I am a master in India

Chapter 457 Chance Encounter
Several well-known IT companies have indeed moved into Sunshine City, such as Satyam and Infosys, who have directly leased an entire office building as their branch offices in Delhi.

Of course, in order to protect the interests of both parties, they signed a ten-year long-term contract, with the rent fluctuating according to market prices.

Ron was more than happy to accept this; how could a landlord refuse a long-term, stable tenant?

Don't be fooled by the fact that the IT industry is just starting out now. In ten years, once these software companies have made enough profits, they will definitely build their own headquarters.

Ron welcomes any company that is interested in setting up operations here.

The building is all built; it can't just be left empty.

Following closely behind the software companies, a large number of outsourcing companies also moved into Sunshine City.

Their financial resources are not comparable to those of well-known companies like Infosys, so they can only have dozens of companies crammed into the same office building.

To the northwest of Sunshine Plaza, shops and office buildings are scattered about, and a newly built four-lane highway runs from south to north.

Traffic flowed slowly along the road, and the three sisters, Mary, Leila, and Alice, sat in a taxi looking out the window.

Delhi's roads are always congested, and even the newly built Sun City is not immune.

The traffic is even worse here because there are too many people coming to shop and stroll around.

Alice had planned to interview at those well-known software companies, but her older sister Mary was also looking for a job recently, so she came along.

Office buildings, as workplaces, are undoubtedly quieter, but this also helps to disperse traffic and avoid further congestion.

The three sisters looked around and saw that all the buildings were beautifully decorated. Marble steps led to glass doors, giving them the air of a large international corporation.

"This is it!" Alice exclaimed eagerly.

"The address is correct? It's just a small, unknown company." Mary was a little unsure.

“That’s right, look, Noida Services, on the sixteenth floor,” Alice said, pointing to the sign on the door.

It wasn't Alice who came for the interview, but the older sister, Mary. She didn't have as much education as her sister and used to work as a waitress in a restaurant.

Fortunately, Mary speaks good English and can handle most of the service work.

The three sisters took the elevator to the sixteenth floor and saw the company brochure displayed at the entrance as soon as they came out.

This outsourcing company handles customer service calls from all over the world, with staff also working night shifts to handle inquiries from Australia, the UK, and the US.

The job isn't that complicated; with Mary's English proficiency, she can easily take on the role.

They didn't immediately wave the "Mr. Sue" banner; they were saving that for a crucial moment.

After several hours of testing and interviews, Mary was finally taken to the office of the person who had the authority to hire her.

Other employees at the company called him "Air Force Commander Ghosh," and one person told Mary that he liked to put pressure on candidates to see how they would react under pressure.

The air force commander was short, dark-skinned, and had a serious expression. His computer screensaver featured small airplanes flying around.

While answering his question, Mary noticed that the right sleeve of his jacket was tucked in behind, revealing that the air force commander had lost an arm.

When Mary realized this, she became a little distracted, constantly wondering how he had lost his arm.

With the little airplanes flying around on her screensaver, she imagined what terrible accident had ended the Air Force commander's Air Force career.

Because the company needed manpower, Mary passed the stress test for the Air Force commander even though she was distracted.

He wanted to hire Mary immediately, but by industry standards, the salary and benefits he offered were quite modest.

But compared to waiters in the food service industry, it's much higher, a full six thousand rupees.

Despite the company's connections with customer service in Western countries, Mary still suspects it is a family business.

However, what Mary was most concerned about was whether the company would let her be in charge of British, European and American clients. She didn't want to serve other foreigners, especially those from Asian countries.

The Air Force commander looked at Mary and said, "The company's biggest business and most of its performance incentives come from the U.S. If you want to join, you'll be dealing with American homeowners and persuading them to mortgage their properties again."

Mary didn't quite understand what he was saying, so he explained further: "You will be calling our clients on behalf of the bank and offering homeowners better loans. Your job is to get those people to remortgage their homes, transferring them from the original bank to the new one. Madam, that's what your future job will be."

At that time, the process of globalization was progressing smoothly, and there was neither an economic collapse nor a subprime crisis that would have a new impact on the future work of Flight Commander Ghosh.

India is currently at a crossroads in the process of globalization, and setting up back-office departments and customer service centers for Western companies is a highly sought-after job.

Noida Services is one such company; it is one of India’s vast army of call centers.

Some of these companies belong to multinational corporations, while others are domestic enterprises; however, the scrutiny and oversight of their businesses is quite sensitive.

Like most Indian companies, the call center is quite secretive, and it is difficult for outsiders to observe its operations.

Mary, however, is quite satisfied with the job; she has already visited the company.

