USA - Part 3 - The Transition Phase (Settling In US)

(This post might make me look a complete idiot but I guess all those who have had this experience can correlate to it and all those who are planning to come in US would get a preview of what to expect)

The first few days in US were a complete shock. Completely different culture, different processes and administrative norms; took me a while to acclimatize to the situation. I had left for the US within a couple of days of knowing that I had to leave for this assignment. So I couldn’t make most of the internet to understand the place and the cultural differences.

The journey till Akron was pleasant. I had almost everything sorted out. After collecting the baggage, I wanted to take a cab to the Hotel. There were a few counters of the rental car companies that were lined up before the exit and none for a taxi service. I was in a fix because I didn’t have a cell phone, no cab service number and no cabs in sight. Luckily though as I went out there was a cab present. It had come to drop off somebody and was waiting for passengers. It was a relief to get the cab else I would have had a hard time getting into the city. (So carry the details/ numbers of cab service at the place of arrival)

The hotel was about 15 miles (24 Kms) from the airport and I was amazed to see the greenery all around. It reminded me of the drive from the KL airport to the main city which was also quite scenic in nature. The best part of the time that I arrived in US was it got dark after 9.30PM. So it took few days to realize that it’s still quite late though it might be bright and sunny outside. I guess this also gave me loads of time to explore the place.

Over the next few days I realized what significance transportation plays in conducting the daily business. USA has an absence of a sound public system (except for the handful cities like NYC, Chicago & LA). So was the case evident in Akron. Without owning a car one is almost immobile out here. Each day, I used to miss my time in Singapore. I haven’t seen a place well connected by public transport (busses, MRT’s) as one would find in Singapore. So I really found it strange that a country as prosperous as US lacks a good transport system. The city of Akron does have a few busses which run within the city; but it’s neither at desired timings nor on the desired routes. Though there are a few cab services (Yellow Cabs) which operate in the city but it generally takes 20 minutes (which often extended to 45-50 minutes) for them to arrive and not to forget the expenses incurred each trip. It often happened that I would keep waiting and the cab didn’t arrive. So In the first 2 weeks, I had walked back home four times. I wasn’t averse to walking but just the fact that my house was about 11 miles (~18Kms) away and it took me roughly around three and a half hours to walk all the way back (Partially thru the downtown area and partially thru the Cuyahoga valley). So each day I used to miss being in Singapore and my desire to be there just kept getting stronger. When I look back today, I doubt if I’ll do that much of walking again, but it gave me the opportunity to explore this place.

The first evening in US was nothing less than eventful as well. After returning firm office I headed for Wal-Mart to buy a few stuffs and more importantly to get a prepaid connection for my cell. I’ll confess that I enjoy shopping groceries and household items and at Wal-Mart I felt like being in a park, happily exploring items that I almost forgot about purchasing the Sim card for the phone. After all the purchase I realized Wal-Mart doesn’t sell the Pre paid sim card (not the one that I went too) and so I was stuck without a cab. I tried calling up using the public telephone but couldn’t fetch a cab. Since the cabs are very few in number, it’s almost next to impossible to catch a cab on the road. With loads of struggle I went to a convenience store and requested them to call for a cab. The guys were very helpful at the convenience store. (I didn’t even know the area I was in as I had caught the cab to Wal-Mart from the hotel and he took me to the nearest place to my hotel).

