How to blend into American work culture

American employers give less weightage to academic records, one gets a job largely through networking, says Kartik Mathur
Though, I belong to a first generation business family, I was always encouraged to pursue my own dreams and career ambitions. I got my degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pune and subsequently decided to work in the automotive industry as a design engineer.
Studying Business was my first choice, however, the tricky decision was to decide if I wanted to pursue my MBA in India or abroad. Business cannot be learnt from just books as it requires interaction with people from different professional backgrounds with varied experiences. For me, an American MBA was just the right way to get this exposure.

Schools in the US promise a diverse class profile, both professionally and culturally, which encourages collaboration and peer to peer learning through intense discussions during the lessons.

STUDYING AND WORKING IN UNCLE SAM
After a gruelling eight months of GMAT preparation and writing applications, I finally got through the programme of my choice. My applications were so focussed that I only applied to three schools that excelled in entrepreneurial MBA programmes. Two years of study at FW Olin Graduate School of Business, Babson College proved to be my best learning years. Studying in a multicultural and diverse environment taught me the nuances of cross cultural business sensitivities and gave me an opportunity to learn from the accomplishments and failures of my peers.
All was great till I got myself into the job search mode. I have friends who got their dream job, soon after completing their master's.
It turned out that B-school placements in the United States are an entirely different ball game.
First, the recruiting process in management sector is different to what we Indians are used to. Recruiters are not keen on your academic record. One gets a job largely through networking. The more hands you shake, the more pitches you make the higher is the likelihood to get a job. Your personal and professional experiences count a lot.
Second, hiring an international student for a management role does not play too well for the recruiters. There were various reasons for this. Most important being the H1B visa sponsorship required for international students. Its easier for a company to justify hiring international students for a technical or engineering role, but for management roles, there is no dearth of Americans who can do the job. Thus, jobs are scarce for international candidates.
An international student needs to show strong abilities to blend into the American work culture in order to effectively lead a team. So, your personality and your abilities to adapt really matter.
I learnt all of this during my internship and by the time I finished the course, I got a job with a niche consulting firm as a business analyst.
RETURNING TO INDIA
My decision to get a business degree in the US was based on my desire to start my own business in India. American education and one year work experience helped me to cross pollinate my business acumen with my academic knowledge.
The entrepreneurial ecosystem in India has never been more evolved. With an increasing number of techies and MBAs leaving their American jobs and returning to India, there has been a paradigm shift in the ways businesses are built and run here. The market of 1.3 billion consumers is waiting for innovative products and solutions and I wanted to grab my share.
As the one-year Optional Practical Training (OPT) that came with my F1 visa ended, I headed back to India. Though my employer offered to sponsor my H1B visa and retain me, but I planned to use the foreign education in India. Most of the US employers are not hesitant to sponsor international students once they have worked with the organisation and delivered.
The only concern that both employers and students seem to have is the uncertainty of laws associated with H1B visas. In 2017, confusions regarding H1B visas were noticed, primarily because of President Trump's tightening of immigration policies.
This made employers very skeptical as they did not want to block their time and invest into the hiring process without any clarity on what the future holds for them. The visa lottery system in 2017 had only 3 out of 6 colleagues of mine, who got their H1B visas approved. The rest decided to return to the homeland.