We’ve covered the 10 things you never knew about corporate catering — now, how about the things you thought you knew?
Everyone has their own preconceived idea of what it takes and what it means to organise a team meal. Some say it’s as simple as putting food on the table (and into the stomachs of your colleagues), while others say success is determined by how much food you get out of your budget.
Who is right and who is wrong? As insiders in the catering business, we’re here to bust some myths. Keep reading for 6 common misconceptions about team meals, and the truth behind them.
1. A team meal is just a form of staff welfare
We’ve met many Human Resource managers who think that catering lunch is just a form of employee welfare, since happy, full people make for productive staff.
While free food is a great motivation to work harder, it’s able to do more than just that. Team meals
are also effective in fostering a cohesive, bonded team. The catch? There’s a science to making it
work.
2. Food is a natural bonding tool
As mentioned, there’s a whole science to organising a team lunch or dinner. It isn't as simple as leaving it to the food to work it's charm.
First, everyone needs to understand the purpose and goal of the get-together. What do you ultimately want everyone to get out of these one or two hours together?
The setting is important too. Try to envision the layout of the room: Will everyone be sitting together? Will you have long or round tables? Will there be activities over lunch? Will everyone be aware of what they’re eating and why they’re eating it together?
Anyone can order a buffet line, but a truly effective meal requires thought and strategic planning.
3. You just have to give people what they like to eat
A common practice by team heads when catering food is to get everyone to vote for their preferred cuisine or dishes.
Of course, your team has to enjoy what they’re eating, but a true team meal brings people together and acts as a platform for communication. That’s why you might even want to not give your team a choice from time to time, since it’s not all about the food everyone is eating, but the people they’re eating it with.
4. Team meals are all about maximising quantity while minimising cost
Cost is often a huge deciding factor when comes to catering for a company. While many companies have a small budget, trying to spend as little as possible to get the most amount of food is never a good idea.
As it is with many other things, you get what you pay for. The lower the cost of the meal, the more likely it is to be filled with processed, fatty and sugary foods.
Unless you want the number of MCs taken a month to go up, it’s wiser to pool together a slightly bigger budget and have lesser but more high-quality team meals.
It won’t just contribute to the overall health and wellness of your team members, they will also be able to tell (and appreciate that) they’re eating better food.
5. Team meals must be healthy
A buffet line chockfull of processed, deep-fried and sugary food is a definite no-no, but restricting your orders to salads, wraps and other healthy food is not necessary.
Yes, a team meal should lead to healthier, happier employees, however, there’s only so much raw vegetables and dressing a person can take. Order salads regularly, and you’ll soon find people skipping team meals and heading out to get themselves a nice hot char kway teow instead.
It’s all about balance. Opt for dishes made with unprocessed and fresh ingredients and mix-and-match the types of dishes (e.g carbohydrates, vegetables, meat, etc.) for a balanced and satisfying meal.
6. Bosses can skip out on team meals
Not unless cohesion is not the end goal for your team meals.
If you’re a boss, you are walking example for your employees. By skipping out on a lunch or a get-together, you’re sending a message that it’s not important to be present. Before long, you’ll see more and more people give team meals a miss to get work done or set other appointments.
A truly fruitful team meal will have everyone leaving with more than satisfied bellies.
Want to learn more about what it takes to cater for a company lunch or dinner? Join our mailing
list or check out 7 Things No One Tells You About Catering For A Company Lunch and 8 Ways To Make Feeding A Big Team Simple But Delicious.
Want more recommendations for Iftar this Ramadan? Call us at 6266 2696, or get a quote on our catering support page!
