Article: How corporates are celebrating Diwali differently this year

Employee Engagement

How corporates are celebrating Diwali differently this year

Companies are going away from the traditional way of celebrating Diwali and opting for employee wellness.
How corporates are celebrating Diwali differently this year

Renowned business tycoon and diamond merchant Savji Dholakia is famous for celebrating Diwali in an enormous way. He is the man who likes gifting cars, fixed deposits and flats to his employees in recognition of the outstanding performance of his employees. And then there are others who endeavor to do it in a different way every year based on themes and trends. For instance, this year, many organizations plan to have their Diwali celebrations in an eco-friendly manner.  

The drive to do it better and in an impactful way is why companies are now celebrating the festival with a better cause such as employee wellness and helping the underprivileged.

Marking the run-up to Diwali, HCL Technologies held a series of events to bring its employees and their families closer. This year, HCL partnered with an NGO to set up festive stalls inside the campus and proceeds from the sales will be donated to HCL’s Power of One Initiative - a daily one-rupee donation program by HCL employees for social causes.

More than 2,000 employees of HCL across eight cities took part in a multi-talent show and tried their hands in creative arts and also participated in ‘OneWishataTime’ social campaign where they shared ideas to celebrate Diwali with an aim for social and environmental welfare.

While most of the employees expect good gifts from their employers, not many feel happy about what they get. To provide its employees with a host of options, PayU is following a unique concept for gifting which is “Choose Your Own Gift”. The employees can choose gift vouchers from all the leading e-commerce portals.

At Myntra and Jabong, Diwali this year is about spreading the light wide. The ecommerce players have teamed up with Goodera to bring in many NGOs to set up their very own ‘Diwali Mela’ at the office with a variety of decorative items, festive accessories, all available for sale to the employees.

To curb noise and air pollution, Gecko Worldwide team is getting together for a tree planting ceremony before the Diwali holidays. This year the company is visiting an orphanage in the neighbourhood to celebrate the festival with the kids and to share gifts and partake in their innocent festive spirit.

While keeping an eye on the environment, companies are also trying to engage the workforce in healthy living habits. Madhavbaug for instance, is conducting healthy cooking workshops and recipe contests for their employees. To make it even engaging, the company is also gifting employees recipe books and food journals. Slowly, but steadily they are trying to create a sense of responsible celebration among the employees and break free from the notion of associating Diwali with unhealthy indulgence.

The good thing is that the notion of burning crackers during Diwali is changing and corporates are leading it from the front. PHL is another company which is celebrating Diwali differently than usual. The company has arranged for a free check-up for the employees. The company is also giving away a hamper of Frinex tablets so that employee can have healthy lungs during the pollution caused around Diwali.

 Signify India, formerly known as Philips Lighting India, is running ‘Signify Light up a Smile’ employee engagement program throughout October leading up to Diwali, which will enable employees to participate in philanthropic activities such as cloth donation drives, rural school transformation and making solar lamps to celebrate the month of joy and giving.

Companies are also engaging their customers to partake in the joy of the celebration. CEOs, COOs, and other business unit heads of HealthCare at HOME are visiting patient homes in this festive season to celebrate with them and present them with gifts. They are also promoting small scale industries like Khadi and NGOs working for social causes like Meri Ladli, Aarohan, Serving Window, etc by giving them exhibition space for about two weeks at offices across India to sell their products.

Travel platform ixigo is hosting a grand Diwali bazaar this year in-house being run by the employees featuring stalls selling unique items. All the earnings from the bazaar are being donated to charity.

 

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Topics: Employee Engagement, #Corporate

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