Financial Times

Worry over influx of Indian excess
There is concern in some business circles over the influx of Indian executives holding jobs, which some argue could be handled by locals. Others, however, believe that this is inevitable in the context of globalisation and greater trade and investment ties with India - more than any other country. Despite the heated debate by key figures in the private sector on this issue, The Sunday Times FT was unable to get an official quote from most of them, as a result of their close business ties with Indian expatriate workers and businessmen. Increasing signs of agitation have begun to surface following the recent Reckitt-Benckiser management crisis, with several leading corporate figures calling on the government to introduce sufficient checks to curtail Indians from gaining prime employment in the island.

Professional head-hunters confirmed that several Indian executives, currently in Sri Lanka on contract, had approached them with a view to securing further employment in the island, following the ceasefire between the government and the LTTE.

Corporate figures have voiced their concern over what they claim is a 'dangerous trend' of recruiting Indians over equally qualified Sri Lankans. Advertising, medical and hospitality sectors have seen a vast increase of Indian expatriates in recent years, mostly providing expertise on technical areas relatively new to Sri Lanka.

However, the preference of some companies to fill key finance, sales and marketing positions with Indian expatriates in place of aptly qualified Sri Lankans, has sent chills down the local corporate spine as to a possible employment invasion.

The latest firm to go for Indian executives is Royal Ceramics which has hired an Indian chief executive officer. "The Indians are invading our job market, and this is an issue that must be addressed immediately," a leading corporate figure said. "The hiring of Indian executives must be carried out only on a specific need basis, and not when there are Sri Lankans who could perform the same job."

Some analysts believed that a possible middle-executive revolution was in the offing if no solution was devised to curb the recruitment of Indians. "The situation is quite grave. The unemployment problem has reached alarming levels in this country, and influxes of this nature could only make matters worse," a top businessmen, who did not wish to be quoted, said.

Many reckoned that the local work environment was far more rewarding and comfortable for expatriates, unlike in India, where the labour market is much larger and competitive. The quality of life, the perks and the recognition that an Indian expatriate would enjoy is far greater than what he could ever imagine getting in his own country, the businessman added.

"The influx of expatriates is the reality of today with globalisation coming to the forefront. It is a challenge we have to face, and it is not necessarily from Indians only," warned former chairman of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, Chandra Jayaratne. He said that the private sector had been forced to deploy the services of Indian executives due to their high degree of expertise in IT and technology, coupled with their efficiency, productivity and their commitment to see a task to the end. "Sri Lankan executives should strive to benchmark themselves against the Indians, improve their productivity and win their jobs back," he said, adding that there was no harm in recruiting expatriates if the employers could not find the quality or quantity of skilled persons within the country.

The chairman of a leading private hospital in Colombo said that there was a dearth of specialist cardiac surgeons, anaesthetists and professional nurses in the country, as a result of which, the hospital had to incur an additional cost to hire the services of Indian medical professionals. He did however admit that the quality of service provided by the expatriate staff was of a very high standard.

The recent flood of Indian advertisements has also opened up several opportunities for Indians in the local advertising and public relations industry. The account manager for a leading advertising company said that the Indians had a distinct advantage over the Sri Lankans because of the exposure they receive in promoting international brands in a large consumer market.

"They tend to think more out-of-the-box as a result of the experience they have acquired in working in a large and competitive market," she said. "Sri Lankans do possess the creative talent, but we're definitely short on exposure, which is why a few Indians can make a big difference in an advertising agency."

Marketing and sales professionals however have scorned the idea of Indians filling up such positions in Sri Lankan companies. Multi-national Reckitt-Benckiser saw the sudden exit of several key Sri Lankan executives late last year, as a result of what was described as an increasingly unhealthy corporate atmosphere prevalent following the recruitment of several Indian directors in to the multinational, specially in to the Sales and Marketing divisions. "As Sri Lankans, we understand the pulse of the Sri Lankan consumer, his behavioural patterns, his mentality. The Indians keep adopting marketing strategies to suit the Indian consumer, and they repeatedly ask the question, 'if the Indian can buy this product, why can't the Sri Lankan?" a Reckitts source revealed.

Appointments of International Management Specialists (AIMS), principal consultant, Fayaz Saleem was of the view that there was no great influx of Indian executives yet. He rejected the notion that Sri Lankan companies preferred to employ Indians over similarly qualified Sri Lankans. "When a company contacts me with a view to recruiting an executive, the first question they ask me is, do you think we can find a Sri Lankan?" He said that companies were generally cautious about employing expatriates as a result of the additional costs involved.

"Companies seek advice from their principals abroad or a professional head-hunter before recruiting a foreign expatriate. There is a lot of thinking and planning that goes in to filling a corporate vacancy, and in most cases an Indian expatriate is recruited because of the inability to find a Sri Lankan to fit that particular profile," he said.

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