IndiaThink

100,000 Missing Hotel Rooms--Now What?

The first Four Seasons launched in Bombay recently.  The hotel stands on a piece of land that was previously a slum which is not surprising as most empty areas in India are taken up by those who have little. 

Much has been written about this new hotel but the items I wanted to bring to light speak to the difficulty of bringing new ideas into India through its congested clog of permits and labor issues.  The Four Seasons project is no different from any other as people estimate it opened two years later than planned after fighting with city officials through 165 different permits required for its architecture both inside and out. 

Not only did they require the Four Seasons to jump through the hoops on the books, India decided to make them part of a new plan to relocate some of the people living in the slum they purchased.

" slum-dwellers living on the site were compensated for the loss of their homes and the government wants to use the model for two big slum rehabilitation projects that will transform the city if they are realised."

So for the rest of the hoteliers in the world it looks like India is the place to be planning a new hotel if you can stomach the rules and regulations -- and -- helping move those who have nothing off the land that you may choose to inhabit. There is little written about what "helping" actually means here.  Relocating to a new slum? Moving groups into established housing that were previously living on the street--doubtful.  Very doubtful.  Bombay is one of the most expensive cities in the world--as is evidenced by the prices the Four Seasons commands--around $1000 a night.  Which is two times what the average Indian makes in one year.

On a different note, the quote that caught my eye in this article is: "But there is little social envy. Vishal Doshi, whose shop sells samosas in the slum, says the hotel brings prestige. "Everyone can now say: 'I'm living near the Four Seasons'," he says.

I don't know if I would call this "little social envy" as much as Indians ability to carefully understand their place in the world and see endless opportunity inside the track.  Indians are proud of India's achievements and see themselves as part of the grand scheme of life that is happening all around them.  This is very different from our American way of thinking that we would be envious of the people staying in the Four Seasons instead of focusing on how, inside your set of capabilities, you can be part of this grand hotel. There is a sense of a grand plan or a system in which they all contribute to a better whole.

Please.....Take Notes...

"And every time we met, they refused to take notes.  I would say 'are you getting this' and I would get these head bobs, that looked like a yes, and they would say yes....but 4 months later when the product arrived my suspicious were confirmed:  they couldn't remember everything I said"

Met with a friend from graduate school this week to enjoy lunch and the conversation turned to his last company where he served as a product manager working closely with an India development team.  This PM was wildly confused by his inability to get this remote team to write anything he said down.  After belaboring the requirements document in finite detail he would look around to see no pens, paper....only that infamous India yes.  Guess what?  The product was a complete failure.  Requirements were not met deadline over deadline.  Yes it will get done. Yes we understand.  Yes we will be implementing that feature. Yes that feature requires what you have written on the document.  Yes, Yes, YES.   

How can my friend get to a real yes?  Notes, notes and notes again.  Demand that notes are taken by the Indian team and TAKE YOUR OWN NOTES.  Implement protocol that notes are exchanged after each meet. Reconcile the notes from the opposite side with yours and create a finalized set of note.  Get the remote team to sign off on the new adjusted reality of the meeting.   

This situation with its seemingly easy resolution is in reality SO painful for US citizens to implement.  Why?  Because we all are trained to "believe" that we have individual styles for communicating and remembering information.  We all have a different way to "get it done."  When we enter into this new mixed nation relationship we take in this baggage and assume that all is the same.  From my experience, its not.  This is not to say that Indians don't have the same number of talents that you hold in your pocket.  Rather, there is so much room for a communication failure in these situations that a formal method for communicating must be implemented.  It seems stiff right--and wow I really don't want to spend the time doing that.  Well, you can take the same road as my friend, and find yourself enjoying your boss's glare when the project fails under your watch.

Ironically what I hear from people that implement this strategy is that they realize how many things were missed by the remote team.  They also realize that understandings are completely different.  Of course, this lack of meeting of the minds would occur in any situation such as comparing notes in a grad school class.  The degree of variance is the problem.  When taking notes in class you may decide not to write something because its not "important" and you already know it.  You know the teacher and what they will ask on the test so you construct your methodology on this basis.  Unfortunately this is not a luxury you can afford with a remote team who has never met you, or perhaps has shared a mango lassie over a brief stay in country.  They don't have the ability to decide on importance and you can't rely on them deciphering your communications without verification.

