Dancing in the aisles at Tata Interactive Systems

As the old English proverb says, ‘all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy’. So, to inject some ‘fun’ and variety into working life, the global e-learning producer Tata Interactive Systems (TIS) has introduced Salsa dance classes for its employees.

The classes began as a result of employees’ suggestions, made during TIS’s annual employee satisfaction survey.

Mr P Premkumar, head of human resources at TIS, commented: “With TIS’s 850 employees around the world having an average age of 28 and with 25 per cent of our employees being below 25 years of age, the idea to run Salsa classes was no real surprise.”

“At TIS, we believe that high morale among our employees is vital – to encourage them to be at their most creative in developing the e-learning programmes that our clients need. In order for creative people to be highly motivated, they need to have fun,” said TIS’s chief executive, Sanjaya Sharma.

“So we decided to arrange for Salsa classes for our employees,” he added.

Initially, TIS organised the Salsa classes for employees at its headquarters in Mumbai, India. Some 60 employees signed up for the classes, which were held twice a week on office premises after working hours.

“This initiative has proved so popular that we are about to run these Salsa classes again,” Premkumar commented.

“In addition, we are now holding a ‘jam’ session every 15 days for our employees - in addition to the many yoga classes which we organise regularly”, he said.

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Notes for Editors:

About Tata Interactive Systems (TIS)
Tata Interactive Systems (TIS) is a global pioneer in e-learning. A part of the £7bn Tata Group – one of the largest and most trusted business conglomerates in India, TIS has 15 years of experience in designing and developing innovative and cutting-edge e-learning solutions.
TIS employs a global team of 850 multi-disciplinary specialists – a unique mix of project managers, software engineers, instructional designers, content developers, visual designers and animators. Its service bouquet includes Simulations, Systems Training, New Hire Training, Business Processes and Skills Training, Regulatory and Compliance Training, Sales and Customer Service Training, Adaptive Assessments, Story-based Learning Objects and EPSS. Powered by creative talent, sound processes and technological excellence, TIS has developed over 950 e-learning solutions for more than 300 clients – including 50 Fortune 500 companies – across the UK, Europe, US, Australia and Asia. Its client roster includes leading corporations, renowned educational institutions and government bodies such as British Airways, BECTA, Citibank, Colgate-Palmolive, ExxonMobil, GlaxoSmithKline, HP, McGraw-Hill, NHS, ntl, Orange, Pearson Education, Qwest, Royal Mail, Swiss Re, UNICEF, University of Phoenix, University of Maryland and Vodafone.
Apart from holding ISO 9001 and BS7799 certification, TIS is the only e-learning organisation in the world to be assessed at Level 5 in both the SEI CMM and P-CMM frameworks. TIS’s quest for excellence is reflected in 20 prestigious industry awards, including BETT 2004 Best Product Award, Brandon Hall Excellence in Learning Award 2004, APEX 2004 Award of Excellence and three nominations for the prestigious WOLCE Awards.

For more information log onto www.tatainteractive.com

About the Tata Group
The Tata Group, established in 1904 by the great visionary Jamsetji Tata, is one of India’s largest and most trusted business houses. The group pioneered the industrial revolution in India by founding, among other things, the first steel plant, power plant and chain of luxury hotels.

The Group employs more than 330,000 people in 91 companies across diversified industry sectors including steel, automobiles, cement, telecom and IT. Generating revenues to the tune of £7bn per year – 2.6 per cent of India’s total GDP – it is recognised as a leader in several industry segments such as such as steel, power, software exports and chemicals. It is also the parent company to Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Asia’s largest software producer.

Further information from:
Alan Samuel, Tata Interactive Systems, 020 7905 0156, www.tatainteractive.com
Bob Little, Bob Little Press & PR, 01727 860405, www.boblittlepr.com