Opendoor employees, a YuMuuv global fitness challenge case study

Opendoor Case Study: Connecting Global Offices With a 6-Week Fitness Challenge

Opendoor, a real estate technology company with about 700 employees, wanted to bring its offices in the US, Poland and India closer together. What started as a friendly San Francisco–Phoenix idea became a six-week, companywide YuMuuv fitness challenge built on exercise minutes, with pop-up step goals and a fierce India vs. Poland rivalry.

Table of Contents

At a Glance

  • Company: Opendoor
  • Industry: real estate technology
  • Footprint: San Francisco (HQ), Phoenix, Seattle, Miami, Poland and India
  • Employees: about 700 globally
  • Interviewee: Katt Clark, Office Manager & Culture Lead
  • Challenge: a six-week Summer Fitness Challenge based on exercise minutes, with mini step challenges

The Goal: One Program, Companywide

When culture champion Katt Clark set out to boost connection across Opendoor’s distributed offices, her initial plan was a friendly SF–Phoenix handshake. Leadership nudged her to think bigger: make it companywide. The tool had to be accessible globally—simple for San Francisco and Phoenix, but also seamless for Poland and India.

“Some things in the U.S. don't always translate globally. YuMuuv was the perfect connector for everyone.” — Katt Clark

Why YuMuuv

  • Global accessibility: Easy for teams in North America, Europe, and India to join.
  • Fast admin setup: Launch, configure, and adapt without heavy lift.
  • Built‑in community: Chat and photos created a social heartbeat inside the app.

“At all hours I saw people posting photos, cheering each other on. The chat made the program feel alive.”

Program Design

  • Primary metric: Exercise Minutes to level the field across activities and fitness levels.
  • Teams + Individuals: Friendly competition across offices and disciplines.
  • Mini‑challenges: Pop‑up step goals (e.g., 1M steps) to add variety—employees crushed these, reaching ~3M steps collectively.

“The India vs. Poland rivalry was fierce—in the best way.”

Participation & Energy

  • Global sign‑ups across offices; participation exceeded expectations for a first run.
  • Chat‑driven engagement: Photos from walks, gyms, commutes; constant encouragement.
  • Real outcomes: One teammate reported 20 pounds lost in six weeks by focusing on consistent activity and tracking.

“I got constant pings—people loved it and wanted to keep it going.”

Recognition That Builds Community

  • Team experience prize: Winning team (Poland) chose a group go‑kart outing funded by Opendoor—prize centered on togetherness, not just individual rewards.
  • Top performers: Gift cards at $250, $100, $50 tiers.
  • Core motivators: Bragging rights, cross‑office competition, and the joy of connecting in the app.

“Prizes were a bonus—the real driver was connection and healthy competition.”

What Worked

  • Inclusive metric (minutes): Everyone could contribute, regardless of activity type.
  • Global culture lift: Shared stories and images bridged time zones.
  • Simple tracking: Clear visibility to team and individual progress.

Constructive Feedback to Make It Even Better

  • Simplify goal setup: Make challenge creation even more intuitive.
  • Challenge‑within‑a‑challenge: Allow multiple goals (e.g., Exercise Minutes and Steps) inside a single challenge so participants don’t have to switch views.
  • Auto vs. manual: Some activities (weights, cycling) require manual entry—clear reminders help set expectations.

“Overall it was straightforward and easy to use—these tweaks would make it near‑effortless.”

What’s Next

Opendoor planned a New Year refresh—potentially January or a playful “Pick Up Where You Left Off” February edition—to align with wellness momentum and sustain healthy habits. Katt was exploring:

  • Keeping minutes as the inclusive base or adding steps for a high‑energy push.
  • Setting stretch goals that last the full six weeks (without being met too early).
  • Continuing mini‑challenges to keep variety and excitement high.

Key Takeaways for HR Teams

  • Use minutes to level the field. Exercise minutes let every activity and fitness level count. Find more formats in our exercise challenge ideas.
  • Add pop-up goals. Short collective step goals inside a longer challenge keep it fresh; see our mini competition ideas.
  • Make the prize a shared experience. A team outing rewards togetherness, not just individuals. Compare options in our wellness challenge rewards guide.
  • Let offices compete. Cross-office rivalries like India vs. Poland drive engagement, and country or custom-group leaderboards make them easy to set up when creating a challenge.

For another global story, see how Qualifacts ran its first challenge across four countries, or browse all our case studies.

Want to connect offices around the world? Book a YuMuuv demo and we will help you plan your first global challenge.