How to hack it? The tax preparation season is an extremely busy time of year for accountants, which is why the Massachusetts Society of CPAs (MSCPA) created a challenge designed to keep members engaged, active, and healthy.

The Fitness Challenge, now in its fourth year, is a step-tracking contest that encourages members to walk or run during the tax season, which goes from February 5 to April 15. Members use ChallengeRunner, a free fitness app, to track their steps.

“We offer the challenge as a fun member benefit to keep [members] entertained and active during this busy time,” says Hannah Naranjo, MSCPA communications and membership specialist. “We also encourage members to share photos with us to post on social media, in our weekly newsletters, and our magazine.”

Why does it work? MSCPA members frequently engage with each other in the ChallengeRunner app, encouraging a teammate or talking competitively with other teams. “I also send weekly updates to participants to keep them engaged and share the top teams of the week with their average steps,” Naranjo says.

What’s the bonus? This year, MSCPA added to the engagement factor by adding a tracking component—a challenge map (see above). Using the app, members can see how their real-time steps add up to a 497-mile journey that takes them on a virtual route past five state CPA society offices and finishes at the IRS building in Washington, DC.

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