Doing business in india training sample

© iRikai Learning Solutions
Doing Business in India
1
Training Presentation - SAMPLE

© iRikai Learning Solutions www.irikai.com
About
iRikai (www.irikai.com) is a New Delhi, India based soft
skills training firm which provides niche international
business etiquette courses. This is a snapshot of our
content for the Indian business etiquette course – the
course is delivered onsite (in India) and online via web
conference (anywhere in the world).
The course is adapted to the audience – past audiences
have ranged from expat sales staff to MDs and CEOs –
and to the purpose. Whether it is a short business trip or
long term negotiations with Indian business partners, our
courses can help you maximize results from your business
interactions in India
2

Caveat!
Cambridge economist Joan Robinson once
observed: "Whatever you can rightly say about
India, the opposite is also true.”
3

Agenda
1. Introduction
2. Ground Realities
3. Context
4. Cultural Traits
5. Business Etiquette
6. Review and Application
4

Let’s share our perceptions about
India…
5

A common scene…
6
Also a common scene

Can you guess what this is?
7
What is this?

“Traditional” housewives?
8
Or rocket scientists?

Slums?
9
Or the world’s most expensive home?

Manual labor?
10
Or a 6-sigma operation?

Indian roads…
11
Also Indian roads…

Holy cow…
12
Unholy cow?

In short…
India is a land of extremes and contradictions,
difficult to put in neat compartments.
13
*Being Indian by Pavan Varma

Agenda
1. Introduction
2. Ground Realities
3. Context
4. Cultural Traits
14

Common statements…
15
My Indian business
partners do not
seem to respect
deadlines…
Decision making in
India is painfully
slow…
My team members do
not apply their mind
to solving problems
for the organization…
There are so many
customs that we are
afraid to make
embarrassing mistakes in
social settings…
My Indian
colleagues do not
want to take
ownership for
their work…
My vendors
are
unresponsive…
Everything seems
random and
unpredictable…there
is no “system”…

Case Study
• Not part of this preview
16

And yet…
• There is tremendous opportunity in India – we
are here (other than for personal reasons) – to
engage in productive business
17

Agenda
1. Introduction
2. Ground Realities
3. Context
4. Cultural Traits
18

India: A (Very) Brief History
19
2500 BC: The
Indus Valley
Civilization
develops
around Indus
river and
grows into
the largest of
the ancient
empires
326 BC:
Alexander the
Great reaches
India
320 – 550 AD:
Gupta
Empire.
Hinduism
becomes the
major religion
1526 AD:
Mughal
Empire begins
in India
1600 AD:
Trade begins
with Dutch,
French and
British
1858 AD:
British rule
begins
1947 AD:
India gains
independenc
e, is split into
India and
Pakistan

Physical Features of India
20
Northern
Mountains
Desert
Indo-Gangetic
Plains
Peninsular
Plateau
Coastal Plains
Islands
Maps Approximate

© iRikai Learning Solutions www.irikai.com 21
Maps Approximate
Physical Features of India

Demographics
22

Economy
23
8.6% 8.9%
6.7%
4.5% 4.7%
0.0%
2.0%
4.0%
6.0%
8.0%
10.0%
2009-10 2010-11 2011-12 2012-13 2013-14
GDP Growth
• After a period of high growth, the Indian economy has slowed down in the last
3 years. Growth in 2014-15 is expected to be 5.4%-5.9%
• However, recent projections have started becoming more optimistic, with the
World Bank predicting that India will overtake China as the world’s fastest
growing big economy in 2 years
India GDP Growth

National Politics
24

Religion
25

Places of Worship
26

Religion and Food
27

Religion and Food
• Depending on the religion, community and region, there are
varying restrictions on food that people follow. The following
are broad restrictions which are observed:
– Hindus: Revere cows as sacred, and therefore, do not eat beef. Also
avoid pork
– Sikhs: Eating meat is a personal choice. However, beef is avoided
– Muslims: Mostly non-vegetarian diet. Pork is forbidden
– Christians: Flexible, non-vegetarian diet
– Jains: Follow a strict vegetarian diet (no eggs), diet also exclude onions
and garlic
28

Languages
• India has 122 major languages of which 30 languages are spoken by more
than a million native speakers, and 22, including Hindi and English, are
often referred to as “official” languages
• Hindi is the most widely spoken language in India
29
Hindi
Gujarati Bengali
Telugu
Marathi
Tamil
Kannada
Malayalam
Oriya
Punjabi
Manipuri
Urdu
Hindi
Hindi
MizoHindi
Hindi
Hindi
Hindi
Hindi
English
Assamese
English
Some of the languages and the
regions in which they are spoken
Maps Approximate

Food and Cuisines
30

Popular Snacks
31

Indian Sweets: Mithai
32
Rasgulla
Jalebi
Barfi
Laddoo
Gulabjamun

Education
33

Some aspects of education in India
• Disparity: Rural schools, city schools, private
schools, public schools and international schools
• Employability
• Pressure
• Social standing
• Critical thinking
• Coaching centers
• Language of instruction
• Corporal punishment
• “3 Idiots”
34

