Engaging in la dolce vita
There are worse ways to embark on a team-building initiative, than over some home-made pasta and a glass of prosecco. Katie Pattullo talks to Anna Venturi of Venturi’s Table, a custom-built corporate cookery centre, about the benefits of gastronomic bonding
Having spotted a trend in the late 1990s for Italian cuisine, Anna Venturi, the managing director of Venturi’s Table, knew she was onto a good thing.
Executives across the land were recovering from a decade of humiliating team-building exercises ranging from paintballing their bosses to building whitewater rafts with their line managers. There had to be an easier way...
Since leaving her previous job selling advertising, Venturi had an established business teaching women classic Italian cooking. Among those attending was a group of American women who indicated that their husbands would also be keen to attend a course.
These executives were struck by the benefits cooking could bring as a teambuilding and bonding exercise – and Venturi’s Table Corporate Cookery Centre, was born.
At Venturi’s Table there is an emphasis on fun, relaxation and enjoyment – not a safety jacket in sight. It is all about “sharing good food and growing together as people”.
As Venturi says: “Cooking is an activity which is very relaxing with the added advantage of not being gender specific. Attendees are in an informal environment. We treat everyone the same – whether it is a senior executive in Shell or the most junior member of an organisation.”
Business is good. Bookings increased by 60 per cent last year and the effect seems to be snowballing. “Most of our bookings are by word of mouth,” adds Venturi, “and a large proportion of our clients are repeat customers.”
There is something about Italian cuisine that naturally brings people together. Perhaps it is the tradition; where Italian families bonded over mealtimes to share stories of the day. There is also the added advantage in the simplicity of Italian cooking. People don’t want to be stressed out about quantities, they just want the enjoyment of putting the ingredients together.
Although the focus is on Italian food, the organisation has also branched out into other cuisines, notably Indian and Japanese.
Venturi was aware of a recent upsurge in sushi consumption and was keen to offer customers what she felt was in vogue.
Unlike Italian fare, though, sushi requires a tremendous amount of concentration and raw fish also requires careful handling, something that may not generate the same teambuilding effect that clients can achieve through Italian cuisine.
Venturi’s philosophy behind the business rings true as a teambuilding mantra: “People speak openly to each other. Problems are chopped up and dissected, arguments bubble over and evaporate and worries are stirred away.”
For example, Venturi recalls: “Some employees from Mars [the confectionary producers] attended a course recently and called me subsequently to say that their team was working much better as a result.”
With businesses experiencing cut backs on expenses in light of the ongoing credit crunch, a cookery course could be a more economical way to offer entertainment, learning and teamwork, all in a nutshell. And as a means of engagement, cooking gourmet food in a stylish environment is surely going to make your employees feel better about working for an organisation where
activities such as this are on offer.
Some corporate teams have been more enthusiastic than others. One team of American executives, fueled by not just the gastronomic experience, but possibly the fine wine, felt the need to demonstrate their thanks to the Venturi’s Table staff in a Dean Martin serenade.
That’s more than engagement – that’s amore.
