Satyaroop Siddhanta gets more fun out of a trek these days than just the thrill of achievement he felt when he first took to the outdoors. He’s now more attuned to the slower members of his group and tries to help them finish the trek.
It is something the software engineer thinks is rubbing off at his workplace at an MNC in Bangalore. ?It has improved my skills as a motivator,? says the 27-year-old, who reckons his weekend getaways from Bangalore are a better stress buster than partying or lounging around, watching TV. ?Not only is it a stress buster, it also boosts your confidence level,? he says.
A vast array of activities far removed from computers are now popular in this city of more than half a million IT professionals, just as employers see substantial good in promoting hobby clubs on campuses.
While big companies have long taken to providing gyms, yoga classes and dance classes on campus, even smaller firms are now willing to invest in activities that promote a better work-life balance, says Archana Bisht, director of 1to1help.net Pvt Ltd, a Bangalore-based counselling service.
?We have had enquiries from companies as small as 50 employees,? says Bisht. About 75% of her company’s 60 clients are IT firms and its workshops include seminars on topics such as work-life balance and parenting.
?The likelihood of a company with more than 500 employees not having a gym is very low,? says Shiram Ramdas, founder and CEO of Zela Life, a luxury health club. ?Companies have realised it’s no longer a function of salary. A lot of them are looking at well-being in itself,? says Ramdas, whose club plans to expand its services by managing gyms at corporate houses.
According to Bisht, companies are also getting smarter at how they handle communication within the organisation, a lesson learnt during the economic slowdown over the past two years. Also common these days are initiatives such as inviting the employees’ children to campus to understand the kind of work their parents do and an open-door policy within organisations.
At iGate Global Solutions Ltd, a lunch-break entertainment hour called ?Thank God it’s Monday? with the company’s in-house band every week has grown into a staple feature over the past four years. It also doubles as a forum for new employees to blend in.
?The idea was to drive away the Monday morning blues and kick-start the week on a lively note,? says Srinivas Kandula, HR Head at iGate. ?It was also a platform for talented musical artistes who otherwise may not have the opportunity to showcase their talent because of professional commitments.?
Kandula says their auditorium is now packed to capacity on Mondays and the band, called ?Rubber Band?, also takes requests from colleagues.
Participating in hobby clubs on campus can also help the senior management interact with and understand younger colleagues better, says Mridulla Martis, who runs `Dance With Me’ studio in Bangalore and give lessons at several IT companies in the city.
?In the past two years, interest had dropped off, but it is picking up again,? says Mridulla, adding that Latin American courses, Salsa, Jive, Cha-Cha-Cha and Hip-Hop are popular at most campuses. Sometimes, employees’ spouses also participate in the campus classes.
Photography, too, is popular with IT professionals, says Satyaroop Siddhanta, who has become a shutterbug of late.
?It’s a growing trend. I, too, developed that skill and went for a wildlife photography course,? says Siddhanta, who averages two treks?mostly within a 100-km radius around Bangalore?a month.
After each outing, his list of friends on Facebook or Orkut goes up by at least ten.
Before he became a member of the Bangalore Mountaineering Club?run by Neeraj Malve, an IT professional?Siddhanta found it difficult to find a group to go trekking.
A large number of IT professionals in Bangalore have migrated from other states and many tend to spend most of their waking hours in the office, says Bisht. That makes clubs within campuses all the more important.
They also reflect the concern that companies have about young recruits coming from small cities feeling additional pressure in adapting to their new new settings.
Neeraj Malve, who started the Bangalore Mountaineering Club as a hobby club six year ago, says 80% of the club’s nearly 10,000 members are from the IT sector.
Besides, the club’s activities such as paragliding, snorkeling, scuba diving, horse riding and rafting are popular with companies as team-building exercises.
?I used to go to malls and theatres, but it became redundant after some time,? says Mayanka Sharma, a regular trekker. ?’I have done all these (outdoor) activities. They provide a good getaway from city life.?