The adaptable Indian

Other immigrant groups view the unparalleled success of America's Asian Indians with a mix of admiration and envy. 'Why Can't Bay Area Latinos Unite to Succeed Like Silicon Valley's Indians?' read a plaintive headline on the blog 'Latin Bay Area' after (Satya) Nadella's appointment (as the CEO of Microsoft in 2014). 'After all, Latinos have the highest population numbers in California, and also the largest Group [sic] in USA at 53 million people. We should be a massive force to deal with, que no?' it continued. In China, Nadella's appointment at Microsoft created 'a bit of a stir', The Wall Street Journal reported, highlighting the dearth of Chinese CEOs leading multinationals. Ever since Ajay Banga was named MasterCard CEO in 2010, said Jill Ader of the executive-search firm Egon Zehnder, clients in China and Southeast Asia have been wondering, 'How come it's the Indians getting all the top jobs?'

The same qualities that make Indians so successful in the workplace have helped them gain prominence in the other mainstays of American public life: schools, sports leagues, religious organizations and civic groups. More than 80 per cent of Asian Indians in America were born in India, but even the newest arrivals assimilate easily into their new country; their comfort with English and familiarity with the workings of a free society enable them to jump right into their local communities, whether to serve on the school board, chair a church fundraiser, canvass for a local politician, or coach a Little League team. Their unwavering commitment to family helps drive such participation; more than 70 per cent of Indian adults in America are married - compared to 59 per cent of other Asian Americans and just over 50 per cent of all Americans - most of them to other Indians. And they place the highest priority on raising children: 78 per cent rated being a good parent as 'one of the most important things' in life, compared to 67 per cent of all Asian Americans and 50 per cent of the general public.

'The Chinese-American community is more about maintaining their culture, with Mandarin as an essential component of that,' Gilbert says. 'And the Indians are all about, "How can we fit in and be a part of this?" They aren't trying to show us what they do, and learn what we do; they're just trying to make the community better.' The 2012 Pew Survey results reflect this distinction, with Indian Americans expressing significantly less concern than the Chinese that future generations learn their ancestral language; 29 per cent of Indians deemed it 'very important' while 30 per cent considered it 'not too important' or 'not important at all', compared to 52 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively, of Chinese respondents.

confuzzled dude wrote:

Other immigrant groups view the unparalleled success of America's Asian Indians with a mix of admiration and envy. 'Why Can't Bay Area Latinos Unite to Succeed Like Silicon Valley's Indians?' read a plaintive headline on the blog 'Latin Bay Area' after (Satya) Nadella's appointment (as the CEO of Microsoft in 2014). 'After all, Latinos have the highest population numbers in California, and also the largest Group [sic] in USA at 53 million people. We should be a massive force to deal with, que no?' it continued. In China, Nadella's appointment at Microsoft created 'a bit of a stir', The Wall Street Journal reported, highlighting the dearth of Chinese CEOs leading multinationals. Ever since Ajay Banga was named MasterCard CEO in 2010, said Jill Ader of the executive-search firm Egon Zehnder, clients in China and Southeast Asia have been wondering, 'How come it's the Indians getting all the top jobs?'

The same qualities that make Indians so successful in the workplace have helped them gain prominence in the other mainstays of American public life: schools, sports leagues, religious organizations and civic groups. More than 80 per cent of Asian Indians in America were born in India, but even the newest arrivals assimilate easily into their new country; their comfort with English and familiarity with the workings of a free society enable them to jump right into their local communities, whether to serve on the school board, chair a church fundraiser, canvass for a local politician, or coach a Little League team. Their unwavering commitment to family helps drive such participation; more than 70 per cent of Indian adults in America are married - compared to 59 per cent of other Asian Americans and just over 50 per cent of all Americans - most of them to other Indians. And they place the highest priority on raising children: 78 per cent rated being a good parent as 'one of the most important things' in life, compared to 67 per cent of all Asian Americans and 50 per cent of the general public.

'The Chinese-American community is more about maintaining their culture, with Mandarin as an essential component of that,' Gilbert says. 'And the Indians are all about, "How can we fit in and be a part of this?" They aren't trying to show us what they do, and learn what we do; they're just trying to make the community better.' The 2012 Pew Survey results reflect this distinction, with Indian Americans expressing significantly less concern than the Chinese that future generations learn their ancestral language; 29 per cent of Indians deemed it 'very important' while 30 per cent considered it 'not too important' or 'not important at all', compared to 52 per cent and 12 per cent, respectively, of Chinese respondents.

http://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/the-adaptable-indian-115050100834_1.html

Hmmm.. Sounds like a lot more NRIs exhibiting sikular-fukular mindset than patriotic mindset.

pravalika nanda wrote:

i don't find indinas to be adaptable. the chinese came many generations ago to lay the railway tracks in places like california. a few punjabis came around the same time. these were uneducated people. the spanish-speaking immigrants and illegals of today belong to the same class. indians in america on the other hand have always been significantly more affluent, well-educated, well-traveled, landed and monied. and most importantly they all speak english and growing up in india they often know at a bare minimum two languages. so learning the ancestral language is not a big deal and they don't make a hullabaloo over it.

if any group of indina people have had to actually make an effort to adapt it is the gujarati merchant class: they usually learn the language after they arrive here.
for other affluent indians, everything is set up for them already and the only things they have to adapt to is realizing that they are not the fairest person in the room, that they don't have a maid to abuse, and learning how to use the washing machine and doing the laundry themselves.

brie wrote:

pravalika nanda wrote:

i don't find indinas to be adaptable. the chinese came many generations ago to lay the railway tracks in places like california. a few punjabis came around the same time. these were uneducated people. the spanish-speaking immigrants and illegals of today belong to the same class. indians in america on the other hand have always been significantly more affluent, well-educated, well-traveled, landed and monied. and most importantly they all speak english and growing up in india they often know at a bare minimum two languages. so learning the ancestral language is not a big deal and they don't make a hullabaloo over it.

if any group of indina people have had to actually make an effort to adapt it is the gujarati merchant class: they usually learn the language after they arrive here.
for other affluent indians, everything is set up for them already and the only things they have to adapt to is realizing that they are not the fairest person in the room, that they don't have a maid to abuse, and learning how to use the washing machine and doing the laundry themselves.

what colour chuddies are you wearing?