Postcard: Bangalore

Hearts set on joining the global economy, Indian IT workers are brushing up on their interpersonal skills. Teaching India's techies how to win friends and influence people

Alessandro Rizzi /Getty

In India's competitive market, technical skills don't guarantee business success.

Remember to touch a personal chord," the instructor tells the class. "Make the other person feel important." Thus advised, the first graduating class of Bangalore's new Dale Carnegie Training center splits into pairs, each earnestly practicing a routine the students have spent four months learning. "Hi, my name is Gautam," I'm told while my hand gets a vigorous shake. Dazzled by the bright smile and seemingly effortless eye contact, I barely manage to mumble my own name before my companion moves briskly along and I find myself being asked what I do for a living. All around me are similar smiling...

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