"Boomerang Migration" for Global Technologists

In a telling sign that India has become one of the world's leading engines of technical innovation, Indian technologists who have been working abroad are now moving back home. In fact, technology professionals throughout the world are doing likewise, reversing a 50-year trend of migrating to the US and Europe, as their native countries move to deregulate and encourage business growth.

Indian expatriates (known as NRIs, or non-resident Indians) are finding that they are welcomed back with open arms, valued for their international experience, and can command top salaries. NRIs tend to live in gated communities that are more reflective of American suburbs than anything native to India. Those who have lived in the US experience a bit of culture shock, adjusting to the more traditional Indian lifestyle while importing American practices such as celebrating Halloween and Thanksgiving.

This "boomerang migration" illustrates how globalism has loosened the US's position as a unique innovation incubator and the land of opportunity. A quote from Dutt Kalluri, an IT manager who recently returned to India from Rockville, Maryland, is particularly revealing: "If you want to be in the latest trends, you have to be in India... Technology development happens in India. Technology consumption happens in the US."

Source: Washington Post