Kitchen Nightmares: Exercises

I realize that some people may not believe that you can teach your managers anything about leadership from a reality television show. I wasn’t convinced either at first. So to prove FOX reality shows can (accidentally) educate leaders, I’ve included the link to two videos. Each one is a 43 minute episode. After watching the video, I created the questions that I thought highlighted the most relevant management points. I then facilitated the discussion with my team. The entire meeting lasted 90 minutes. We had a great time! We had a lot of laughs but the lessons about not having too large a menu and how people lead under pressure were not lost on my team. I hope you find them useful also.

Chef Gordon Ramsay heads to Fair Lawn, NJ, to visit Campania, an Italian restaurant that’s losing more money than it’s making.

Video: Campanias

1. Was Campanias meeting their customer’s expectations in terms of food portions? How does this compare to IT and what are the implications?
2. What was Campanias known for with its customers? What were Joe’s views on this?
3. Was there a turning point when Joe’s team finally took their jobs seriously?
4. Discuss how Ramsay handled “the old bag”. If the customer is always right, why did he insult her?
5. How would you describe the working relationship between Joe and the team? Are there similarities within your company?
   

   
   

Chef Gordon Ramsay visits Secret Garden in Moorpark, CA, to help French chef and owner Michel try to put his restaurant back on the map.

Video: Secret Garden

1. Describe the relationship between the Chef Michel and his employees. Is it based on trust? Do they feel empowered?
2. How does Chef Michel respond to feedback and criticism?
3. How does Chef Michel and the team respond under pressure? What actions does he take and what are the effects on the team?
4. How did Chef Michel deal with the remodeling and new menu in his restaurant?
5. What is the Information technology equivalent of their “menu”? What can we learn from it?
6. What did Chef Michel do when things went wrong with the new menu? Are there examples in business or IT where you have seen a similar response to the introduction of a new process or technology?
7. What was the “cardinal rule” that Chef Michel learned and how does it relate to IT?