The contemporary workforce wants to gain meaning from their professional role as much as a paycheck. The expected scope of our jobs often extends beyond our daily responsibilities, and as we continue to give and give and give to our work, it’s important to feel like we’re a part of something bigger than ourselves.
And that’s where the company culture can come in and lay down some guidelines which help us to see the impact we ourselves are having on the wider world, as well as the extracurricular work our employers are doing to help make our home planet a better place.
But company culture doesn’t just have to tackle the big-picture stuff: we can start small by creating better equity, thoughtfulness, and creativity within the bounds of our workplace, first. Here are a few creative (and delicious) ideas to help you juice up your organization’s company culture.
Kits, bottles, and fun activities to help fortify your company culture
Whether you’re team-building, inspiring introspection, or just treating your people to a good time, these gifts from the Argaux cellars can help.
- New World vs. Old World Tasting Set – $85-150
Cultural consideration: honoring the old, integrating the new.
The question of innovation vs. tradition can spark tension within the office space, especially between the digital and analog crowds. And this is a conversation which has made its way into the wine world as well, as ancient vinification practices established in Europe are undergoing some wild modifications as roots are put down on Turtle Island.
Lineage and modernity each have their own flavors to offer and one may prove advantageous to the other, depending on the situation and how they’re being applied.
So as your team sits down to experience the differences in terroir, fermentation and flavor between California and France, this can found a discussion where the team attempts to open their minds to the possibilities of honoring both the old and the new in your industry.
- Women in Wine Tasting Set – $85
Cultural consideration: equity and representation.
DEI is making the top of many organizational discussions, and this tasting kit can act as another anchor for a longer conversation about the importance of representation and equity within the workforce.
The two bottles included in this kit are wines with a cause – one donating all its proceeds to women’s empowerment charities, and one employing exclusively village women to found better gender equity in the South African wine industry.
So, once you pop the cork on each, team leads might start a discussion with their people about the implication of women’s empowerment in the workforce, and the good these wine-mogul gals are doing in their communities.
How can you replicate these ideas and efforts to promote equality and justice in your own working lives? What is your company doing to build equity for marginalized workers? Let’s talk about it over drinks.
- Blind Tasting Set – $100-150
Cultural consideration: curiosity and problem solving.
Creative thinking and attention to detail are valuable assets to bring with you to work, no matter your industry.
The Blind Tasting Kit was designed to be a fun learning experience that lets the sipper discover more about the world of wine and deepen their own oenophilic knowledge. But it can also act as an engaging activity that helps to inspire close looking, problem solving, and teamwork as you and your people try to discern the identities of the mystery wines included in the kit.
Listen, this can be a hard task for beginners, but that’s no reason to give up and drown your sorrows if you don’t get it right the first time. We love a challenge, especially one in which we are encouraged to taste delicious wine. How many business problems can this philosophy apply to?
- Food and Wine Pairing Kit – Variable
Cultural consideration: collaboration and participation.
The food and wine pairing kit comes with Big Macs and Burgundy, by the illustrious Vanessa Price, who wants to make pairing food and wine fun and accessible. It just requires a little bit of thought, and some understanding of what you like in a snack, whether that’s olive oil-poached salmon, gooey cheeseburgers, or a couple bags of hot cheetos.
Here’s our vision: a team bonding dinner party where you and your people choose a few dishes to pair with a choice bottle of wine and then get together to cook and enjoy that dinner together. What do you think?
Get together with this book, these bottles, and get inspired.
- Sommelier-guided tasting experience – Flat rate
Cultural consideration: team spirit and community.
Argaux offers both private guided tastings as well as participatory online AND in-person events welcoming of teams from all industries. Part of building a healthy and long-lasting company culture is weaving in space for fun, rest, and relaxation. Not all of your team bonding experiences have to be packed with learning opportunities or conceptual meaning – they can simply be about enjoying a glass of wine and enjoying each other’s company. This kind of bonding experience generates its own meaning.
Other offerings from Argaux
Maybe the culture you’re trying to build is simply one of appreciation and celebration. In that case, head over to the Argaux virtual cellars to find a myriad of delicious bottles that make the perfect gift for colleagues, employees, and clientele.
Cheers!