At the end of the day, whats on paper is what is on paper.  Get it on paper.  Review it on paper.  Email it and get agreement. Your project will be better for it.   

The Indian Yes

What is the Indian “Yes”? 

Indian's like to agree.  They prefer not to displease, instead selecting to answer in the affirmative.  This is a huge cultural insight that you must keep front of mind when working inside an international relationship. 

Indians tend to feel uncomfortable contradicting another person making it likely that if they perceive bias or a particular preferred response, they will provide it. The desire to say yes is rooted in India's high levels of collectivism, power distance, and the influence of hierarchy inside organizations.  In other words, they work for the good of the group by promoting a positive message, avoiding conflict with superiors who do not offer an open forum for discussions.

What does this mean to you?  Yes does not signify understanding. Confirm all yes’s.  Do not ask questions that result in yes answers such as "will the project be done on time." Instead ask detailed probing questions the elicit more information than yes.  Think of yes as an affirmation instead of a positive response. 

What is: Individualism?

America is the most individualistic country in the world by almost every cultural researcher’s account on record. We instill independence in our children at a young age, pushing them out in their early twenties to support themselves.  Children are allowed and encouraged to disagree with elders, displaying their independent thought.  Our individualism spills into our work life, where we identify ourselves by our profession and what we have achieved.  Through our protestant origins Americans believe people are blessed through hard work and determination, which leads to their perceived success.  These ideals result in Americans deriving extensive identity from their profession with a tendency to believe that ANYTHING is possible.  Training, hard work, effort, determination are the keys to the kingdom. 

This is, unfortunately, the exact opposite of the cultural preferences found for the most part in India.  Activities that are designed for the US will not work as well in a collectivist society.  Training courses that ask attendees to raise their hand if they know the right answer insight competition that is expected in the US but dreaded in India. Creating incentive programs where the top sales person, consultant, driver, or any other job should be avoided.  Calling attention to someone on staff in a way that an American would enjoy and blush will horrify most Indians. 

Be Mindful.  Before implementing a program think about what will motivate participants. Group awards, group projects, group thinking.  You get the picture.

What is: Collectivism?

Indians live in a collectivist society where individuals set aside personal goals for the good of the whole.  Identities are born and cultivated through family lineage and caste membership resulting in an identified in-group rather than striving for a personal identity. India’s people to not strive for independence from their in-group seeking individual rights” and desires over the group. Instead, respecting elders and taking on tasks to insure the happiness of the in-group, which includes workplace teams, are top duties. This is challenging to an American mind because our society is the most individualist in the world..or the opposite of collectivist.

Indian collectivist preferences coupled with in-country hierarchical structures and a fatalistic belief system result in an employee who appears to be the bi-polar opposite of the typical American worker. Employees tend to be satisfied with their current position within their team. They may avoid working at a faster pace or at a higher level than their perceived in-group to avoid individual attention. Exerting effort to achieve the goals of the in-group, is seen as a top priority. Enhancing these preferences is the overwhelmingly valued seniority system. Workers in the tech community may ignore the seniority system entirely, instead opting to seek out the same position at a different company for higher pay.

American awareness of these cultural aspects decreases surprise over the lifetime of a project. Accounting for these differences is requires creativity:

• Assigning tasks to the team instead of individuals is a perfect strategy for a group so willing to work together. By tracking the status of each project milestone as a group, they will share successes and failures. This is highly prevalent inside the call centers in India, where teams work together to meet a goal and are rewarded as a team with a team activity. 

• Avoid expecting teams to have a few overachievers, or those looking to take on additional responsibility. Instead, focusing on the group as a whole will be more effective.

• Market training as required by the employees’ position instead as a career stepping stone.  Americans must remember that training often appears as a stepping-stone in the US to a larger position. This branding may cause a low attendance rate through erroneous perceptions by the team.

• Realize teams that have strong underlying cohesion may produce a product with greater efficiency through their thorough understanding of the strengths and weaknesses existing inside.