Pickleball is now part of the recruitment offer
Companies are finding partners to provide pickleball, running, and other fitness activities in order to attract and retain employees
Don’t say it out loud lest you jinx it but corporate India is embracing the active lifestyle. Until recently, “corporate wellness programmes" focused mainly on regular medical check-ups, mental wellness workshops and health insurance cover. Then there was the annual sports day, which usually meant hosting an in-house cricket tournament. The difference now is that a number of companies are partnering with sports brands to support running, pickleball, obstacle-racing and other activities as more India Inc. employees want to participate in such events instead of passively engaging as spectators.
Sometimes, it’s an incentive that gives the employee a push; other times it’s the employee who pushes the company to bring about the change.
Also read: Why the office needs to embrace Gen Z’s work attitude
Pulak Chaudhary, 45, the Bengaluru-based director of sales at Puma, started running about a decade ago when his reporting manager promised him a trip to Goa if he completed a half marathon that the brand was sponsoring in under two hours. What started as a bet of sorts has turned into a lifelong passion for building endurance. Chaudhary recently participated in the Hyrox race, an indoor fitness race that combines running and functional workouts in Mumbai, which Puma sponsored.
“The encouragement from your colleagues in the run-up to an event plays a big role in people signing up for activities they wouldn’t normally do. Also, when the company takes the initiative to sign you up, it’s one hassle less," says Chaudhary.
While cricket remains, by some distance, the most popular sporting activity, other sports such as running, racquet games, football, padel and pickleball are catching on.
That’s a reason several brands are looking beyond cricket when it comes to sponsorship and partnerships with participative sporting events (like marathons), while also hoping that such collaborations motivate their employees to be more active.
There’s no doubt that the companies gain greater visibility, higher engagement and better brand recall from sponsoring sports activities but employees too see it as a perk—a bit like tech giants serving seven kinds of global cuisines in their cafés and having nap rooms in the Y2K years.
In the early days of the Mumbai marathon, thousands of employees of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a partner to the event, signed up for a chance to meet their then CEO and seasoned marathoner N. Chandrasekaran after the race. Two TCS employees who have been at the company since 2009, when Chandrasekaran became the CEO, said some of their colleagues who had no interest in running signed up and began training for the half marathon just to meet him. For Apollo Tyres, the inspiration to partner with running events came from within the organisation.
“Even before we started sponsoring running events in 2023, we had been organising internal races at our plants since 2019," says Remus D’Cruz, head (sports marketing and communities), Apollo Tyres Ltd. The company has since partnered with multiple running events, including the Delhi marathon and races in Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata and Pune, at which their teams participate.
Running is a high engagement sport, says D’Cruz. “Our associations provide a platform to more employees to come forward and test their strength and endurance, while bonding over races. We had a huge number of employees participating in different categories, which has only increased year-on-year." Apollo Tyres has 500 regular runners in its employ.
Pickleball, arguably the fastest growing global sport trend, is a new favourite for those working at Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai. It has partnered with a local pickleball tournament as well as co-sponsored the Chennai Super Champs team in the World Pickleball League in Mumbai.
“Health is a way of life. This fuels our efforts to engage with communities and organisations through sports and wellness activities," says Dr Kiran Shingote, unit head, Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai, adding that the pickleball partnership was done bearing in mind the sport’s rising popularity and accessibility.
Also read: Looking for a date? Head to a run club
These partnerships, however, have inspired staffers to create inter-departmental teams that mirror the franchise spirit and compete in an in-house pickleball competition.
The novelty value can fade quickly, too. One race organiser explains that many corporate participants do not return after having “won a medal once." “Not everyone is sporty or interested in being active," Chaudhary says. “Many do it at least once to fit in. Some participate for bragging rights. Many do it because they want to experience it at least once and find out what the hype is about," says Chaudhary, who has been at Puma India for 18 years, during which he has seen interest in sports events spike and drop in waves. Another reason people steer clear of such events is because they are usually held on weekends and people don’t want to compromise on family time, Chaudhary points out.
“There will always be a small percentage of people who lose interest after the event," admits D’Cruz. “But that number is gradually reducing. There is increased awareness and enthusiasm towards fitness and active lifestyle, especially post covid. Fitness, as a culture, is growing."
The benefits of being active are many—from overall health and wellness to stress management. Employees are aware of this and are demanding that employers too take an interest in their overall well-being. “What begins as an event often becomes a habit. After the pickleball tournament, several employees began playing weekly, forming their own informal groups," says Shingote. “We’ve seen such events act as the starting point of individual wellness journeys—whether it’s picking up a sport, committing to walking daily, or becoming vocal advocates for causes like cancer awareness."
Write to us at feedback@livemint.com
Also read: How to talk politics at work when you disagree
topics
