Virtual Cook-Along

History / Background

Despite Covid-19 we still need to connect with our teams and our clients. Catching up over coffee or unwinding with an after-work drink are difficult or impossible at the moment but the relationships which develop as a result of these types of activity are still vital to the future of our businesses.

Our pharma client had planned a 3 day conference for their annual business update and review meeting involving participation from international delegates from their parent company as well as from their UK wide team.

In addition to the conference, evening networking activities were planned to foster relationships amongst team members and provide a break from the presentations.

The conference pivoted to a virtual meeting, but the client still wanted their team to benefit from an after-work networking and relaxation opportunity. Adding a bit of fun to make the 2020 event memorable for a reason other than Covid-19.

Challenges

• The progress of the pandemic was unclear, with a September meeting in the diary it was hoped that the event could still go ahead as planned with some remote dial-in and appropriate social distancing in place so the switch to fully virtual was made fairly late on.
• The September meeting dates were already in everyone’s diary
• The activity needed to be fresh – by September everyone had done enough Zoom Pub Quizzes and online coffees
• The cook-a-long proposed needed to be quick, easy to follow, take account of dietary requirements and allergen intolerances as well as only use basic equipment everyone would have at home.

Delivery

• High 5 Events worked with our catering partner to develop a suitable recipe for client approval
• A branded step-by-step meal preparation guide was printed with easy to follow instructions and photos
• Ingredients were all pre-prepared, weighed and pre-packed then despatched nationwide by courier to individual participants
• The cook-a-long host led the team in their meal preparations which was followed of course by sharing the meal together – virtually

Outcome

No one was hungry! A tasty evening and much fun. Something very different from the usual on-line Zoom call.