Leadership behaviors in professional cooking

Few months ago I wrote about the “Top Chef” reality show from a French TV channel. The first French emission of a similar show called “MasterChef” just ended last week and I didn’t miss a single broadcast (and couldn’t resist eating dark chocolate while watching the show, which made my stomach happy :-)).

The most important difference between the two contests was the candidates’ experience – while “Top Chef” targeted professionals, people who were already working in a restaurant or having a professional activity linked to cooking, “MasterChef” targeted amateur cooks who loved cooking so much they wanted to change their lives and become professional Chefs. In both reality shows the candidates were assigned leadership roles to prove their competencies in leading a team in the kitchen. The rules of the game stated that in some challenges the team leader of the team scoring less was given immunity from an eliminatory test the team members had to go through consisting of each one voting on someone else to leave the contest. And there were two different leadership behaviors observed in “MasterChef” that I can’t forget.

There was a case where the team lead asked the jury to have his immunity withdrawn - as a leader he felt fully responsible for the team poor results, and so his wish was granted. The team members appreciated very much their leader’s gesture, admired him even more and voted so that he wouldn’t have to leave the show (unfortunately someone else did).

In a similar situation, another candidate and team leader also assumed responsibility for the results that were thought to be bad, and when asked by the jury if she was happy with the results and what could have been done better she defended herself and indirectly blamed one of the team members. This happened before the results were announced and her team did better and actually won the challenge. If they had lost, I presume the team reaction to her attitude and action wouldn’t have been as nice as in the previous case, and she might have been penalized to leave the show. I doubt someone can see this lady as a “Chef” in the sense of being a leader in the kitchen. However, she is very talented and, in the end, she won the title of first “MasterChef” in France. And considering her path and evolution in the contest compared to others, I was actually happy she won… but that’s out of subject.

These two examples of leadership applied to professional cooking can be found every day in other environments, namely in the corporate world. The way someone in a leadership role reacts to bad and good team results tells much about own leadership style. I have witnessed leaders’ behaviors that weren’t observed continually and thus appear to me as less genuine. The opposite also holds true and I have watched admirable leadership behaviors consistent over time.

I want to close this topic with another example. Several years ago I was part of a team pursuing a large and strategic deal. Despite our hard work we lost the deal and felt very frustrated. The news came out on a Friday and the following Monday we had our team’s weekly sales meeting. I was afraid that our manager would start analyzing the deal to get some learning out and we could end up with defensive and offensive discussions between the deal pursuit team members, the rest of the sales team and the manager. None of this happened. The manager actually had a complete different behavior – he thanked the team responsible for the deal for the hard work and offered each individual a symbolic appreciation gift. I will never forget this leader action and enjoy sharing this story to illustrate leadership behaviors.

How about you, dear reader, what is your experience with reactions to bad results from a leader and/or team member perspective? Please share your stories!!

A happy day, a happy stomach, a happy leader

Wikipedia defines Happiness as “a state of mind or feeling characterized by contentment, love, satisfaction, pleasure, or joy” and to be happy “is to experience happiness: a feeling of contentment or joy”. According to author and professor Daniel Gilbert, happiness refers to subjective emotional experiences that can be described as enjoyable or pleasurable, and feeling happy is a subjective state. In his book “Stumbling on Happiness”, Daniel Gilbert questions if we can compare the happiness one gets from eating a slice of banana-cream pie with the happiness one gets from eating coconut-cream pie. And he answers we can’t and different people experience different levels of happiness from eating each type of pie.

I find professor Gilbert’s analysis quite interesting. I conclude that what makes me happy, what makes my stomach happy is likely to be substantially different to what makes others and their stomachs happy. I believe that everyone wants to be happy and that a happy stomach can contribute to a broader emotional state of happiness. And if we are happy, we can perform better at all levels in our lives, we can be better leaders. So I am now more curious to learn what makes leaders’ stomachs happy, what makes them as human beings happy.

