WNS ropes in Malinga as brand ambassador

WNS Global Services, India's second largest business processes outsourcing company, has signed on Sri Lankan fast bowler Lasith Malinga as its brand ambassador.

It has thus become the first Indian IT services firm to have a brand ambassador. Accenture, a multinational company, is another one that has ace golf player Tiger Woods as its mascot.

"We have appointed Lasith Malinga as our brand ambassador for recruitment and employee engagement programmes," said Aniruddha Limaye, chief people officer, WNS Global Services.

This is a part of the branding exercise that the company has initiated. The company did not disclose the amount involved in the branding campaign. Earlier, it had announced the appointment of Deborah S Kops as chief marketing officer.

"We evaluated tennis, squash, cricket and other sports. But cricket found greater resonance with our target audience compared with other sports. We evaluated a few cricketers, including Indian and international players, before finalising on Lasith," adds Limaye. 

IT Services Marketing Association (ITSMA), a membership community for marketing executives, defines branding as a company's ability to deliver on its promise.

WNS found common traits between the player and the company's values. Limaye said Lasith's unconventional bowling style is a connotation for out-of-box thinking.

Also, he is a well-respected global player, and this ability to play and excel at a global level is what WNS wants to convey to its employees as they work for leading global companies

Getting Malinga on board has already started showing results for the company.  "The campaign has found resonance with our potential recruits as we have seen an increase in the number of resumes received since the launch of the campaign," says Limaye.

Apart from the huge hoardings that are seen in Mumbai and the advertising campaign, which includes print, outdoor and online, WNS will also be extending the campaign to below the line activities and employee engagement programs throughout the year. The company will roll out this to its centres in Sri Lanka and Romania.

Malinga will also play for IPL crickets matches for Mukesh Ambani's Mumbai Indian. With IPL matches just around the corner, the company is also aiming to leverage his presence.