The India Expert

As President Obama takes office, there is still gloom about the economy and about America’s role in the world. At least that is what Reuters reports today in a survey of 22,000 people in 22 countries, conducted for it by Ipsos. Respondents from 20 countries gave bad marks to the United States in foreign relations and other aspects. This is sobering news for most thinking Americans. But there is a silver lining even in this cloud.

And that is why The India Expert is talking about the report. People from just two countries view the United States favorably. One is Poland. The other is India.

Favorability toward the United States

In recent weeks, India has selected The Boeing Company (headquartered in Chicago) for a $2.1 billion defense order.  Last Fall the United States and India agreed to a landmark nuclear energy treaty which will enable American companies to sell nuclear power technology and fuel to India. Immediately after the terrorist attacks on Mumbai, U.S. Secretary of State Condi Rice made a supportive stop in New Delhi; and U.S. intelligence agencies shared crucial data with their Indian counterparts to establish the trail of the attackers. An Indian-American, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, of CNN fame, may be President Obama’s Surgeon General. The only two people being considered for a new position of Federal “Chief Technology Officer” are both of Indian origin.

The two largest  democracies in the world have never been this close in business, politics and culture. (Well… not since Columbus set out looking for India and not since American ice was exported to Calcutta in the nineteenth century). Ok, to be specific since President Nixon and Secretary Kissinger in the 1970′s launched an India unfriendly attitude.  The last two American Presidents have been pro-India in word and in deed. And it shows.

So here is more  good news in visual form. The question in this case was “Is the United States a good place to invest?”. And remember, this survey was conducted after the economic meltdown and after the US elections in November.

Is the US a good place to invest?

My takeaway from this? If you work with an American company, there is a way to convert these attitudes into goodwill, revenue and profit for your stakeholders. If you are in state, local or federal government, ask yourself how you can better engage with India (or China or Poland). The world has changed and the solutions for 2009 don’t look like the solutions for 1999 did.

Posted on January 20th, 2009 by Gunjan

California-based management consultant Gunjan Bagla runs Amritt, a consulting firm helping American companies to succeed in India. He is author of Business in 21st Century India: How to Profit Today from Tomorrow’s Most Exciting Market (Hachette Book Group, July 2008).