Please allow this forum (KE’s Blog) to be a place for exchanging ideas/experiences za kujenga msingi wa kujiinua. STOP wasting the most valuable commodity in the world bitching over non-issues!

Wonder why Indians on the sub-continent na wale wa hapa nyumbani are always a step ahead in biz?… COLLABO between those at home and those in the diaspora.

Salaaaaalah…WTF?

@KE, Endelea

Kenya: MPs Pay Reaches KSh1.4 Million Monthly-

Kenyan mp’s earn more than earlier thought….

http://allafrica.com/stories/200901220400.html

This is broad day Thuggery with aggravated assault !!

You would think that this global financial crisis would actually be a boom for outsourcing companies since so many people are looking to cut costs. Actually, I would say that American companies are going to be massively outsourcing many of their operations in the coming 2 years.

The question is, why is Kencall relying on Telkom Kenya and is it because, like other Kenyan businesses, they have become used to doing things “corruptly” and without this “corruption”, they can’t compete outside of Kenya.

This is not to say that the Indians are not corrupt (we saw what happened to Saytam) — but for some reason, the Indians are able and willing to compete with anyone in the world and I think this does require a certain level of competence and skill.

The Indian government is not helping Infosys get American clients. Infosys had to learn how to do that on their own and they did.

This is why I keep wondering if there’s too much in-breeding in the Kenyan economy. In a country of 35 million, where only about 2% have any real buying power, in-breeding is not viable for the long-term. At some point, you’ll have to export.

No one seems to be seeing this growing monster and everyone on board is pretty complacent. I fear for the people who will be affected. I don’t think Outsourcing has much of a future seeing the way things are headed globally.

Do you honestly believe “joe’s” story?

Your friend didn’t steal, he merely deployed strategies that would give him an unnatural advantage over competitors….

anyway, why am I deceiving myself, he did business the kenyan way, rub my back I’ll rub yours.

It’s true most kenyan “businessmen” are not forthcoming or open about what / how they make their money.

On the same hand, I can’t completely blame most for being guarded in a place like kenya where intellectual property rights do not exist, or if they do, are not enforced.

Kenya as a culture, I don’t think we have reached that level of openess yet, I mean, ho can afford to be open when u know that millons are in grinding poverty.

If I was making madd millons like Joe in kenya, I’d also be guarded..partly coz maybe I’m subconsciuosly feeling a little guilty knowing that most pple are suffering.

In the west it’s differnt, there are certain standards that majority of the people are at. E.g, running water, heat / hot water, food are not luxuries, a milliionaire, middle class guy or blue collar person would all buy foods from McDonalds.

But at the same time, If I made my money thru stealing, I’d have no incentive to xplain my wealth. Example, Harun Mwau, very wealthy guy, but when asked how he made his money being a former cop, he is very guarded.

Rengokou & Jim:
You have raised an interesting point about Nesbitt and in some ways, it highlights the limitations of many Kenyan businesses and their inability to expand beyond the borders of kenya.

If your businesses success is almost entirely dependent on corruption or on getting breaks from the government, you will never learn how to compete outside of that corrupt enclave and that’s why your only customers will end up being people like Telkom Kenya — government agencies who’ll give you their business not based on your ingenuity, creativity or hard work, but rather based on your connections.

The Indians on the other hand, are not entirely dependent on corruption and that’s how they’re getting these global companies as clients. Now, if you are a kenyan business used to getting these breaks, how will you ever learn how to compete with the Indians when the playing field is leveled? you can’t do it.

I just ordered a book by Nandan Nilekani, the founder of Infosys, one of the largest outsourcing companies in India and I’m very much looking forward to reading about how he did it. You see? if you’ve made your money cleanly, you’ll talk about it and you’ll write books, so others can see how you did it, but if the money is dirty, you have to hide.

Kenyans need to stop thinking that the only kind of stealing one can do is when you actually walk out of a bank with a gunia full of money. There’s a lot of ways that one can steal. Let me give you an example:

A family friend of mine was in the business of selling cigarettes. He also happened to be close to Nyachae at one time. So, one day, he asked Nyachae to write a letter forbidding anyone else from selling cigarrettes in the entire eastern province. Nyachae did it for him and the guy made a killing because he had illegally wiped out all the competition.

Now, without competition, you don’t have to think or even be innovative and without innovation, your levels of production will remain stagnant.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/02/.....index.html