Agriya.com

Hi Nico, tell me a little bit about yourself

Hi, my name is Nicolas, 24 years old guy from Brussels, Belgium.  I have been in India since 23th of October 2008.
My office is located in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
I’m graduated from University of Brussels, in economics. 

Why did you decide to come to Agriya?
I thought that India will be the future of our globalize world and Agriya will probably be an important actor of internet's future.  Working in this company, in India, is an invaluable experience for me, both professional and personal.

Why do you like working at Agriya?
People at Agriya are very friendly and funny, we are laughing often in the office, even with our boss!  Beside the friendly aspect, people at Agriya are all incredibly smart and energetic and they generate so many exciting ideas.  Working here is very challenging and huge responsibilities might be given to you as soon as you start. 

What cool projects have you worked on at Agriya?
One of the great things about working at Agriya is that although you will be hired for one particular job, you can end up working on all sorts of projects. You typically have to play multiple roles. These projects are challenging and push you out of your comfort zone, but allow you to develop new skills and experience.  Projects vary a lot, it can be launching a new website, think about an innovative concept, or build a website with the help of your designer team.

What is your favorite benefit about working at Agriya?

First of all, working in a totally new environment is enriching both on a social and working point. Then, you have you to be sure every members of the team understand you, which is not always easy here…  But most of all, Argiya is a young and fast growing company with a promising future, and working in that company is motivating. 

What has been the most amazing experience or day you’ve had at Agriya thus far?

No hesitation, shaving my boss’s hairs on Friday night was quiet a nice experience.

Tell me three words you would use to describe the corporate culture at Agriya

Family – Highly Skilled – Innovative 

Tell me three words to describe India!

Atypical – Incredible – Dynamic   

What do you do on your days off when you are not being the boss?

There are many beautiful places in and around Chennai, such as Mamallipuram, Pondichery, Marina Beach and many more.  We like with others Interns and coworkers to travel across the country, and of course to make many parties.  Also, my work shifts allow me to practice one hour sport everyday.

 

 

Peter

Hi Peter, tell me a little bit about yourself... 

I'm 25 and moved to India in January 2008. I'm currently working as the Online Marketing Manager for Agriya - but you soon learn that your job title means very little as you'll be working on all areas of the business! Before I came to India I was a freelance designer and developer in London, but ended up outsourcing most of my work to Agriya. I visited Agriya in 2006 as a client and liked the company so much I ended up working for them for free for 3 months! Since then I wanted to come back to India and be part of Agriya's growth.

Why did you decide to come to Agriya? 

I love the setup we have here and like the atmosphere in a small / medium company where your skills are recognized and your contributions are rewarded. If you work for a larger corporation you'd never get to speak to the 'big guys' but here everyone is treated equal and you get given the flexbility and responsibility to follow your own path.

Why do you like working at Agriya?  

I love the fact that there is no 'them and us'  concept between the staff and management. Everyone is treated with equal respect and that creates a good working environment. You get given the opportunity to work on several areas of business and are encouraged to go outside your comfort zone. I don't like to be pigeon holed in to any one job role and love the freedom that working for Agriya gives me.

What cool projects have you worked on at Agriya?  

So many! I've got both internal projects and client projects on the go and they all excite me. I did one project for a record label that allows users to remix actual artists songs and create their own mixes and ringtones. The project was a huge challenge, but seeing the final result was very rewarding. I'm also able to work on projects that I've had in the pipeline since I was at University. One of the cool things about Agriya is that they encourage you to come up with ideas, and those that fly can be turned in to a reality.

What is your favorite benefit about working at Agriya? 

Going back to my boss's house where his mum cooks the best Indian food ever! Once you've had food in India, no where else will come close! Food is a huge part of the culture here.

What has been the most amazing experience or day you’ve had at Agriya thus far? 

One moment stands out above the rest, but I don't think I can write it here! Watching my staff grow and learn is a fantastic daily experience. I look at some of my team members from 10 months ago and look how much they have learned and how far they have come in that time and it just gives me motivation to keep teaching and keep imparting knowledge to them.

Tell me three words you would use to describe the corporate culture at Agriya 

Openess, friendliness, informal

Tell me three words to describe India!  

There's not enough words in the dictionary! Gun to my head, I'd say: 

Hot, random, cuisine 

What do you do on your days off when you are not being the boss? 

