Delving into the More Subtle Side of Cultural Differences

Author: Jasmine Hentschel
Project: Digital Green | Harvesting Knowledge
Year: 2014
New Delhi, India

This year marks my fifth trip to India. This year is different, though—for the first time, I’m not just studying or traveling. This year, I’m working full time in an office and feel much more in tune with everyday life here in a way that I haven’t ever before. Spending five days a week with colleagues that my partners and I have come to know quite well and grown to be great friends with has allowed me to gain a more nuanced understanding of living in India as a normal, working citizen. It’s also given me insight into the Indian office context, an altogether new perspective. There are of course cultural dissimilarities between India and the United States that I’ve observed over the years, but working at Digital Green has shed light on some more subtle differences that I’m still reflecting on, and will continue to reflect on long after I leave next week. In contrast with Digital Green, people have certainly been more rigid and formal in the way they communicate and schedule events with others in the various office environments I’ve experienced in the U.S. Meetings generally always need to be scheduled ahead of time and written down formally before they’re official. Here, people seem to be open to meet anytime they aren’t tied up in another discussion already. They’ve happened spontaneously on multiple occasions for our team, when we’ve gone to ask a quick question or been in conversation with someone and it’s obvious that we’d benefit from having a prolonged discussion. There was no need to schedule something for a later time—we just figured it out then and there. This more flexible approach to communication seems to manifest itself in other ways as well during meetings. There is usually no set agenda besides an overarching topic to be discussed, and if a group is present then people expect everyone to chime in and collaborate whenever they see fit, regardless of their position in the company. Sometimes this leads to meetings where decisions don’t actually get made or everything isn’t finished by the end, but nobody seems to mind when this happens; they just point out that follow-up will be required. Similarly, the pace of work and life at Digital Green is much more relaxed than I’ve ever experienced in the U.S. While culture in the United States is generally seen as more individualistic than in India, it doesn’t seem to be so obvious in the office setting. In the past, even when I was not being micromanaged, I’ve still always had a boss that I had to constantly refer to for direction and confirmation with all of my projects and everyday tasks. In the office here in Delhi, even entry-level people do a great deal of their work completely independently and are expected to stay focused and complete tasks with their teammates without getting a great deal of explicit instruction or direction from their managers. The pace of work in general seems to be much more mellow and less stressful than I’m used to at home. Besides the obvious difference in the amount of vacation time people get (compare Digital Green’s eight full weeks versus my former job’s 12 days per year), the culture here implicitly acknowledges that work must always be balanced with sufficient rest and relaxation to ensure professional productivity, good health, and a positive state of mind. I firmly believe that the great experience I’ve had at Digital Green is primarily a result of the wonderful people I work with. The more relaxed atmosphere definitely helps foster good relationships among co-workers by indirectly promoting engagement among them both in and out of the office. In the U.S., I’ve found that trust between me and my co-workers is always built upon a foundation that starts with successful completion of tasks or projects together; from there, we’ve progressed to learning more about each other’s personalities and lives outside of work. It’s been almost the opposite here in India. From our very first day, people were eager to learn about our interests, goals, and hobbies, and talk with us about everyday life at home and school in the U.S. We’ve built great relationships with some of our co-workers, both those we work with often and some who we have hardly ever worked with. The trust and understanding we’ve developed has been based on interesting conversations we’ve had, jokes we’ve shared, and interesting experiences we’ve gone through together, mostly outside of work. This, in turn, has led to some great collaborations in the office due to comfortable communication and genuine interest in working with and learning from each other. There are, of course, some major cultural differences that exist between India and the United States. This internship has helped me develop a complex understanding of some of the much more subtle differences and similarities. In our short six weeks here, we’ve already seen the organization grow in size, and I have every bit of confidence it will continue to grow and succeed if it maintains the energy, excitement, and positive environment it has fostered for its employees thus far. I’ve grown to greatly appreciate the work culture in this country and truly hope that my next professional experience encompasses some of the great values and practices of Digital Green.