Launching Online Gatherings for Those in Corporate Hospitality, Food Culture, and Community Building

Adapted from Pausa Pranzo, WE Factory’s monthly newsletter, which includes my experiences and learnings as I navigate this field and must-read articles and trends on food culture at work, company culture, employer branding, workplace hospitality, and office rituals once a month. Sign up below.

The other day I was on a call with the EMEA marketing manager at one of the world’s top-ranked employee analytics platforms. We were talking about what I do at WE Factory when she said that my job title was brilliant. In the past, when someone asked me what I did, I winched. I felt like as if I had either to diminish myself with a fragment of what I do or tell the whole truth and confuse people.

For me, the answer is complicated. I ended up choosing “workplace eating designer”–my current title on LinkedIn–because it seemed to embrace all the different aspects of my work: eating culture, organizational design, service design, facilitation, and work culture.

Truth to be told, there isn’t a distinct title for someone like me. Not yet, at least.

The research for my book on eating culture and hospitality in the workplace shows that there is a variety of professionals engaged with food-related activities in the workplace. Some are community managers. Others work as facilitators, restaurant managers, food strategists, culture managers, or heads of team & culture. In smaller companies, the founders may even be in charge of facilitating connection. As you can see, the scope is not clearly defined.

However, I don’t think that the job title really matters here. What matters is that culture and eating well seem to go hand in hand. In other words, my research seems to confirm some of my assumptions: culture first companies are conscious of the impact of eating well at work. They have either a remarkable food program and/or initiatives that bring people together around the table.

My research seems to confirm some of my assumptions: culture first companies are conscious of the impact of eating well at work.

Now, you might be thinking (especially if you don’t work for such companies) – that’s great for them but what’s in it for me?

Introducing Online Gatherings

As someone who’s carving her own path, I feel the need to connect, learn, and share with others and I sense others do too, especially when we’re navigating a field that is not clearly defined.

This month, I’m going to start hosting Online Gatherings for a global community of people like me and you: community managers, facilitators, restaurant managers, food strategists, culture managers, team & culture heads, and company founders who seek to improve how their team eat, socialize, and connect at work. They are ideal for those who want to connect with others around the world from the comfort of their desk.

Exceptionally this month, Online Gatherings will take place twice for 30 mins, on February 18th at 6 PM (Rome time), 5 PM (London time), 12 PM (New York time), 9 AM (San Francisco time) and on February 27th at 9:30 AM (Rome time), 10:30 AM (Helsinki time), 12:30 AM (Dubai time), 17:30 (Tokyo time), 19:30 (Melbourne time), to give everyone a chance to join depending on where they are based in the world and to figure out what’s the best time. From March onward, online gatherings will happen once a month for 60 mins.

What are the benefits for those attending?

It’s a space good to learn and broaden our knowledge, explore the world we work in and grow. As facilitators, community managers, event designers, culture professionals, we intuitively know it’s important that we grow our skills and capabilities to be in service of our company and clients.
It’s a space and a time in which you can learn more about how to be more effective, creative, and inspired. It’s a place to share challenges and let others help you by sharing their own experiences.
Online gatherings are free!

If you like to join me, please register your interest here. I’ll share the link to the call with those who signed up.

I hope that these online gatherings will be a space to come and learn, share challenges, nurture yourself and your business, and get involved in this #culturefirst + #eatwithasmile at work movement that is happening right now.

Hope to see you online and don’t forget to invite your friends and colleagues!