Yesterday I celebrated my birthday and I had a wonderful day. I fell asleep smiling… I was feeling very happy! Why? For several reasons not just one and making my stomach happy surely contributed to such happy day. Today I felt inspired and motivated to write this post.

All day long I received many phone calls, emails, sms, email messages and wall posts on facebook from friends and family that remembered me and wanted to wish me a great, happy day. We had sunshine in Geneva and a temperature of 23oC – it almost felt like summer.

I chose to spend the day with my husband. He planned the day, I let myself be led by him and I felt good about it. We visited some wine cellars in Geneva canton – luckily yesterday it was the annual open day when local wine producers organize wine tasting events in some cases combined with food and music. We both felt happy for tasting and getting more familiar with the wine from the region, and for making some surprising discoveries. We also visited friends living nearby the cellars and met their new born baby and this was also a great joy.

My husband had also planned a surprise for dinner. He knows how much I enjoy good food. He knows what makes my stomach happy and how that contributes to my happiness as a whole. So he booked a table at the 2-start Michelin restaurant “Le Floris”. The location was astonishing – we were facing Lake Geneva and watched a beautiful sunset with the sun reflecting on the water. It is amazing how nature and its natural beauty contribute immensely to one’s happiness, at least to mine. We enjoyed some silent moments just watching the sunset and I felt incredibly happy. We chose the menu “Plaisir” (pleasure) and we weren’t deceived. When the food arrived, starting with small delicious appetizers, all senses were continually and increasingly ignited. I admit my stomach could have felt happier with a different meat course, but the desserts that followed made my stomach smile again. I won’t tell more about the menu so you can experience it yourself if you wish to try this restaurant one day.
The whole day was a wonderful experience! My stomach was happy, I was happy! I felt really blessed and thanked my husband and God.

Dear reader,

Tell me, what makes your stomach happy?
· What is your favorite meal?
· What is your favorite restaurant?
· You must have a favorite drink. What is it? Wine, champagne, whisky, fruit juice, water … And when, at what moment(s) do you enjoy most a glass of your favorite drink?
How does being or feeling happy influence you as a leader?

Passion. Ambition. Butter. Do you have what it takes?

This is the headline of a movie I rented on DVD some weeks ago. The movie is called “Julie & Julia” and I loved it! Why? For so many reasons, not just one.

This is a movie about cooking and the passion for cooking that bonds two women in different times and places. It’s also about following our passions and what makes us happy in life, and fighting for them. It’s about the pleasure and happiness we feel when we eat tasty food. It’s about leadership, followership, inspiration, admiration, action, change and resiliency. It’s about writing and getting started with blogging. It’s about hard work, trial and error, practice, experience, learning and development. It’s about women and the amazing things that passionate and talented women can achieve. It’s about gender dynamics and differences, and dealing with them. It’s about love, partnership, friendship, people and emotions.

The movie is played by excellent actresses and actors, it’s a comedy and my husband and I had very good laughs thanks to it. Moreover, I could see pieces of myself in both Julie and Julia and this really touched me deeply… and it helped me realize I too have what it takes!

How about you, do you have what it takes?

PS. Sorry, I will not tell the whole story of Julie and Julia – you will have to discover it yourself by watching the movie. And if you don’t like it, tell me why. If you do like the movie, tell me why!

Chef vs. Leader – is there a difference?

The American reality competition “Top Chef” from Bravo cable television network has arrived to Europe this year and an adapted version is produced and broadcasted by French television channel M6. This is currently one of my favourite TV shows!

I love cooking and I learn so much from the talented “Top Chef” candidates and the members of the jury who are high calibre chefs with several Michelin stars. I am amazed by how much business management and leadership theory and practice fit into professional cooking. Let me explain how I see this fit.

The “Top Chef” competition has a “mission” to develop chefs up to the level of a Michelin starred. The candidates share an “individual goal” - to win, get the “Top Chef” recognition and €100,000 prize.

