Team Building - Cooking

Lets Cook!

The old adage, “If you can't stand the heat get out of the kitchen” has no place in Team building.

TEAM COOKING AT SEA LEGGS

Team Cooking, a recent innovation in the field of team building activities, provides a unique challenge and a significant opportunity for organisations and individuals alike.

Participants learn to work together to produce exotic and unfamiliar gourmet meals, using techniques and ingredients entirely new to most. No prior experience necessary. For those with little or no cooking experience this can be daunting. For those who think they know how to cook, even more so!

It's not about how much you know it's about producing a Team result. The old adage, “If you can't stand the heat get out of the kitchen” has no place in Team building.

Forging a team around the cook stove (or campfire) is fun, natural, effective, intuitive and essential to our nature (cooking is probably one of humankind's first group activities, after hunting and gathering and certainly a reward for all your hard work)

Cooking a gourmet meal for 10 to 15 people requires and builds teamwork.

Cooking as a team develops service to others, close cooperation, planning skills, good communication, quality performance, leadership, consensus and attention to detail.

New techniques, ingredients and tools present opportunities for learning and innovation. For both the uninitiated and the experienced cook, it is a challenge requiring full focus, openness to constructive criticism, constant learning, and most importantly, teamwork.

Designing the Course

Each course is designed specifically to meet the needs and objectives of the team. The course Menus includes Asian, European, Classic French, Contemporary, Indian, Wok and Noodle quick productions and Bread Baking.

The Planning Process

The first task is for the group to choose the menu from the options provided. The group decides by consensus. Individual tastes and habits are balanced against the need to find common ground (The Menu) and to take the risk of the unknown.

The menus offered are based on the degree of cooking experience of the group, to provide a challenging learning experience, to take the group into new territory, to stretch whatever culinary skills they may have; and to teach the fundamental truth: the team won't get through this unless it works together.

There is no room for "prima donnas" in this kitchen. Secondly, the strategy for the meal will be developed and documented by the group. This will cover the resources, labour, and schedule required.

Each member will receive the selected menu and instructions prior to the cooking program. The group will study the material, and begin to understand the process and how best to distribute and perform tasks. This stage is monitored to observe and record group dynamics and the allocation of team duties and responsibilities.

Trust and confidence in the ability of the team to accomplish the task is essential. After all, you or your colleagues will eat what your team has prepared. Concerns, uncertainties, and any questions will be shared openly and dealt with throughout the course.

The Goal

The goal is for the group to become a team, to discover new facets and ways of working together; to establish a team in an environment where everyone starts out at zero, as equals, i.e., no one knows how to do this.

The end result is a sumptuous meal for everyone's enjoyment, the fulfillment of a new and challenging task completed, and a chance to evaluate the meal, the process and the learning that has taken place.

At its best, this experience can affect and improve the daily work of the team. It depends on the group to take all that it can from this learning environment.

The Course

Cooking is performance art, where finite time, labour, and resources are tightly choreographed to produce an excellent result on time.

The group will learn to work as a team, set aside normal roles, plan carefully, cooperate closely, ask for and give help as needed, deal with mistakes and adjust quickly, and follow the strategy, the recipes and instructions.

We are not going to make production chefs out of the team, but we are going to lead the team through the process, and instruct, support and guide them to produce an excellent gourmet dinner.

They will experience the fact that in this environment, no leader or manager can succeed without the full support of the team. Each group member will have to set aside individual aspirations for "culinary stardom". Those who do have culinary skills may be selected by the team to lead team sections.

Inevitably problems arise in cooking, no matter how good the team. A moment's inattention can ruin a dish. Misunderstanding and emotions can disturb the group. Breakdowns happen and are opportunities for learning, for innovating and redesigning.

The benefits of preparing a delicious meal are obvious. In this case many other benefits accrue, such as the ability to evaluate the team's performance on the spot, throughout the process and after enjoying the results. We are also serving each other.

We will rely on a thorough commentary of the dinner, and on the process and what has been learned. The convivial mood of cooking and dining together is very rewarding for the team.

Sample Schedule

Morning Schedule 9-12 Lunch Demonstration

The first stage of the program is to demonstrate to the team the various preparation and cooking methods, ingredients, timing, and presentation which will be used during the dinner preparation.

It is essential to show the process in advance and allow the team to understand the work and how it will have to organize for the task ahead.

This involves the team in the first steps of hands on cooking, such as learning new ingredients and flavours, preparation of food, measuring, proper cutting and chopping, and cooking methods (such as steaming, boiling, braising, frying, grilling, roasting and baking ).

After lunch the team will clean up and prepare the kitchen for the dinner production.

Afternoon Schedule: 2:00pm to 7:00 pm Dinner Production

The team will have reassigned tasks detailed in the strategy. Everyone will have ample opportunity for hands on cooking, to experience the detail of each dish as well as understand how the entire meal is prepped, cooked and presented.

To maximise the learning process and to foster the team experience, maximum group numbers are kept to 20 participants. If your team is larger than 20 we suggest, the program is conducted over two sessions.

In the first session one group prepares dinner for its invited guests (the other half of the group) the fact that their culinary efforts are to be judged by others adds weight to the activity. The non culinary team could be responsible for all the dining room preparations, setting and clearing of tables and washing of dishes.

The groups could be reversed next session.

At every step our instructors will be guiding the process.

For more information, and a program designed for your group, please contact:

Tony Legg - Mobile: 0425 752 745 or email

teambuilding@docklandsailingschool.com.au