Adapt to the Indian Way of Working

Having to adapt to a new style of working while not treading on anyone’s toes can be a challenging experience, especially when navigating a new culture. If you’re new to working with Indian colleagues, there are a few ways in which you can anticipate what to expect and adapt your working style accordingly. This can help get things done effectively and without coming across as being culturally insensitive. With time, you’ll realize that working with Indians is a joy, as they’re not only hardworking but also competitive and problem-solvers.

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Experience a Unique Work Culture

Part of integrating into a new work environment involves understanding your colleagues' unique cultural nuances and habits. When working with your Indian colleagues, being aware of these habits will help you effectively. 

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You will soon realize that your Indian colleagues are likely to say “yes” easily for starters. The desire to please makes it difficult for us to refuse or reject something. As a result, you’ll likely hear “yes” a lot more frequently than “no.” 

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Another unique habit of Indians is how they address a senior colleague, “Sir” or “Ma’am.” Most non-Indians would likely prefer the use of first names, even when speaking to superiors. But in India, hierarchy, and respect for seniors, both at home and in office, takes precedence. So despite repeatedly telling your Indian colleagues not to call you “Sir” or “Ma’am, don’t expect them to address you by name right away. 

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Over time, you may realize that the phrase “It'll be done by tomorrow" pops up quite often. For instance, if you were to ask about the progress on a project, you will usually hear that it will be completed by the next day. But in actuality, you might only see something by the following week. 

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You will also find that Indians do not believe in being discreet, especially those at a junior level. Salaries and individual ratings are often discussed and freely shared. You may find that in a team of 12 junior colleagues, everybody is well aware of each individual's salary and ratings. 

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When it comes to meetings, it's common to talk in circles without making a decision. It typically starts with, "In my opinion…" and meanders from there. In a cross-company or cross-country meeting, you will find many Japanese, Chinese and Korean colleagues who remain silent and wait for their turn. But Indians can cut other speakers off without waiting for their turn to speak. 

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While Indian food has its uniqueness, many Indians follow unique diet patterns. Don’t get surprised if your Indian colleagues say, "I am a vegetarian on Tuesdays and Thursdays." That is something very unique to Indian culture. If you are taking somebody out for lunch or dinner, make it a point to find out their diet for that specific day. Depending on specific days of the week or specific festival periods, Indians may turn vegetarian. 

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Governments also work differently in India, and this is not easily understandable to non-Indians. Let's say in Singapore, a government official takes seven days to give you an appointment. The same could take anywhere between 24 hours to six months in India, depending on various factors. As a result, Indians would give you timelines that may sound absurd to someone from a developed country.

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The word 'jugaad' means finding a shortcut or more manageable way, is applied very frequently in India. Most Indians are very proud of jugaad, and it is practiced most frequently among junior-level staff as it makes them very efficient in executing their work. However, it also means they might resort to practices that are not allowed or appreciated by the parent organisation. But as time goes by, most understand that taking shortcuts is not sustainable, and instead, process-orientation should be prioritised. 

**Misconceptions **

It is quite common for those who have not worked in India or with Indians to feel that India has a uniform national and work culture. However, this is quite far from the truth. Be it the East, North, or South; every region has a very different work culture.

 

Many also assume that anybody who is from India is good with numbers. While it is true that India has much higher numeracy than literacy rate, not everybody is good with numbers, so do not be too quick to jump to conclusions. English language proficiency is also commonly misconstrued. Non-Indians may think that every Indian is good with English, be it spoken, written, or both, but that is not consistently true. For instance, while I started writing English at six, I only started speaking the language at 16. So the standard of my written and spoken English are very different. 

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Lastly, while most people worldwide are seen to work hard for their company, you will find that individuals work for their managers in India. So this means that if something goes wrong, Indians would rather quit than point fingers at their manager. Hence, you will see very few cases of Indian whistleblowers. 

If you seek to endear yourself to your Indian colleagues, you can do some little things to leave a good impression. Start by addressing others with 'Ji' after their first name, which shows respect. For instance, "Somnath-Ji, can you help me with this project?". Many people will be pleased and appreciative if you show your respect, especially if they are older than you. They will then be more willing to help you out and guide you through the entire process for your work. 

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Like most Southeast Asians, Indians are also family-oriented. To get to know colleagues, it's common for Indians to invite them over for a meal.  It is an elaborate affair, with lots of home-cooked food and family members, sometimes spanning three generations! They genuinely want to build a deeper relationship with you, particularly if they know you'll be working together for a while. If you're not able to visit their homes, enquire about their family instead. It can be as simple as asking about their parents or how old their children are. I've met so many colleagues across Central Asia, and one thing that binds us fast is family talk. But keep in mind that you'll need to remember any details they share. 

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In the workplace, ensure that your team knows that you are capable of delivering good work. While Indians are eager to please, winning their trust is difficult. Take everything they say with a pinch of salt and be conscientious in your work. For instance, if you are new to the Indian market, be sure to ask deep questions and seek clarification. You will also want to act quickly when you notice that some ethical values have been breached at work. Make it clear that such behaviors will not be tolerated.

