Adhey Adhey. Some of the best American techies I have worked with have been non-engineers. Anga dhaan America Kaaran nikkaran. At least in the sw industry, esp. startups, the environment is lot more meritocratic in the US. it’s these intangible soft factors that add up and result in America’s supremacy in this area. But namma oorula, the question is exclusively addressed in terms of tax concessions, technology parks, engineering degrees etc.

Prabhu, regarding the changing salary scenario india vs US, here’s an interesting article:
http://www.atc.tcs.co.in/sagar/topsy

me too in the same club vis-a-vis academics and marks. i managed to get a break in the IT industry though, primarily bcos my expertise was different. Overall, i can relate to what you say..

Even today, my qualification would not be recognised by the biggest IT companies in India.. but apparently is sufficient for bay area internet firms..whatever…

The joke is however that I get to do work here that is of higher standard and importance and cannot or should not be outsourced/offshored

Nobody here bothers of my academic achievements or lack of it. They judge me solely on what I deliver. Therefore I gain respect and dignity.

After a stint in the US, I did go back to India. I was forced to come back as I couldn’t get decent employment .

I was talking to a consultant and he was like, ‘Last year neraya per H1 vangitu, they decided to stay put in India…’
Because of the salary levels here.
70K USD sambalam vangi, adhile 30 % tax katti, micham pannra kaasu la 60-70% india la sambalam kedaikum, as an added benefit you can see your relatives and friends every weekend, have butter/podi dosai at will ..

idhellam perks for some.

If H1 is we claim as a fundamental right, then i know some who did not exercise their fundamental right..

So if america is not attractive enough and say Australia gets better, many would go there.. it all depends la?

Would we be so generous if companies here brought in techies from China, Sri Lanka etc?

That depends on who I am. If I see opportunities eroding here and opening up else where, sure i would not mind.

The problem for some americans is that they’ve never had to move out of a place bcos of lack of opportunities.

Ennoda office la engalai recruit panna oru vellaikaaran vandhan.. prior to that he never even had a US passport. Will he understand the complexities of H1? Hell no!!

Anyways..

reg. start-ups, i never thought abt stocks.. adhu enna RIL stock a? i dont see the stock of a start up as something precious. being acquired by google laam fantasy.. kedaicha super..illai naalum sambalam vandha seri..

Neraya start ups la funding irukaradhu naale they pay quite well.. atleast till the funding stops :D.. much better than wipro, infy and TCS s of the world.. adhai dhaan sonnen

That is proof enough that the whole system has been gamed.

Would we be so generous if companies here brought in techies from China, Sri Lanka etc. ? I simply cannot understand this whole business of claiming entry into the US as if it were a fundamental right.

“I am scared to write about NRI’s nowadays so let me not get there.”
Ahaa. This has become a topic that agitates me a lot these days. Naan koodu idhu pathi oru somewhat related post .. hehe
http://broken-news.blogspot.com/2007/07/foreign-returned-you-can-only-take-man.html

“Though I reckon joining a start-up in Bangalore is a not a bad option than taking a job in recession prone US.”
Actually I have gained quite a bit of experience with startups recently. In general it is safe to say that if you join an American startup in India, you are not going to be a millionaire anytime soon. Except maybe if you are one of the founders. Most stock option agreements are designed to give you about a year’s salary worth (with all the options vested). Everything is loaded in the employer’s favour and people in India(such as myself) have little or no understanding of how these schemes work. The IPO route is practically dead, so its either a merger or a buyout. Please keep in mind that not all stocks will vest. Suppose they give you 15,000 stocks with an initial vesting of 5000 and thereafter 750 quarterly - imagine the amount of time you have to spend in that company and all that for an year’s salary! You can actually gain that amount in most cases by simply switching jobs.

My experience with startup stock options in India, especially ones founded by NRIs, US based ones and such - Please don’t drink the Paul Graham kool-aid too much. He is talking about companies with not more than 3 founders.

Never..Never!! Rest assured. You have your opinion, I have mine! It’s healthy to argue. All fun!

IMHO, the way UK handles it is atleast ‘trying’ to address the core factors - education, experience, current annual salary, current age etc. these are much better than the ‘kukukkal murai’ followed by US. The only hitch in the UK system is that you can enter the country without a firm job offer under the HSMP or its new equivalent. Maybe the US need not be so liberal and can insist on a job offer from a good company whose records are clean in INS. I dont know..any good system should evolve and definitely takes more effort and vigil.

I hope my personal rapport is not lost with you because of some arguments over a blog post. I reiterate this is just my 2 cents. The only point where u and me do not agree is the outright denial of H1 as u suggested in your initial comment unless i am missing something.

I think we are both on the same page here reg. lottery and undeserving guys should not get.

>>Ravi - PK - I SAID ‘ STOP THE LOTTERY’ !…
I agree.

>>I’ve been in software since 1984..pardon me about bragging…though I have the rights.
I don’t deny this. You are very senior to us and I acknowledge this.

>>The X number you mention ….is unfortunately in the higher side.

May be its true. That does not provide sufficient grounds to deny visa to people who seek H1B.