Reverse Gear

Statistics speak aloud that a big number of Indian professionals who were working across the globe are making conscious efforts to return to their homeland and employ their learning in Indian market. It may be the effect of attractive Indian job market that is getting an unimaginative response in terms of economic stability or homesickness. Whatever the reason may be, the fact is that Indians living around the world are flocking back to their home country.

Brain drain, the much-touted phenomenon of the 90s seems to be all set for a role reversal. As India turns 64, reverse brain drain seems to be a silver lining on the cloud. In near past, there have been situations wherein shortage of H1B visas was ranking on the job-seekers’ mind.

Until recently, almost every year, approximately 50,000 – 65,000 visas were applied for by the skilled staff visiting US in the opening hours itself. The trend still remains the same as the great American dream refuses to fade off. However, recently there has been a marginal shift as people’s perception of greener pastures abroad is gradually being shadowed by ample opportunities available in their home country, coupled with a healthy standard of life and living.

Grass greener this side

The country's great minds are flocking back to the resilient economy that has withstood the global meltdown. "Reverse brain drain is a great sign of the world's confidence in India.

Slowly and surely the gap that was maintained between foreign countries and India is being reduced in a promising manner, which is forcing professionals to take a round turn to their country. The ratio of the number of Indians visiting abroad has been equaled with a number of disillusioned ones who are returning back in just a span of few years.

There can be a number of reasons for the people to adopt the culture of homecoming. Amongst them, the most prominent is the comparative salary structure, which is steadily decreasing. While making calculations on the basis of living cost along with salary aspect, an estimate has been prepared which reveals that an IT professional who is working in India is in a far better position than abroad.

Secondly, India by all aspects is full of opportunities which can easily be estimated from the number of openings being offered in MNCs along with resultant increase in salaries. Since India is having shortage of highly qualified and experienced employees or management professionals, it seeks IT professionals who are returning back with great packages as well as promising opportunities.

Another major and important reason for homecoming is the family factor. Couples living abroad are trying to avoid the influence of western culture on their children. This is because babies born and brought up in western countries face a great amount of difficulty in adjusting to their home culture and traditions.

The year 2010 saw as many as 60,000 Indian professionals who had settled in the USA, return to India. With the economic depression naming loss of jobs as the crucial factor for coming home, the fact remains that some of the best minds are back. "The shortage in the supply of talent combined with the economical boom in India is serving as the icing on the cake. It is attracting and bringing the best talent back to India," says Robinder Sachdeva a Delhi-based consultant who returned to India after ten years.

Also, not only is the reverse brain drain voluntary, several Indian's are returning home as part of their job packages. This means MNCs are now sending their top Indian minds to head their new companies back in India. But are adjustments difficult?

India: A trendsetter, always

India is one of the first countries where the phenomenon of reverse brain drain occurred. Previously, India was well known for being the country where from numerous information technology students left for America in search of better education and greater employment opportunities. The turning point was during the dot-com bubble burst. During this period many information technology experts were forced to return to India due to the slump and the loss of jobs in the United States.

Salman Khurshid, while being the Minister for Corporate Affairs in India had officially confirmed that many second-generation Indians were coming back to the country. Therefore, reverse brain drain is no longer limited to the commonly perceived migration from a developed to a developing country by a first generation individual. Many of the world’s top multinational companies are beginning to send their top Indian minds to head their companies in India and have the idea of reverse brain drain which is, “So when we lose some, we win many back," added Salman.

Bad old days, not anymore

Previously, the Indian Government was unhappy of the occurrence of brain drain. Tens of thousands of migrants who initially went to the U.S. for graduate engineering education, accepted jobs in Silicon Valley rather than return to their home countries, where professional opportunities were limited.

Besides the dot-com bubble crisis, the economic and employment opportunities that existed back home; interested many Indian entrepreneurs to improve the economic development in the home country, which increased the number of returning intelligentsias to India.

In addition, the stringent security checks in post 9/11 period, which often push people of Indian origin in trouble due to mistaken identities and looks, are cited as a factor that’s supporting NRIs homecoming considerations.

Good bye? Not really

The problem of a reverse brain drain is exacerbated by anxiety in developed countries. This is of particular concern in the United States of America, where not enough undergraduate students are seeking advanced degrees at the doctorate level. It is leading to several consequences.

Initially, the brain drain’s inflow increased the widespread replacement of native-born with foreign born professionals and academics in the areas of greatest intellectual and economic interest to the developed country. Now, with more of such migrating-in talent is taking opting for a return journey, the developed countries are witnessing a lack of intellectual capital.

Such trend reversal may lead to economic drawbacks in developed countries and diminishing opportunities for native-born professionals. Statistics show that more than 52% of Silicon Valley’s startups during the recent tech boom were started by foreign-born entrepreneurs. In addition, the foreign-national researchers have contributed for more than 25% of US’ global patents. Foreign-born workers comprise almost a quarter of all the U.S. science and engineering workforce and 47% of science and engineering workers who have PhDs. Furthermore, 54% of engineering doctorates went to foreign students, who returned to their home country after graduation, which disheartens the executives of research and development in the developed countries.

Most Welcome

With an increase in the number of skilled manpower returning home from the US has led to an 'entrepreneurship boom' in India.

A report ‘The Grass is Indeed Greener in India and China for Returnee Entrepreneurs’ by Kauffman Foundation, Duke University, University of California-Berkeley and the Harvard University, says that the current trend has come as a ‘major loss’ to the United States.

What was once a 'brain drain' that advantaged the US economy now is reversed, to the long-term benefit of India and China, said the report, which is based on a survey of skilled workers in the US, who returned home.

“The trend has been accelerating dramatically over the past five years; tens of thousands are now returning home every year. Most authorities agree with these estimates,” says Vivek Wadhwa, one of the authors of this report.

More and more Indian professionals and students returning home, not out of compulsion, but with a mission and vision to make their homeland a better place to be. They seem to be motivated enough to play their part in bringing back India’s long lost glory, full circle drawn.

Why this return ticket?

·         More than 60 percent of Indian returnees cite the availability of economic opportunities in their country was a major factor in their return.

·         53 percent of Indians were lured by the attraction of local markets.

·         76 percent say it was family ties that brought them back home.

·         Returnees took pride in contributing to their home country’s economic development. More than 60 percent of Indians rated this as very important.

·         Only 10 percent of the returning Indians left the US because they had to.