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Lastly, to keep things amicable with Indian colleagues, it could be easier to avoid potentially controversial topics such as religion and politics, as you never know where they stand. I remember having made such a mistake once when I was a consultant and speaking with CEOs in India. While making small talk, I made a joke about right-wing political ideology. However, it turns out that the person I was speaking to was tied to that ideology, which I was unaware of. Needless to say, that meeting ended before it had even started. To avoid such situations, avoid potentially sensitive or controversial topics of conversation. 

**Manage Your Expectations **

If you have never worked in India before, here are the key areas around which you'll need to manage your expectations. 

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• Punctuality

First, you should change your concept of time when working with Indians because punctuality is defined differently. For example, if you were waiting for someone at a meeting and you text them to ask where they are, don't take the standard response, "I’ll be there in five minutes,” literally. They actually might be 30 minutes away! Yet they’re not intentionally dishonest. It’s merely a way of showing courtesy. 

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Indeed a lot of Indians arrive at meetings late. Don’t get flustered or hold it against them – fluid timings are the norm in India. Just be sure to inform everyone that because the meeting started late, it will probably have to end late as well. Most people will be on time, mainly if there is a non-Indian present because they know that most other countries will not expect any delay. 

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However, the expectation of everyone being on time is a tall order in India. The more important the person, the later they are likely to be due to multiple or even back-to-back meetings. That is why Indians often like to use this proverb, “We are in a hurry all the time, but always arrive late.” 

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• Work-Life Balance

Office hours are also perceived somewhat differently in India, thanks to their belief in the fusion of work and life. Unlike Southeast Asians who are very concerned about their own or their team’s time, Indians are less conscious of such boundaries. Don’t be surprised if your Indian colleagues are sending and receiving emails late in the night. I have seen many expatriates try to change this aspect of work culture in an Indian company but found it challenging to implement. 

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• Process Orientation

In India, people rarely follow processes. You might need to repeatedly remind your Indian colleagues to follow guidelines and processes because they don't typically follow the rules in the same way that other Asian nations do. In the spirit of jugaad, Indians will try to find faster ways to get things done. So if there is a way to skip several steps and move directly to the final step, they will take it, even if it doesn’t follow the guidelines. 

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To prevent this from happening, have repeated reminders, and ensure that they’re followed through. For example, in our company, we have a strict rule for our employees to put on a helmet when they are riding a bike and to put their seatbelts on in the car. While individuals are well aware that it saves lives, not all do so. Hence we rely on mandating it for our employees and laying down penalties for those who do not adhere to the rules. That is one way for people to learn to follow processes. 

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• Feedback

You will also need to be mindful of how you give feedback to Indians. Feedback, particularly direct or negative feedback, needs to be sugar-coated or won’t go down well. While you may praise someone in a public setting, never deliver negative feedback in a group. As adults, Indians do not take such criticism well and may not be willing to rectify the mistake. For example, Australians give direct feedback, and although it might work well for them, it will not be well-received by Indians.

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Instead, learn to deliver any negative feedback in a way that helps the individual come to a realization, rather than to have it directly given to them. So as an alternative to saying, “It’s a bad idea,” you could try saying, “Why don’t you think it over again, because you know there are these challenges in the market and your team…”. That way, you have expressed your feedback on a particular part you did not like in a manner that they are likely to be more receptive to. 

**Indians’ Perception of Foreign Colleagues **

In general, Indians have a very positive perception of working with non-Indians because they are perceived as being of higher social status if a foreigner is their colleague or manager. It also helps that there is a pleasant change if one day you go from reporting to an Indian colleague who does not believe in work-life balance to having a superior who believes in this concept. 

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Non-Indians also tend to be more forthcoming with praise. While this may be good in the short-term, problems can arise when the praise given for work is misinterpreted as praise for the person. It can create much false hope for faster career progression or promotion in the long run. It may be necessary to clarify the difference between achieving business goals and achieving personal career goals if you are an Indian team.

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Along similar lines, the culture's deferential nature means that Indians will expect their managers to make critical decisions. It's partly to make sure they have their manager’s final say and partly to ensure that any outcome failure does not come on them. 

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Indians may also worry that you’ll not want to see any bad results or hear about failures, so they may choose only to report any positive news and withhold the negative till it's either too late or too evident. Start things off by making it clear that you expect transparency from your Indian team. 

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Finally, it is worthy to note that most Indian companies do not have a hire-fire culture. What Indians will be expecting is that you, as a manager, will be lenient towards them if they’re having a bad year. For instance, a salesperson in India may feel that even though the year is not going too well for them, you will understand that they are trying their best and hence treat them leniently. Often, many non-Indian managers decide to part ways if things are not working out. That is not what Indian workers will be expecting. So you need to lay down any expectations you have about work very clearly and limit the number of people you hire if you know that you’ll probably need to let them go down the road. 

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Now that you know what to expect and how you can tailor your working style to the Indian way of doing things, you’ll be well on your way to communicating and working well with your Indian colleagues. 

1 Appreciate Indians’ Unique Work Culture

Go in with an open mind. Learn to embrace and tweak your expectations to match the existing work habits and culture that Indians have. They work with their hearts and not with their minds. 

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2 Do Not Fixate on Punctuality

Get used to the new definition of what ‘punctuality’ means in India. Avoid hastily pinning the blame on an individual if they are not always on time. 

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3 Spend your Energy on Instilling Process Orientation

Ensure you get deep into the work and understand the “how” of the business instead of just looking at the results. Keep communicating the business processes you want everyone to follow and reprimand bad behavior early.