 

There is a fantastic expat community here so Fridays and Saturdays are spent in a bar or partying. On Saturday's I usually meet up with people for coffee and on Sundays I watch the live Premiership football. Since I'm living here for an indefinite amount of time I've not got the motivation to go travelling, but if some friends come over from the UK, I'd take them to see the sights of India. However, sometimes I have to be the boss on my days off, for example, this weekend the managers have a marathon 8 hour meeting about Agriya and how we can move forward and I have to prepare an hour long presentation on the marketing strategy for Agriya.

Hi Thibaud , tell me a little bit about yourself

Hi , I’m from Besançon, in the north east of France (near Switzerland).

I studied in the management school of Bordeaux, mainly about human resources, but I also have a philosophy degree (Nothing to do with IT…). I arrived in India at the beginning of September 2008, for (I believed it) a 6th month stay, which quickly turned into a 8th month stay. 

Why did you decide to come to Agriya
I am not what we can call a “real globetrotter”, but this year, I had, at the same time, the opportunity to travel, the time to travel and the will to travel. That is why I decided to go to Asia.

I had opportunities for an internship in Afghanistan (No way), one in Nigeria (No way again) and an other one in Pakistan, that looked quite cool. After having heard “You have not enough experrrrrrrrience, misterrrrr”, I finally decided to go to India.

Why do you like working at Agriya?
Agriya is not like the Europeans firms: everything is more…err…Indian. Business codes in India are really something that you should experiment!

Furthermore, everyday, you have a surprise: an unexpected electricity cut, a business meeting with a strange topic,… 

What cool projects have you worked on at Agriya?
My employer gave me the green signal for a site called…err, it is still a secret. But, to sum it up, this site was only an idea, at the beginning, and I had to build it from rags.

What is your favorite benefit about working at Agriya?.

When I compare this internship to my friend’s internships, in France, it appears that I have a lot more responsibilities than they have. It is, I think, the case in the whole India: I have met some “duty managers”, who were only 21 or 22 years old! 

What has been the most amazing experience or day you’ve had at Agriya thus far?

From time to time, you can go to restaurant, bar, lounge or parties with your boss: “business relations” in Agriya are quite relaxed! 

Tell me three words you would use to describe the corporate culture at Agriya

Surprising-Hardworking-Relax 

Tell me three words to describe India!

T.I.I : “This Is India”. The words that we are (often) using to say that India is beyond every “logic”. 

What do you do on your days off when you are not being the boss?

Mainly going to visit some other parts of India, to see nice temples, nice cities, to swim in nice beaches,... To have some fun, in fact! It is like in Europe, but in the “Indian Way”…

Hi Levent , tell me a little bit about yourself

Hi , I’m from Istanbul , turkey  and have been in India since 6th of October 2008.
My office is in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
I’m graduated from Gaziantep University , in economics and also  studying in Anatolian University about International Marketing.

 I like to Travel around world, meeting new people, making friends and sharing ideas with them. I like swiming and fishing. 

Why did you decide to come to Agriya?
I was looking for a job abroad and also I was thinking that  I should go to an extreme country in this world. While I was waiting,  this opportunity  jumped on me. I checked  AGRIYA  Infoway  and I saw that they are quite a big company, working about web development and internet base projects. I liked the job description and I said “ok  I m in”.

Why do you like working at Agriya?
Because in AGRIYA you can find really friendly atmosphere.  When  you are  working  you never get bored  because any time you can see something going on,  people making jokes, serving food  also you can listen music when you are working. The best point is  You  don’t need to be with suit every time you can come to work with jeans. In AGRIYA when  you are working in the same time you can get great  fun.  

What cool projects have you worked on at Agriya?
In Agriya, from the beginning you will be involved in  different projects. When you finished your project, be sure that  the new one will come immediately , also some times you can  obliged to work  more than  1 project in the same time. They will make you tired sometimes but you will learn too many new things.

What is your favorite benefit about working at Agriya?.

You are learning what “team work” is meaning,  in AGRIYA  because when you are working on an project, you have to be in cooperate with a lot of other departments and people. That makes you learn time planning and stress control  ex… 

What has been the most amazing experience or day you’ve had at Agriya thus far?

You can drink with your boss  and you can go parties with  your boss and other colleagues.

Tell me three words you would use to describe the corporate culture at Agriya

Friendly – Family- Hardworking 

Tell me three words to describe India!

Incredible – Messy- Dirty 

What do you do on your days off when you are not being the boss?

Chill  with friends , going to beach for swim  and relax, Travelling with  other interns, clubbing (sometimes).