Bindu Menon

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

Profile photo of Bindu Menon

Empowering global organisations, professionals and relocating expats to succeed in doing business with India


#speaking, #brandbuilding, #travelinindia,  #relocationservices

This is my 17th year of empowering multinational organisations and global citizens relocating to India with my India expertise, offering practical solutions on doing business and living in India.

I specialise in establishing alliances with multinational organisations and RMCs, and nurturing relationships that translate into successful business on the ground.

From 2006 to 2014, I managed a pan-India team at ‘Global Adjustments’, taking care of expat mobility needs with empathy and passion, sensitising them to India’s business and social culture, and ensuring a smooth relocation.

Representing ‘Global Adjustments’ as Country Head of Relocation and the single point of contact between 2008 and 2014 at the Worldwide ERC symposiums in the APAC region and the USA, and the EuRA in 2014, further strengthened my business networking skills, resulting in a significant increase in new partnerships and clients.

Cross-cultural facilitation for enhanced business understanding is my forte. Being the lead trainer at several programs for senior global expat executives, the key person to facilitate MNCs like Beiersdorf AG, Vinci, France, Vulcabras, Brazil to set up business in India and working closely with global top management teams, fortified my understanding of expat needs and challenges they face.

In 2015, I founded ReloIndia, a virtual consultancy offering expat relocation and intercultural training services to various multinational organisations and relocation companies from around the globe.

I manage international business alliances with RMCs looking at DSPs in India, business delegations, corporate clients with relocating assignees or individual expats who need assistance with their relocation to India.

As key consultant with Semurg Relocations, Mumbai, I managed the World Bank Group account, efficiently managing business relations with the RMC in Europe and the client on the ground, assuring the best quality service delivery at all times.

I take my additional role as an intercultural counsellor for expats and their families very seriously, knowing that the unique insights about India that I share with them enables them to succeed. I am an independent intercultural consultant for companies like Dwellworks, USA and other corporate clients in India.

My 15-year plus experience in the Advertising industry keeps my passion for brands at a high, allows me to think out of the box and give attention to detail while working on any assignment, besides giving me a deep and empathetic insight into consumer psyche across categories or industries.

Bindu Menon

Thursday, 26th January, 2023.
India’s 74th Republic day.
A national holiday.

A day when millions of proud Indians like me sit glued to our screens to watch the celebrations streamed live from #delhi. To marvel at the spectacular display of military might, as the armed forces personnel march to the beats of drums and pipes that reflect the pride beating in 1.5 billion Indian hearts and many more around the globe.

India’s vibrant cultural diversity comes alive in the form of 27 tableaus representing our states. A clear demonstration of the fact that India is much like a continent and not a country, each state coming with its own culture in the form of art, craft, music, dance, festivals, fabric, food and more.

This is something I have stressed upon in my intercultural training programs. If you have lived in one city in India, say Delhi, and you move to Bangalore during your #expat assignment, it isn’t the same at all. Yes, you are moving cities within India, but each city is culturally different from the other, pretty much like one country in Europe is different from another.

Google and YouTube haven’t yet figured out their algorithms to chase their users/viewers by their preferred language. Google translations or commercials on YouTube follow their viewers by the language representing the state that they are in, that particular day.

When I travel from Mumbai to Bangalore the language changes from Hindi to Kannada, the languages spoken in the two cities. They presume that I would be able to relate to commercials in Kannada.

The media hasn’t yet got it. Brands haven’t yet got it. I came across two recent examples here.

One is a press advertisement from Britannia the biscuit brand, in Tamil, the local language spoken in Chennai. And, the other is a bi-lingual ad in Hindi and English, from Tata salt.

Britannia has managed to get it right, as the message would be picked up by a wider audience than that of Tata’s whose message in Hindi would only be understood only by a specific audience.

India is #diverse. Uniquely diverse. And if you have to do business in/with India, one mantra you must chant is `One size does not fit all’. Customisation is key. #Language plays a large role in communication. #Marketing is about understanding regional preferences. Working in a #multicultural organisation means managing Indians from different cultures, attitudes, aspirations, behaviours and beliefs.

It is complicated. I understand. It isn’t easy to work around the complexities that go with our cultural diversity. But it is important to be cognisant of it. That’s where intercultural professionals like me come in to help ease this whole process and unravel the mystery behind it all.

If you have to tell me in one word, what India means to you, what would it be?

#interculturalcompetence #crossculturalcommunication #culturalintelligence #culturaldiversity #relocationservices #indianculture #ministryoftourism #expats #training #learninganddevelopment

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