10 Things I Know About ... Creative team building (through a cooking class)
Lori Leinbach is owner and head chef of Culinary Underground, in Southborough, which promotes the art and craft of home cooking, in some cases through corporate team-building exercises. Contact her at lori@culinaryunderground.com.
10. Icebreakers are essential …
Even if the participants work together regularly. For example, one creative marketing group wrote and sang a jingle to “sell” its recipes.
9. Random team distribution is best.
Some facilitators like to select their groups in advance, but why complicate it? The old “numbers in a hat” selection method always works.
8. Subvert the dominant paradigm.
It’s fun to assign the boss a menial task. You’ll laugh about it all the way to your performance review.
7. Collaboration is Job 1.
Each team focuses on what it should be doing, not what the other teams are up to.
6. Assign a team leader.
This helps control the chaos, even if that person simply keeps an eye on the clock for the team.
5. Knife skills first.
Assuming that adults know how to use knives usually results in blood, bandages and bad language. That’s why we demo the basics first. So, don’t volunteer for a task for which you know nothing.
4. Lock up the hot sauce.
Some participants feel the answer to more flavor is more heat, and some don’t like any heat. Resolving the “spiciness” issue is great practice for bargaining, persuasion and debating.
3. Taste, taste, taste.
If students learn to salt their creations properly, our work is done. We provide plenty of spoons for this “consensus building” exercise.
2. Turn up the music.
Sinatra, Streisand, Shaggy or Spinal Tap. We program the tunes to suit corporate challenges. Fast, upbeat music keeps productivity and energy levels high.
1. Limit ingredients.
Too many choices result in odd flavor choices. Limiting ingredients streamlines decision-making and allows participants to fully commit to their recipes. It’s less stressful, too.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments