Hindustan times
Shine jobs
Invest in sports to create leaders
Jeevan Prakash Sharma
jeevan.sharma@Hindustantimes.com
Many corporate leaders believe that organizing different types of games and encouraging employee participation is the need of the hour as that they can develop various skills needed for professional growth.
“We organize cricket matches for employees and also support other sporting activities. I believe association with sports by default makes people relate to their teammates, helps in strategizing and develops clarity in thinking. It is definitely worthwhile to build soft skills among managers. Not only does the leadership quality enhance, but soft skills also help in building the emotional quotient of the organization,” says Rana Kapoor, MD and CEO, Yes Bank Limited.
Sanjay Sethi, head of an online shopping firm says that his company has a cricket team
■Employees who take part in sports are generally all-rounders, quick learners, better leaders and work well in a team
that practices regularly and successfully competes with teams from other organizations. “This goes a long way in building trust and camaraderie between co-workers and honing individual skills such as quick decision-making, strategy formulation, etc.,” he says.
Some experts are of the view that employees who take part in maximum games are all-rounders or people who excel in most
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games/sports have a greater ability to learn quickly and in a better manner compared to those who don’t.
“People who take part in games excel in life and in multiple roles and are better leaders; we, therefore, offer such employees leadership roles and a variety of important profiles. Also, people who excel in sports are very positive and drive the organization to success once
they become leaders,” views Kunwer Sachdev, founder & MD, Su-Kam.
“You learn how to challenge yourself and master hardships, you learn the absolute importance of teamwork to give you a winning edge, you learn to sacrifice individual needs for the benefit of the group, you learn about the importance of good sportsmanship, fair play, honesty and integrity; all of which come in handy at the workplace,” says Sudeep Banerjee, head, HR and training from a life insurance company.
Market leaders believe that playing each sport – be it golf, chess, cricket etc – has its own positive impact on the player.
“While chess, shooting etc are important to increase the level of concentration, football can help you with teamwork and strategic planning,” says Rajeev Kapoor, MD, Steel bird, which has been associated with domestic hockey matches as a sponsor.