On the surface, many of them appear modern and stylish, dressed in jeans and holding cell phones.

That's a cell phone, even a cheap Sulph phone, not everyone can afford it.

Only true urban white-collar workers are entitled to use mobile phones; they are a symbol of status.

Mary accepted the job, even though she knew that working in the customer service center was not easy.

Because the people she serves are still on the other side of the ocean, and considering the time difference, she will mostly have to finish get off work at two or three in the morning.

But being a restaurant server isn't easy either. Since both jobs are tough, why not choose the one with the higher pay?

Having successfully resolved Mary's job issue, the three sisters then went to Infosys's office building.

It's more impressive and international there; it's a real big company.

This was evident from the receptionist's polite service when she brought them coffee—three full cups, showing she didn't ignore Mary and Leila just because they were accompanying someone. The man who interviewed Alice was named Chuck; he was in his fifties, with messy curly hair, a gray beard, and frameless glasses, looking like a professor.

In fact, Chuck is also very capable; he used to be an executive at a well-known American semiconductor company.

Alice felt immense pressure during the interview, unlike her older sister Mary who had an easy time with the air force commander.

Just as she was at her wit's end and about to pull the tiger skin, her eyes suddenly lit up.

She saw someone she knew—no, to be precise, her savior.

Chuck noticed her gaze and turned to look at her twice.

"Do you know Mr. Sue?"

"Yes, we met recently."

Chuck nodded, and then, to Alice's astonishment, opened the glass door and walked out.

He was talking to Mr. Sue, and Alice froze, instantly becoming uneasy.

Alice blushed especially when their eyes occasionally swept over her.

She was planning to raise a big flag, but she didn't expect the flag to actually appear on the scene.

They only talked for a few minutes, but Alice felt as if time had never passed so long.

Hmm, is Mr. Sue waving at her?

Alice's heart was pounding wildly, and she hurriedly opened the door and went out.

"Where's your sister?" Ron clearly remembered her.

"They're in the lounge over there," Alice said, pointing towards the front desk.

What position were you interviewing for?

"Maintenance post," Alice answered honestly.

Ron turned to look at Chuck, who immediately understood.

"The overall assessment is quite good; it should pass."

"Congratulations, Alice."

“Thank you, thank you so much, Mr. Sue. Thank you, Mr. Chuck.” Alice bowed repeatedly, her voice trembling with emotion.

This is Infosys, one of India's most well-known software companies.

Chuck smiled and nodded. It was just a maintenance post, nothing to brag about.

We should still give Mr. Sue face; it's all a small matter.

"Do a good job." Ron nodded and turned to leave.

Chuck followed closely behind and personally greeted her. As for Alice, someone would take care of her.

This wasn't Ron's first visit to Infosys; he had personally supported them when they first moved into Sunshine City.

Later, the two sides had some business overlap, and Chuck served as a technical commentator.

With the surge in Suhr mobile phone shipments, Indian Mobile's user base has also seen a dramatic increase.

As more and more signal base stations are built, their coordinated operation poses a significant challenge to the automated control of the communication center.

Infosys was commissioned by India Mobile to develop the corresponding software support.

In other words, Ron is the client here, so how could Chuck not give him face?

The software industry is indeed profitable. Infosys only developed a simulation program for India Mobile, and the contract between the two parties was worth several million US dollars.

Fortunately, Hua Zi has already solved most of the software work; otherwise, this expense alone would be a considerable sum every year.

Ron was already secretly considering whether to venture into the software industry and get a piece of the pie.

His original plan was to be a landlord, collect rent, and make a sure profit.

However, with the successful operation of the Sunshine Smart City Data Center, his ambitions grew even larger.

It turns out that the people under my command are quite capable; if they can handle such a complex system, there's no reason why they can't make software.

Well, once the Sunshine Smart City in Mumbai is fully operational and we've accumulated more experience, we can consider this.

It's unrealistic to start with a food delivery platform, because India doesn't have the necessary network infrastructure yet.

Ron's idea was similar to that of Infosys today: to provide IT support to businesses.

Examples include merchant point-of-sale systems, public transportation assistance systems, and enterprise solutions.
Nowadays, ordinary people don't have much purchasing power, so they only have the option of targeting businesses.

Once the internet is widespread, it will be more suitable to play tricks like ordering takeout or online shopping.

Of course, it's only the year 2000, so there's still a long way to go. Ron's focus remains on industry.

With his coal and steel business booming, he was no longer satisfied with domestic orders and began to consider acquiring mines overseas.

The Suer Group has finally reached this point and begun to expand into the international market.

(End of this chapter)