Most expatriates happy to work in RI

JAKARTA (JP): How do Indonesians perceive foreign workers? How do expatriate workers find working with Indonesians?

The Jakarta Post interviewed both Indonesians and foreigners on the matter. The following is excerpted from those interviews:

Parveen Gandhi, Corporate Finance Advisor, Bank Bira, an Indian citizen, is happy with the work environment in Indonesia and its friendly people.

"I love working with the local people. I have never had any cultural conflicts because we are almost the same. I even feel like I am working in India," he said.

Gandhi has been working here for six years, spending the first three years with Indo Rama textile company.

He was doing a lot of international business in India, when Indonesia announced several economic deregulation moves in 1988. He moved here when he saw more business opportunities.

He will stay here as long as possible.

"It depends on the circumstances," he said.

Budiman Hakim, one of the founders and the associate creative director of MACS advertising agency feels it is necessary to place expatriate managers in a proper perspective. There are two types of groups of expatriate managers who come to Indonesia. The first group includes high-quality managers whose skills and experiences are really needed by Indonesia, he said. The second group comprises moderate to low-quality foreign workers who seek jobs locally because of economic recession in their countries of origin. "I have worked with both groups and I've learned many valuable things from my relationship with these foreigners," he said.

"I do not make any generalizations, but based on my own experience, I find that highly-skilled expat-managers are more low-profile than the second group," he said.

He believes that Indonesia needs qualified expatriate managers to share their expertise with local people working in management positions. But, what is happening now is that many unskilled foreign workers are coming to Indonesia.

Many of these unqualified workers are arrogant, according to Budiman. Phrases like "I'm sick of Indonesians", "bullshit", "damn you", and other hostile expressions are part of their daily language.

"I cannot tolerate these guys. Their impolite expressions awaken my sense of nationality," he said.

A few years ago, he recalled, he quit a job because he could not bear working with an arrogant expatriate. He established a new advertising company with some of his friends.

Many clients, he said, ask whether his company employs foreign consultants. "I am very proud to say that our company employs only Indonesians," he said.

In the past, many clients often canceled their contracts when they discovered there were no expatriates working for his company. They simply underestimated his organization. "Today, we are dealing with many multinational firms," he said.

As the company grows, he receives the bulk of job applications from expatriate workers.

Lisa Chan (not real name), a Singaporean, who supervises at an advertising company located in Kuningan, South Jakarta: I've been working here for four months. This is the first time I work in Indonesia. The main problem I face is the traffic jam. I am always afraid of being banged down in a traffic accident. I am also reluctant to go out at night for fear of robbers because many streets are dark.

In the office, the work atmosphere is good. We are a good team of five people and I am the only expatriate. I love working with my Indonesian colleagues, they are all nice and very cooperative, diligent, and very motivated. We joke around a lot during work.

Before, back in Singapore, I worked with a team of nine, all coming from nine different countries. I can't compare my experience in working with them with the one here because I was then not a team leader as I am now here. For sure, diversity is always better. A project is seen from many perspectives and as such it will bring about better results.

Language is usually the main difficulty for foreign workers here. I also experience it but not very much because I can speak Malay. Also, my colleagues are willing to teach me Indonesian.

I love living here because there are many places to visit and all are natural, unlike in Singapore where most things are man- made.

Babe, a Filipina, who is a top executive working in the property and banking business: Indonesian workers, like most Asian workers, are a bit lazy compared to western workers. At work, they are always anxiously waiting for lunch time or the closing hour. Of course, there are some people, especially those on the top level, who really work hard. But on the lower level, they don't work hard.

I know some companies here prefer Filipinos to local workers because they are considered as more experienced than locals and don't create problems. In terms of education, they are actually not much better than Indonesians.

The Filipinos surely feel happy working here because they receive much higher salaries than back in their own country. An executive here can receive up to US$5,000 while back in the Philippines they earn between $400 and 1,000. Everybody now wants to go out of the country due to the low salary.

The Filipinos usually live in a house which is not so good in order to save their living allowance and send a segment of their salary home.

To curb homesickness, the embassy regularly holds gatherings for their people here.

Martin Steens, Director of PT First Pacific Davies, a joint venture property consultant came to Indonesia in November l993.

"I was transferred to Jakarta from my headquarters office in Hong Kong," Steens says. PT First Pacific Davies is a joint venture between Hong Kong-based First Pacific Davies and Salim Group of Indonesia.

Before he joined the company, he worked in the property business in his home country, Australia, and in the United Kingdom. In addition to this, he feels that his working experience in Hong Kong has sharpened his communication and market skills in dealing with the Asian market, as well as in developing a sense of understanding towards his Asian colleagues.

"I find that my staffs here are well-educated and are willing to learn and to work hard. Besides, everyone can speak English quite fluently. I see no communication problem," he explains.

"With my background in the property business, I hope that I can transfer my knowledge in this field to my Indonesian colleagues. To absorb the knowledge, however, Indonesian workers should be more open-minded. They should also have strong commitment in the work and they should be willing to accept more responsibilities in their job."

Steens plans to stay in Indonesia for some more years as he finds the property business here has good prospects.

Eddy Teh, business consultant at PT Media Duta Servisindo, a joint venture between Indonesia and Singapore, arrived in Jakarta in l994. He works with Singapore-based Integrated Publisher.

Eddy, of Malaysian origin, came here as a consultant to the firm's Indonesian partner, PT Media Duta Servisindo. In Indonesia, he has found new Indonesian friends and a new working environment.

"Indonesia has a family-oriented working environment. Everyone feels that an office is not only a workplace but a home as well," he says.

In the workplace, everyone can talk about their family and their personal lives, which is not common in Singaporean offices.

"People in the office have close personal relationships, which is good in some ways," says Eddy who got his business marketing degree from a British University.

Eddy said he sees no problems in dealing with his Indonesian colleagues. "Everybody who works abroad should understand the culture and respect it. Local people should also learn to understand other cultures as well. I believe we can avoid any misunderstanding and we can work together in harmony," explains Eddy, who has worked in several Asian countries, including Brunei Darussalam. (raw/sim/jsk)