'Share confidential interview questions': Ex-Google contractor reveals how Indian hiring networks function at the top

Over the past two decades, Indians have progressed to hold some of the most influential positions in major corporations. From CEOs to managing directors and even owners, one can find an Indian-origin person in leading positions at almost all multinational companies in every sector. While many would agree that it's the merit that has helped them grow in life, some believe it's cheating.

The anti-Indian sentiment has grown far and wide across countries in the West including USA, UK and Canada. From online trolling to physical attacks and even layoffs, Indians residing abroad have been targeted in numerous ways due to the increasing population of successful people in the community.

In a recent interview with UK-based GB News, former Google contractor Stephen Vivien claimed Indians cheat to hire their own people. He claimed that Indians hired other Indians, told their friends about potential openings and positioned them to get the job.

"There was a network that I didn't begin to totally understand, but one thing that I was aware of was that when one Indian guy was coming for an interview, the other Indian guys who had managed to get hired would share interview questions with the guy who was about to be interviewed," claimed Vivien.

He added that he was privy to it since he had befriended an Indian guy who gave him the questions. "There was a dishonesty factor you know since the questions had been confidential supposedly," he added.

Indians have become CEOs at major companies including Microsoft, Google, Adobe, IBM, FedEx and more. In another segment of the clip, the outlet's anchor also discussed how those at the top behaved in an almost 'tribal' manner, leading to India against the rest of the world.

Social media reactions

While the video may have aimed at "exposing" Indian networks, viewers actually questioned what was wrong with asking a friend for a referral, which most people do in the corporate world.

"His entire “revelation” is that Indian candidates asked friends already working at the company about interview questions. He supposedly discovered this because an Indian friend even tried helping him - a white guy - get hired too," wrote one user.

"Blaming an entire nationality for your inability to compete in one of the world’s toughest job markets says more about your prejudice than about Indian professionals. Every community networks — referrals exist everywhere in tech and business. But reducing millions of skilled Indians to “insider help” is lazy stereotyping wrapped in resentment," added another.

One user shared how Vivien himself was a vendor delivery manager in the company and not in a high position where the networks he talked about were allegedly based. "This guy was a vendor delivery manager. He wasn't any kind of important person at Google. You found one contractor and that is your basis for deciding all Indians in the tech industry are scammers?" they wrote.