COOK has been around for 21 years. It\u2019s a frozen food business that cooks food and sells it in shops on the high street. This, along with their e-commerce and home delivery operations, amounts to a workforce of about 1,200.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Relationships have been at the centre of the company since day one. It\u2019s certainly not the easy way, says Rosie: \u201cLeaning into relationships and working with humans and our egos can be a messy, challenging business.\u201d But this hasn\u2019t stopped COOK from prioritising relationships.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not only are strong relationships the basis of wellbeing, but they\u2019re also the most vital contributor to human happiness. \u201cThe longest running study of happiness ever is the Harvard Grant Study,\u201d says Rosie. \u201cIt\u2019s taken seven decades and its conclusion is really clear, which is our sense of happiness and fulfilment across a lifetime depends on the warmth of our relationships with others.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Relationships don\u2019t just buttress contentment \u2013 they help people to thrive, both inside and outside of work. This is something COOK has learned through its scheme to help put people with barriers to employment back into work. And from a commercial standpoint, the data clearly indicates that when a shop team has good relationships, the shop performs better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s no imbalance in terms of how COOK approach commercial strategy and how they approach relationship; each is pursued with serious intent. They\u2019ve identified three key things to cultivate and nourish great working relationships. \u201cThey need common purpose, they need clarity and they need appreciation,\u201d says Rosie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Common purpose ensures that when things get tricky and relationships start to fray, there\u2019s something to come back and build from. Beyond this, every year COOK runs a culture collective event where 200 team leaders take two days out to gather and reflect on why they\u2019re doing what they\u2019re doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Clarity means understanding how to use one\u2019s skills to contribute to successful operations. When clarity is lacking, that\u2019s when political disputes arise and relationships break down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rosie identifies appreciation as the most important element of all. \u201cWe want to be appreciated for what we\u2019re bringing to the party and that in turn makes for better relationships,\u201d she says. COOK has a commitment to meet the needs of those working in the organisation. This is demonstrated in a variety of ways, such as financial wellbeing workshops, mental health and confidence workshops, and English workshops for the Eastern European workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAt individual, team and company level, when we have common purpose, we have clarity on our contribution and we appreciate and feel appreciated by those we\u2019re working with, we\u2019re well on the way to good working relationships,\u201d says Rosie.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Rosie Brown sees great potential in human connection for creating positive, productive workplaces and generating great performance. As the Managing Director of COOK, Rosie has learnt that the best results nearly always come from a group of people working really well together. This has led her to pledge allegiance to the idea that the route to success is in relationship.<\/p>\n
At the 2019 Happy Workplaces Conference, Rosie encouraged people to return to work and look at their respective organisations through a relational lens. In Rosie’s view, looking at things through a relational lens is a wily method for figuring out what’s working and what isn’t.<\/p>\n