"Rampant Favouritism": Reddit User Calls NRI Managers "Worse" Than Indian Bosses

Concerns are growing about workplace culture in India's IT industry, particularly regarding non-resident Indian (NRI) managers who oversee global teams. A Reddit user claimed that NRI managers in the IT industry often exhibit a "supremacist attitude," favouring those with degrees from top institutions like IIT or IIM. According to the post, these managers tend to treat Indian team members as subordinates and reserve high-profile projects for a select few, leading to widespread demotivation.

"If you think Indian managers are worse, behold the great NRI managers with another level of supremist attitude. Firstly, they look down upon anyone who isn't working in Western countries or doesn't have a degree from the premier Indian institutes like IIM, IIT, IIS, etc. They will talk to you in a very condescending tone, and not to mention the rampant favouritism they display while assigning the cool projects to their favourite chamchas. They treat Indians working from India as servants to their whim, and they think they are superior to you in some way or the other. Now I understand why other nationalities have started to hate them", the post read. 

See the post here:

NRI managers are worse than Indian managers.
byu/Upstairs-You-2649 inIndianWorkplace

The post resonated with many, and users began sharing their own experiences. One user described working under NRI managers who oversee projects and exhibit a bossy attitude, often insisting on implementing their preferred solutions despite potential issues. 

Another person commented, "Totally agree. This is not just in IT, Construction, healthcare, and even factories/industry, where Indian managers treat Indian subordinates far harsher (within policies) than they would treat the white/locals. To be fair, this situation is predominantly observed after COVID, coincidentally when Indian Youth heading to USA to study & settle thereafter increased drasticaĺly."

A third user said, "The only way forward is to totally remove these temporary visa allotments. This whole system of passing toxicity down the hierarchy would be curbed. It starts from the top."

A third user added, "I have worked for Indian companies in expat roles. Indian managers talk so nicely to white people, but treat Indian expats as slaves. My Indian matrix manager told my white CEO that he should make me work on weekends and on holidays (as other colleagues refuse to work on weekends). My white CEO literally fell off his chair and later on told me the same. He was aghast at the behaviour of Indian managers."