Each challenge is associated to a specific “objective” – to cook a dish or two - and a “deadline”. The candidates typically start by deciding what they will cook - their “vision” of the dish. The next step is to select the “resources”, that is, select the ingredients for their recipe and chefs always look for the best vegetables, fruits, fish, meat, herbs, spices, etc, to increase the chances of cooking something outstanding. And they are given a limited time for this step! Just like in so many other areas of life we have to make quick and sound decisions.

If we look at a recipe there is always an order to be followed and if we do it thoroughly our chances to cook what we wanted is above 99%. The “Top Chef” candidates are a proof of how critical the structure and organization of kitchen work are to achieve the desired outcome on time. In the competition it is a must to have everything ready when due, cooked as it should (neither rare nor overcooked) and serve the dish at the right temperature. So much like work with timelines, processes, policies and rules…

The candidates usually get along very well although they see each other as competitors all the time. They pay attention to what others cook and how they cook; they evaluate each others’ strengths and weaknesses; they even draw strategies and tactics to facilitate the elimination of their most ferocious competition. And this is most visible when they have to work in teams.

The team challenge is one of the most difficult in the “Top Chef” competition. The candidates are either given (1) predefined teams or (2) someone who carries an advantage selects their team members. I have observed teams operating more effectively – working more collaboratively and better organized, and with less interpersonal conflict – in the second situation and these teams typically win the challenge.

Another critical success factor – perhaps the most important – is a “chef” competency to be a leader. In team exercises there’s a natural tendency for someone to step up and lead, or at least manage the resources and provide guidance and motivation to the others, even when they all contribute equally to the work. It is funny to watch how often everyone wants to lead, and how difficult it is for those who have been working as independent cooks or caterers to lead a team of peers or kitchen assistants. I have no doubt you can only be a “Top Chef” if you are a leader.

Again, I am truly amazed by how much “Top Chef” mirrors what I experience and watch in daily life, in my company, in my team, in my family and in myself.

Do you watch “Top Chef” competition?
Are you a Chef? Are you a Leader? Are you both?

I am looking forward to learning about your thoughts and experiences.

What is really this blog about?

Have you ever asked yourself or someone else to list 3 names of Leaders you and they admire? I bet the answer will include famous history characters, government leaders, company leaders and religious leaders. And how much do we know about these people? We should know a bit of their personal history – place born, age, career track, marital status, number of children – and what makes or made them famous – for example, a war, a corporate scandal, a major deal.

Perhaps we would not know what makes or made those Leaders happy in life – personal habits, favourite sports, favourite books, favourite food and drink. That is, what defines them as basic, normal human beings like you and I. And this exactly what my blog will cover.

Here you will find a summary of interviews to Leaders at all levels, formal and informal, and with different origins and backgrounds, supported by photos and videos.

You will learn about:
- What Leaders like most to eat and drink, including for example their favourite meal;
- How they define Leadership and their top leadership traits;
- Who are the leaders that most influenced and helped them develop themselves as leaders,
- And other curiosities linked to leadership, eating and drinking, and what makes Leaders happy.

Are you interested?
Do you know a Leader I should interview? (Perhaps yourself)

What does Leadership have to do with the stomach?

Nothing or perhaps a lot...

I am passionate about Leadership and some years ago I co-founded a community of practice called “Leadership at All Levels”. My partners and I wanted to share the true meaning of leadership, formal and informal, and to help others develop leadership skills to be applied at all levels of personal and professional life.

I have another passion: cooking, eating good food and drinking good wine!!! I love trying new restaurants and experimenting new recipes. I love wine tasting and I am going through expert training on sensory analysis in an Oenology School in Switzerland.

One day food and leadership thoughts gave birth to the idea of demonstrating that “Happy Stomachs Make Great Leaders”. In other words, demonstrate that leaders are human beings with food preferences and eating and drinking habits.

I want to promote learning on Leadership while driving enjoyment and fun!!!