over there so they treat you like crap because they treat each other like crap.

Not sure about treating like crap, but they do tend to undercompensate, expect you to be grateful and not understand the concept of SMEs in the US who are highly compensated. They are not widgets to be moved in and out. Check the CEO salaries of the owners, if they are in India. They will be low. That tells you how they feel about "underlings" as well.

[Anonymous]

I worked for an Indian owned and led consulting compsny in the DC area. I really thought it would be like any other consulting company. Woo boy was I wrong. It was super toxic and I was consistenly reminded that I was white and was not included in lots of things. It was so bizarre and I did not stay long.

[Anonymous]

management is definitely top down approach-- hierarchical, like a caste system.

crazy nepotism

unethical competitive practices


im sure these stereotypes are unfair

[Anonymous]

Beggars can't be choosers.

They have generous maternity leave. 6 months of paid leave.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I worked for an Indian owned and led consulting compsny in the DC area. I really thought it would be like any other consulting company. Woo boy was I wrong. It was super toxic and I was consistenly reminded that I was white and was not included in lots of things. It was so bizarre and I did not stay long.

+1 My entire team in the US is Indian, and I'm not. The rest of the non Indians left the team a couple of years ago. I'm hanging on simply because the client really likes me, and I get to wfh. But, they do things and make decisions without my knowledge, then expect me to toe the line when the client asks me why certain things are the way they are. I hate it. I waffle between leaving and staying a lot, again, only because I get to wfh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Beggars can't be choosers.

They have generous maternity leave. 6 months of paid leave.

Um.. no, not all of them have this.

[Anonymous]

Indian, Korean and Japanese companies suck to work for, each for their own reasons (though Korean and Japanese are more alike vs. Indian).

Unless they are giving you a massive signing bonus (doubt it), then you should avoid.

Life is too short.

[Anonymous]

I would try to get info on whether the team is all from the same part of India/speaks the same language. If not, I think a non-Indian will have a better chance of being accepted. I have family (Indian) where their entire team here and in India speaks the same language. So, many of their conversations are in their native tongue. An English-only speaker would feel left out, both socially and professionally.

If they all speak different languages, English will be what they communicate in. That’s easier to navigate, but I would prefer an Indian-owned company here vs a mix of staff on different continents for the reasons stated above. They do work people hard in India, and I don’t want to be competing on how much I work with them.

I would also try to understand the visa status of the team (or somewhat of a proxy - how long they have been in the US). I know that’s probably hard to figure out, but you could probably tell when someone has only recently arrived in the US. Some companies will take advantage of people who are waiting for their green cards, because their visas are tied to their jobs and they can overwork them etc.

[Anonymous]

Expect 10pm calls with offshore team and 4am calls before they leave work.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are they good on work/life balance? Workaholics? Like anywhere else?

If you are an American, you will be worshipped in an Indian company. If you are an Indian, you will be squeezed for your juice. If you are anyone else, doesn't matter.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:management is definitely top down approach-- hierarchical, like a caste system.

crazy nepotism

unethical competitive practices

And bellydancing. A lot of bellydancing.

[Anonymous]

Like all companies, some have their act together more than others. The person above talking about odd timing is very true. It can take 2 days to get a decision made that could have been done in one afternoon due to the time difference. Also in the govt. contracting world, loser business practices that may be the norm in India are unacceptable in the US and can create friction for companies unable to adapt.

[Anonymous]

*looser

[Anonymous]

Being a white woman in an Indian company was very difficult. It is the only time in my career where I have felt less than. (And I worked for DoD for years)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Being a white woman in an Indian company was very difficult. It is the only time in my career where I have felt less than. (And I worked for DoD for years)

And do you have other experiences where you were in the minority race or is this it? It is definitely eye opening and very uncomfortable for white people to not be one of many, as many minorities are in many many contexts.