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“He was the first lecturer at the Sir Ratan Tata Department of the London School of Economics before going on to become the Prime Minister of Britain. Who was he?”
The answer — Clement Attlee — was the crucial clincher to the national finals of the Tata Crucible Business Quiz 2012, which landed the team from Chennai Silks, Coimbatore, a handsome reward of Rs 5 lakh in cash, besides other goodies. This is just one of the recent instances of a corporate quiz team walking away with the top honours after a couple of tightly-fought rounds.
Corporate quizzing is getting bigger. A look at the recent list of winners and finalists of the Tata Crucible quiz reveals the names of a motley group of companies, ranging from FMCG, real estate, advertising and marketing to financial services and engineering, even PSUs.
Showcasing brands
Going beyond using quizzes as a test of intellect, these companies are leveraging the process to build and showcase their brands. And apart from its value as an effective learning tool, companies are also using quizzes to keep their employees engaged in their otherwise routine humdrum work life and to boost their involvement levels in the organisation.
Atul Aggarwal, Vice-President, Corporate Affairs, Tata Services Ltd, said: “Both companies and their employees gain recognition and visibility through the advertisement and telecast of such quizzes. This works as a huge motivating factor and is a matter of pride.”
According to Shamala M. Padmanabhan, General Manager, Corporate Communications, TCS, the quiz prizes have got bigger, and the participants, coming from a wider range of areas, are now younger. “Earlier, it used to be just cash prizes for winners; now it is an entire package including cars, five-star hotel stay, sponsored airfare and fancy gadgets such as tablets, smartphones and laptops.”
Rs 200-cr market
Overall, the fast-growing quizzing market in India, including TV shows and advertising revenues, is estimated to be around Rs 200 crore. Many companies have a dedicated quiz club and quiz contests to promote and nurture quiz culture and talent.
“Quizzing invites involvement through a spirit of competition and fun. We want to promote this culture of knowledge enhancement by going beyond class-rooms and learning beyond life insurance products to give our employees a leading edge in the industry,” says Rajendra Ghag, Chief Human Resources Officer, HDFC Life, which organises ‘Mission In-Genius’, a pan-India quiz on insurance for its employees.
Quizmaster Giri Balasubramaniam of quizzing company Greycaps India believes companies prefer quizzing over seminars or conferences to ensure continuous learning for employees. “I foresee corporate quizzing growing in a big way online where companies would also be keen to improve their market quotient.”
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