Law
35

Family System
• Traditionally, Indians have lived in “joint families” which can
have several branches of the family living together
• The eldest male member is usually considered the head of the
household
• With urbanization and mobility, joint families have given way
to nuclear families – though it is still common for grown men
to live with their parents even after getting married and
having children
• It is very common for the entire extended family to get
together for festive occasions and family events
• Family remains a very strong influence and will often come
first while evaluating the impact of major life decisions
36

India at crossroads…
37

Agenda
1. Introduction
2. Ground Realities
3. Context
4. Cultural Traits
38

Another caveat…
"The mistake one should never make is to accept
the amiable Indian as a monolith. He is a most
well-adjusted split personality, capable of living
simultaneously and effortlessly on two mutually
opposed planes. His mind is like a chest of
drawers - never a single cupboard; each drawer
can be a world onto itself, and can be pulled out,
without reference to others, in response to a
given situation." *
39
*Being Indian by Pavan Varma

Hierarchy
• Hierarchy plays an important part in Indian
business – those in positions of authority are
given utmost respect
• Orders given by superiors are expected to be
followed without questioning their validity –
this is also a reason for juniors hesitating to
say “no”
40

Flexibility
• Flexibility is essential (“adjustment”) – in daily
life as well as in business
• Western notions of contracts may not hold in
India, in general
41

Relationships
• Where business deals are not the outcome of
relationships, relationships often become the
outcome of business deals – business in India
can be very personal
42

Respect (“Name”)
• Many people can take offense if protocol is
not followed or if appropriate “respect” is not
shown
• Even a light reprimand delivered in public can
cause people to disengage
43

Team Work
• Self-interest and survival will often precede
broader interests of organizations, society and
country
44

Leadership
45

Long Term vs. Short Term
• The focus in Indian business often tends to be
on immediate, short term gains vs. long term,
sustainable gains
• However, this can also sometimes lead to
innovative solutions for complex problems
(“jugaad”)
• “Jugaad” exemplifies the Indian spirit of
“getting things done” irrespective of the
environment
46

Examples of “Jugaad”
47
…To low cost inter-planetary missions
From makeshift stoves…

Emotion
• Indians often rely on “gut feel” and emotion
to make decisions as opposed to just raw data
48

Punctuality
49

Family
50

Agenda
1. Introduction
2. Ground Realities
3. Context
4. Cultural Traits
51

Meeting and Greeting
52

Small-talk
• It is common for hosts to offer beverages such as tea,
coffee or soft-drinks with snacks (such as biscuits) to a
guest, even in business settings
• These should be accepted – it is ok to specify if you
would prefer without sugar, or without milk etc.
• Small talk at the beginning of a meeting is very
common and is a means to break the ice
• Topics that are normally conversed about are family,
weather, sports, general work
• Avoid serious discussions during this time, including
strong political views, specific business questions
53

Addressing People
54

Negotiations
55

Accepting Invitations
56

Giving and Receiving Gifts (1/2)
57

Giving and Receiving Gifts (2/2)
58

Dining Etiquette (1/4)
• Indians take hospitality very seriously and this concern for
guests will show during dining
• While dining, your host will often serve you, and encourage
you to try new things or take more helpings
• Allow hosts to serve you, and if you are full or would not
like more, politely put your hand up in front of you, palm
facing outward, with a mild “no”
• It is customary to refuse the first offer of a second helping,
therefore, expect to be pushed to “take something”
59

60

61

62

Dressing
63

Dressing for Social Events
64

Agenda
1. Introduction
2. Ground Realities
3. Context
4. Cultural Traits
65

Case Study
• Negotiations between an Indian manufacturer
and 2 (very, very large!) Japanese steel mills
66

What separated the winner and loser…
67
Dimension “Winner” “Runner up”
Flexibility • Convinced top management to
follow new approach urgently
• “Adjusted” on quantity
• “Adjusted” on including past
orders in contract
• “Adjusted” on payment delays
• Slow in convincing Japanese top
management of urgency
Understanding of
business etiquette
• Senior MD (Japanese) who was
well versed in Indian etiquette
(small talk, chai etc.)
• Relatively new MD (Japanese)
with not enough exposure in
Indian context
Team Composition • Not part of this preview • Not part of this preview
Use of emotion • Used 10-year relationship as
emotional leverage
Relationship • Not part of this preview • Not part of this preview
Negotiating
Strategy
• Not part of this preview • Not part of this preview

Let’s re-assess and apply
• You have an Indian boss. His boss is Japanese.
You have received a call from a client who
would like a proposal today. The proposal
needs a senior’s approval. However, your boss
is out of office. Would you go to your boss’s
boss to discuss the proposal?
68

• You are holding a team meeting in which
every one is supposed to provide an update of
their projects. One of your team members
provides a less than satisfactory update. How
would you provide her feedback?
69

70

• An Indian client hired your firm for an
assignment. However, ever since you got
hired, your contact at the client’s office has
not been responding to emails and calls. If
things continue like this, you will not be able
to finish the client’s work on time. What could
be the reasons? How would you handle the
situation?
71

72

Contact Us
73
Please do not distribute this material without the written consent of iRikai Learning Solutions. This presentation is based upon publicly
available sources and expert opinions. Every attempt is made to ensure the information presented is factually correct. iRikai Learning
Solutions does not accept any liability due to errors contained herein.
Office: 19A GF, TDI Centre, Jasola, New Delhi 110025
Email: contact@irikai.com
Ph: +91 9654 001 370 | +91 9873 873 006
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