The Tata Corporate Sustainability Group regularly connects experiences, best practices and ideas from across Tata's UK operations. Under the leadership of Malcolm Lane, director of corporate affairs at Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), the group devised an initiative to promote health and healthy living across Tata's entire European operations, their marketplaces and their local communities.

Named Today is a Good Day, a phrase that people who have life-threatening diseases strive to embed in their mindsets, the initiative seeks to use Tata's large European workforce and strong community ties to encourage awareness and understanding of health issues and offer support to those in need, whether financial or physical.

Running alongside their own many and varied corporate sustainability programmes, individual Tata companies committed, for the very first time, to pooling efforts towards a shared mission.

Since its launch in spring 2010, activities under the Today is a Good Day banner have continued to grow in size and influence. The initiative was developed with inputs from the UK Government Department of Health's National Cancer director and influenced by his requirement to improve cancer outcomes.It has sought to build upon the long-running work of the Lady Tata Memorial Trust and its efforts to support blood cancer research, which is managed from the UK by a scientific committee of haematology oncologists who are leaders in their field.

Some of the Today is a Good Day initiatives are:

• Rolling out TCS Europe's employee health programme across several other Tata operations. The programme focuses on the provision of information to employees to facilitate early diagnosis of cancer and creates opportunities to encourage a healthier lifestyle.
• TCS, Diligenta and Tata Steel host Macmillan cancer information units across the UK for employees and local communities.
• Tata Limited and Taj's Crowne Plaza London-St James hosted an Oxford University and INDOX Cancer Research Network fundraising drive for research into cancer in India and among British Asians.
• The Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Challenge, which for over 25 years has pushed JLR employees and business partners to their limits in the Welsh hills, was opened up to all Tata UK employees.
• Jaguar provided seven logistics vehicles to support Sir Ian Botham's walk for leukaemia and lymphoma research.
• TCS, Diligenta and JLR employees registered to be donors for the Anthony Nolan bone marrow donation service.
• JLR initiated an online health service for employees including efforts to prevent late diagnosis of cancer.
• Pan-company fundraising for the Institute of Cancer Research and other supporting cancer charities.
• The second Tata Steel Triathlon Challenge saw over 100 Tata employees race and raise funds for Today is a Good Day charities, alongside the ITU World Championship in London's Hyde Park.
• More than 1,000 TCS employees have participated in UK health activities, including cancer prevention talks and sponsored sports to raise money for cancer research.

While the Tata family of companies across Europe are separate entities, it is encouraging that all collaborate with the aim of having greater impact on the needs of society than they might otherwise achieve alone. This co-creating and collaboration of action brings to life the Tata ethos in practical ways, recognising that the community is not just another stakeholder in our businesses but the reason for the Tata group's existence, perhaps as individuals as well as companies. For more information, please contact malcolm.lane@tcs.com