Finalizing the house wasn’t an easy task as well. As I wasn’t aware of the good localities I had not taken the effort to find the place over the net before leaving for US. It would surely have not been possible to get this thing sorted without the help of my Lead Engineer. He took me to a few guys (Indians, Chinese, and Korean) who knew of a few places where I could lease an apartment for six months. I got the details from these guys and checked up on the internet to narrow down on the one that looked good. I didn’t have a car and so I knew I really have to be sure of this thing as I couldn’t hop places searching an apartment. Luckily, I found a good place at the place I had narrowed upon. I remember searching houses with Hemant back in Baroda (though he did the bulk of searching); I hated doing that. It is a tedious process. The differences were quite evident between India and US; back in India there would an agent introducing you to each room; each house personally while here based on the budget, kind of apartment I was given keys to a few houses. I had to go alone and check it out and narrow down on the apartment of my own choice. Just when I had finalized the deal, I realized it was yet not over. I had to walk a half mile (0.8Km) down the valley to get a money order as a security deposit as they didn’t accept check and Cash for deposits. Over the next two days I had to get insurance for the house and get the documents faxed to the rental office so that I could make it to the apartment quickly. The difficulty I had in all this process was to get the electricity on my name for which I needed to coordinate with first energy; that only used Credit cards from US banks to pay the deposits (Again my Lead Engineer to rescue).

When I look back to this sequence of events; I think I had an eventful first few weeks. However, it made me learn a lot about this place, the system, and modus operandi of the administration here. So not a bad deal I guess; after all travelling to a new place is not just for tourist purpose always.

USA - Part 2 - The Sir Culture

The queen of England bestows knighthood to people who have achieved excellence in their respective field. Post this, their name are prefixed with “Sir”. The case is a little different in Indian Corporate World and this starts right from the schools. I remember going thru a few ragging sessions back in school (Not the very serious types), where the seniors instructed all the junior batch students to address them as sir.

When you step into the corporate world, one generally ends up calling everyone senior as Sir. However, I have a problem with this. If one addresses someone as Sir out of respect it still makes sense but when it is out of compulsion that’s when you feel getting stretched within. By addressing someone as Sir, you show your gratitude towards that person for educating you / enlightening you. And, when one is compelled to address someone as sir; just because of his /her seniority, it leaves you with a bad taste.

This is one starkling difference in US. You address everyone by their first name. Be it a CEO or an intern, their first name is how they get addressed with. Though this might seem to be just a cultural nuance, but it does have an implicit meaning. It cut shorts the difference that exists between people. An organization success is not a single person’s outcome. It is like a mechanical clock with each part interacting with the other to make the instrument function the way it needs to. Addressing by first names just keeps you grounded. It removes any baggage one tends to carry or thinks of carrying. Years of experience, tenure in the current organization matter but not as much as performance and performance has no age barrier. Corporates have CEO's who are in their Early thirties.

I think this small thing can make wonders in the Indian corporate scene. Addressing a senior by first name is not a means of saying that an experience doesn’t count; it’s just a way to say that in this competitive world, fresh ideas weigh as much as the experience does.

USA - Part 1 -The Travel from India to the States

It's been almost three months that I have been in US. Before I left, I used to think I would write blogs more often than what I used to do back in India. But I guess I have been a little lazy (Little is an understatement). So I thought of breaking the trend and write about my experiences in this country. If I had to sum up my experiences of three months in a word; it’s got to be "enriching".

I had a North West flight from Mumbai to Detroit via Amsterdam. My experiences started from the check in process. There was an Indian guy (of Gujarat origin - I heard him speak in Gujarati) who was doing the check in process. He seemed to be very friendly with the foreign nationals but was quite rude to the Indian nationals. I had a family in front of me in the check in line who were travelling to attend a marriage in the states. The kind of expressions that the check in officer gave to them for carrying extra luggage could have been avoided. I knew Guajarati’s had a soft corner for USA, but I failed to find a reason that our own people be subjected to a lower treatment.

The flight from Amsterdam was better than that from Mumbai. I spent most of the time chatting with my co passenger who was a British National. Nice conversation, Nice food and some good sleep - A perfect flight. The decent to Detroit had a pleasing sight. The city seems to be never ending. The streets running zig- zag reminding me of the winding toy trains tracks; straight from the funskool toys of childhood. I had a little bit of anxiousness before the immigration clearance, which they cleared after finding my documents in order.

During this entire travel I found that US government has left no stones unturned to ensure a check on the people entering the country. Some people might complain of the heavy security measures, but then when you see it in terms of the larger picture and the benefits of the process, you'll generally not mind undergoing the process. Such kind of security becomes indeed essential when the stakes are really high.