This document provides reflections and suggestions for doing business in India. It begins with a note of caution about generalizations. It then outlines India's Vision 2020 of transitioning to a knowledge economy. For strategy, it recommends treating plans like jazz tunes with room for improvisation. Implementation requires maximizing parent involvement, ensuring diversity, and two-way staff movement. Understanding the cultural orientations of hierarchy, relationships, and nonlinear thinking is key. Suggestions include building long-term relationships, recognizing hierarchy, flexibility, and a task orientation that follows people orientation. The overall message is one of seeing India as diverse but also recognizing cultural tendencies to achieve business success.

1. Doing business in India:
some reflections
& suggestions
Achal Raghavan
Strategy & Business Excellence Consultant
Bangalore, India
achalraghavan@yahoo.co.in
www.achalraghavan.com
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2. A note of caution
 My views are based on my 30+ years of work
experience – in MNC’s and Indian cos.
 Many generalizations – please handle with
care!
 Look for this symbol: Caution:
Generalization!
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3. Contents
 Introduction
 India: Vision 2020
 India strategy
 Strategy implementation
 Understanding Indian org. culture
 The Cultural Orientations Model
 Some suggestions
 Discussions
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4. Introduction
 Economy: Consistent growth at 6-8%
likely to be maintained
 Broad policy directions unlikely to change
– regardless of which Government is in
power
 A land of opportunity – but need to
understand the culture, the people and
the ecosystem
 Very diverse market; generalizations are
likely to be wrong
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5. India: Vision 2020
 The vision and the journey
“Making a successful transition to the
knowledge economy – agriculture,
industry and services”
 Recommended reading
 India 2020: A vision for the new millenium
APJ Abdul Kalam and Y S Rajan, Penguin India
2002
 India’s new opportunity 2020: Report of the
High Level Strategic Group
All India Management Association (AIMA),
with BCG
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6. India strategy
 Best left to individual companies and
businesses
 But just one friendly tip (next slide)
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7. India strategy: a friendly tip
 Treat your India strategy like a jazz
tune, or an Indian “raga”
Caution:
Generalization!
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8. India strategy: a friendly tip
 The main strategy, or the tune, or the “raga”, is
known before you start
 A lot of “improvisations” will get introduced as you
proceed
 Be prepared for some latitude
 Fix the “band width” within which improvisations will be
Caution:
Generalization!
allowed (by corporate)
 Empower the India team within band width
 Due to improvisations, the tune (the strategy) may
take longer to complete. Fix outer limit.
 As in jazz, or ragas, execution discipline is
everything!
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9. Strategy implementation
The Balanced Scorecard – Kaplan and Norton
Financial
Customer
Process
People Focus area for today
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10. Strategy implementation
Caution:
Generalization!
 Maximize involvement of parent org. executives at
project stage
 Short term postings by rotation (as development
assignment)
 Functional “buddy system”
 Ensure diversity at senior & middle levels
 India is no longer a “hardship posting”
 Many MNC’s in India are virtually 100% Indian
 Create “two-way traffic” of people (between India
and global org.)
 A great way to ensure alignment and global thinking; and
leverage Indian talent globally
 Be prepared to compete for talent
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11. Understanding Indian org. culture
 Very comfortable with clear, defined
structures
 Less effective in matrix organizations –
though this is changing
 Seniority still matters in brick-and-mortar cos.
– though merit is beginning to win, esp. in
new/ young industries
 Public “face” crucial at the individual level;
one-to-one meetings far more effective on
performance issues
Caution:
Generalization!
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12. Understanding Indian org. culture
 Tremendous capacity for hard work and
creativity – coupled with some reluctance
to use systems and processes 100%
 This also is changing, with ISO and other
certifications taking hold
 IT, manufacturing and pharma industries
are leading the way in systems discipline
Caution:
Generalization!
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13. Ethics and governance
 Communicate company ethics policy clearly
 Written documentation
 Workshops
 Sign-offs
 Implement consistently
 Provide “secure-but-open” communication
channel and process for raising and
resolving issues
 Show visible top management commitment
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14. Customer perspective
 Indian customers globally aware, and very
value conscious
 “Solutions” the only way to get out of price wars /
discount spirals
 No time lag in rolling out global technologies
in India- “Give me the latest”
 “Design from scratch for India market” –
often needed; can then become a solution for
Asian / global markets
Caution:
Generalization!
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15. The Cultural Orientations Model*
Thinking Environment
Structure
Time
Competitiv- Action
Cultural
eness
orientation
Individualism
Communi-
cation
Power Space
*from Danielle Walker, Thomas Walker and Joerg Schmitz- “Doing Business Internationally” 15

16. Indians: The Cultural Orientations
Model* Caution:
Generalization!
Non linear, Thinking Environment
multi-layer
Harmony, constraint
(not control)
Control, hierarchy
Structure Time
Multi-focus, fixed/fluid,
Competitive past/future
Competitiv- Action
Cultural
eness
orientations
Work, relationship
Individualist, Formal, indirect, “face”,
bend the rules active silence
Individualism
Communi-
cation
Hierarchy, Power Space Private, public
not equality
*from Danielle Walker, Thomas Walker and Joerg Schmitz- “Doing Business Internationally” 16

17. Some suggestions for
effectiveness in India
 India = 25+ cultures and nations
 Build relationships, not just deals
 Recognize hierarchy
 Be flexible; expect non-linearity
 Task orientation follows (and
flows from) people orientation
 Play for the long term
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18. Wish you all success!
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19. Thank you!
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