When at vendor's place, look for:

* Capacity: (workstations and people); * Supervisory arrangements: (floor managers, project leaders, group heads); * Security: (controlled physical access and password-protected network resources).

Most importantly, meet person who will be in charge of project you are thinking of giving vendor. Is s/he articulate? Tech-savvy? Quality conscious? Deadline oriented? Easy to get along with? Is there a second line to take over if s/he is away?

You must of course also hand over a copy of your RFP and discuss each point in fine detail.

Bear in mind that most often, Indians are formal to begin with. If you invite key people to a meal, they will be very happy to relate to you on a personal level... this is better for all parties concerned.

Conclude each visit by asking for your quotation within a specified timeframe; encourage vendor to email you freely regarding any questions s/he may have.

At end of a visit, ask yourself if you have a good feeling about interaction. If answer is an overwhelming “NO!”, you had better strike vendor off hopefuls list. For any other answer, keep them in running.

Follow these steps for all hopefuls, and do extensive Internet research on final candidates from broadband connection in your hotel room.

Great, business part of your trip is over, it’s time for recreation!

There are many unusual things to see in any Indian city, and you’d best ask your mentor what these are. There’s no point seeing typical big-city sights… look for ancient or ethnic (Akbar’s tomb, Kerala waterways or Hindu temple at Madurai, for instance).

Be careful when deciding what to eat or drink. Only eat in restaurants that are clean by your country's standards; stick to bottled water from reputed companies like Kinley or Aqua Fina. And no matter how badly you may be tempted, do not eat from those small roadside carts and kiosks!

If you want to buy souvenirs to take home, ask your mentor where to shop, else you may very well end up paying twice what you should. Buy things that are not easy to come by in your home country: fine silks, carpets, and most importantly, Indian jewelry, of which only meagre selections are available outside subcontinent.

So now, replete with silk, gold and an outsourcing vendor shortlist, you're at end of a memorable journey. Get on a plane, push seat back and wonder how it all went by so fast.

Dream about how much you’re going to save in costs, quality improvements you will see, what a good thing you’ve done for your company, and how glad you were that you planned your trip carefully.

You now have valuable knowledge and experience about travelling to India, and might very well soon be recognized as an expert in subject. Fare thee well, bold traveller, and fearlessly guide all those who may follow in your footsteps…

From first 75 results, sift out ones that are not relevant and email 50 of remaining companies with a three-line description of your requirements. Most importantly, include an idea of volume of work you plan to send out.

(I mention volume, because just like in any other economy, there are service providers of varying size in India. The large ones look for large customers, mid-size for mid-size and so on. Rest assured that there will be several providers who want to deal with customers same size as you.)

When replies come in, eliminate prospective vendors who:

* Did not reply in 24 hours * Did not communicate well in English * Did not answer to point

Now ask survivors following:

* How many full-time employees do they have? * What quality control measures do they have in place? * Do they have any certifications? * Which application platforms do they use? * Could they describe largest project they have done?

Some of addressees won't reply... good, more filtered out. To rest, apply same criteria as you did for first round of replies... there go additional ones out window!

Make firm appointments by emailing all remaining providers and schedule your trip accordingly. This is quite easily achieved, seeing that major cities in India (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad) have international airports and major hotel chains operating in them.

Right, you’re all set… by way, it always helps to know someone in India well enough to ask for friendly advice before you leave and when you’re there… it shouldn’t be too difficult to network and find such an individual.

Now pack your bags, skedaddle over to airport and do that international airline thang…

But before that, be sure to read Part II of this article, which you will most likely find in same place as this part.

Meet you again in Part II, which should be available from same place you got this part!