Corporate bosses led the way at the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon this year

Running is turning out to be the largest human resource activation, having a direct impact on team building and employee camaraderie. Corporate houses, including TATA, Godrej, Airtel, Optum, Deloitte and others, are investing heavily to get to the start line of marathons.

Many of these leaders have gone beyond their boardrooms and made their way to the starting line of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon (ADHM) 2019.

For the 15th edition of the event, promoters Procam International had 19 pacers for the amateur half marathon this year.


“Running has gone beyond keeping fit or leading a healthy lifestyle,” said Vivek Singh, Jt MD, Procam International. “The corporate executives of India have learnt important lessons through running and are applying them in their boardrooms. At Procam, we decided to take it one step further. So, we brought in the leaders of India as pacers to help amateur runners achieve their targets. They selflessly motivated more than 14,000 runners to complete the distance within their target time at the recent ADHM 2019.”

Keeping pace
Dr Nalin Shinghal, CMD, BHEL, said that participation in ADHM contributes to creating a healthy workplace environment. “BHEL has always promoted sports and the spirit of sportsmanship among its employees, and some of them have raised awareness for various social causes during the half-marathon,” he said.

Umesh Gupta, India Lead-Payments, Conduent Business Services India LLP, who paced the 1 hour 55 mins bus this year, said that running has helped him become a better professional. “For every goal to be achieved, time and pace of work is the most essential factor. After running for several years, I try to chalk out my professional life like a marathon, wherein I ensure that I stay determined and diligent until I achieve my goal.”

Sugandhi Garg, MD, Vichara Technologies, expressed her delight about the increase in the number of women runners in the capital city, “Running not only helps one keep fit, but also provides energy and self-confidence for one’s profession. Running has helped me take care of my family’s health and become more diligent in my profession.”

The finish line
Nikhil Arora, Vicepresident and MD, GoDaddy India, said that pacing in a marathon has helped him understand the essence of teamwork, “Running a successful business is like running a marathon. Nobody can achieve goals in a silo. A good team backing you up is essential for success. While pacing in the marathon, I realised that I couldn’t go too fast or slow down. I had to maintain my pace so that we all finish the race and succeed together.”

Gaurav Pant, Director, GMAC, believes that pacing has helped him understand his team members better, “When we lead a team in our companies, we expect everyone to deliver. However, while pacing, I realised that as a leader, I need to ensure that everyone is playing to his strengths.”

Neeraj Dhiman, Vicepresident, DBS Bank, shared that pacing is more challenging than achieving his personal best. “Collective success for me is more important than an individual win. This year, I have also decided to #gobeyond and committed myself to raise funds for an NGO.”