时间：2022-10-08 07:12:08
If you thought expats in India love being pampered with the good life, you should meet Max Hegerman. He has travelled in Mumbai’s local trains, and takes an autorickshaw to work. He and his wife do not own a car, and have no plans to buy one. Just to spoil the spartan picture a bit, the Hegermans plan to get themselves a Harley-Davidson.
But you get the drift: The Hegermans, who live in a cosmopolitan neighbourhood in the western suburb of Bandra, are quite happy to mingle with the Mumbai masses. “We are not part of any expat club. We prefer to hang out with Indians rather than hang out with foreigners busy discussing how life is so difficult and bad here,” says Hegerman, who joined as President, Tribal DDB India, the digital agency of Mudra Group in July 2009.
Born and brought up in Los Angeles, Hegerman worked for 18 years in advertising with various agencies and with marquee clients such as Nike, Pizza Hut, Volvo and Apple. Then, in 2008, he got an opportunity in China when TBWA/Media Arts Lab, a full-fledged advertising agency of TBWA Group, decided to set shop there to support (creatively and strategically) the global expansion of Apple.
Hegerman’s wife Roshni was born and raised in the US to Indian parents, and after their son Prem was born in China the Hegermans made a trip to Mumbai to meet Roshni’s family. Hegerman got a chance to meet with Madhukar Kamath, CEO of Mudra Group, who was looking for someone with the ability to integrate digital with traditional media.
“That’s exactly what I wanted to do. I wanted to do something here that would challenge my leadership skills,” says Hegerman who did not think heading back to LA was much of an option. The first impression that he had of Mumbai after landing from China was that of controlled chaos. “When I first got here I went through a bit of a culture shock. The United States, China and India are different from each other. From a business standpoint the real difference between China and India is in the way you get feedback. Not much open discussion and communication happens in China. You have to consult people behind closed doors. In the US, too, it was different. People have their viewpoints but they are not as eager to share them,” says Hegerman. In India, he adds, scarcely has he finished a presentation when people start offering their views and asking questions, “which is refreshing. This is very good, especially in digital advertising where there are not too many rules”.
After spending a year in India, Hegerman has few complaints or regrets. “When we first came here we said: let’s see if we can survive for a year; now we realise we are very happy here and I do not see us moving out for a long time to come,” he says. He is trying to learn some Hindi, and blurts out a word or two whenever he gets a chance. His son Prem, however, is doing much better on that front — and even beats his mother when conversing in Hindi as well as Gujarati. Perhaps that is the only front on which the senior Hegerman has some catching up to do. So he has hired a Hindi tutor to learn the language. We can only say, Shabash.