Bain Thanksgiving

7/29/2019 Bain Thanksgiving

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This information is confidential and was prepared by Bain & Company solely for the use of our client; it is not to be relied on by any 3rd party without Bain's prior written consent.

2005 Thanksgiving HolidayManagement Analysis

Focus on the Essentials

November 2005


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2Bain2005ThanksgivingHolidayManagementSurveyFINALWSJversionV2


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Sources of Thanksgiving stress

0

20

40

60

80

100%

Do you get anxiousabout Thanksgiving?

No

Yes, I getanxious aboutThanksgiving

Sources of anxiety

Other

TV/ entertainment/music selection

Tableconversation

Guestselection/invitation

Meal prep

Criteria for success

Time to reflect

Don't judgesuccess

Food

Family/friends

Sources of Thanksgiving stress and success

Source: Bain 2005 Thanksgiving Holiday Management Survey, n=280

Nearly 75% ofpeople get

anxious aboutThanksgiving

driven mainlyby the stress ofpreparing the

meal

but the key tosuccess is enjoying

time spent withfamily and friends


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Focus ondoing these

at home

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

0

10

20

30

40

50

Turkey

3.8

Stuffing

3.7

Gravy

3.6

Mashed

Potatoes

3.3

Cran-

berrySauce

3.2

Pumpkin

Pie

3.0

Sweet

Potatoes

2.8

Bread/

Rolls

2.8

Apple

Pie

2.5

Green

Beans

2.2

Importance rating Total ingredients

Simplify the menu to focus on the essentials

Source: Bain 2005 Thanksgiving Holiday Management Survey, n=280


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Bains Top 5 Thanksgiving Simplification Tips:#1 Complexity Reduction Planning

Complexity Reduction Planning

Use the Thanksgiving checklist as the master plan. Start bytalking to your guests to find out what they want, identify anydietary requests or constraints, and the activities where theyreable to contribute from food to entertainment to cleaning-up

Plan and delegate the menu. Confirm with your guests whattheyll bring and how much. If you dont want leftovers, makeless or forego the dish altogether. The time saved can then bereallocated to decorating the house, getting the turkey cooked ontime and relaxing, etc.

Postpone complexity. For example, create a vegetarian version ofthe stuffing by using vegetable stock and adding sausage to a

portion at the end, thereby avoiding the need for multiple stuffingdishes

Optimize logistics. Increase the odds of guests arriving on-time,or at least at the same time, by having pre-selected area to parkand by organizing carpools


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Guest-Sourcing

Ensure everyone shows off their world-class skills whetherculinary, creative or entertainment. Many non-food items can beguest-sourced, such as extra tables and chairs, decorations, wine,etc. Bain suggests having guests bring extra pots or platters is agreat way to ensure they have to clean-up before going home

Set-up teams according to core competencies. Assign guestsbeforehand to the set-up, food, entertainment and clean-up teamsfor greatest efficiency. Even the kids can join in with some of theeasier tasks and less-fragile items

Assign someone to manage the guest-sourcing relationships. Letthe cook focus on the food by having someone else marshal

resources outside the kitchen. If faced with guest capacityconstraints, Bain suggests considering other supply and cateringoptions or the ultimate Thanksgiving outsource option, enjoyingyour holiday meal and get-together at a restaurant

Bains Top 5 Thanksgiving Simplification Tips:#2 Guest-Sourcing


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Rapid-Results Cooking

Plan how long everything takes to cook. Focus on doing a fewdishes exceptionally well. Prepare the day before where possible.Prevent last minute chaos by writing down how and when disheswill be reheated before serving (in oven versus microwave versusstove-top, etc.)

Process dishes in parallel. For example, the turkey needs to coolbefore carving. This is the time to finish the stuffing, making thegravy and microwaving side dishes

Consider a self-basting turkey. Reduce the effort from bastingand increase in cooking time due to opening the oven

Plan for emergencies. Make sure 1-800-Butterball is on speed-dial for those emergency questions, like Why is my turkey turningblue?

Bains Top 5 Thanksgiving Simplification Tips:#3 Rapid-Results Cooking


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Smart Seating

Use factor analysis for seating. Seat guests with commoninterests together to ensure the best conversation. Use Meyers-Briggs personality tests, or other personality assessmenttechniques, to maximize a healthy conversation flow. Pre-emptpotential conflicts by seating known arch-rivals on the same side

of the table, as far apart as possible

Seat people for rapid clean-up. Have the clean-up crew closest tothe kitchen. Seat kids away from expensive rugs

Consider a kitchen assembly line. Consider a break with traditionand plate food in the kitchen to avoid the bottleneck of dishes

being passed around a large dinner table Warm the plates. Use the time when the turkey is cooling to heat

plates and increase the buffer between serving and eating

Line up the caffeine. Serve lots of coffee relatively soon aftereating to avoid the effects of turkey coma and boost motivationof the clean-up crew

Bains Top 5 Thanksgiving Simplification Tips:#4 Smart-Seating


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Crash the Clean-up

Delegate before dinner entertainment of kids and non-cooks/servers. Guest-source pre-dinner entertainment to one ofthe more creative guests. Use the one-hour arrival time bufferbefore dinner for any more energetic games, mindful of the turkeycoma to come

Use meeting leadership and facilitation skills during dinner. Havea list of opening gambits to kick-start conversations or divertarguments (before they become blow-ups)

Motivate the clean-up crew. At the end of the meal, thank all theguests for their contributions, and the clean-up crew in particularfor their upcoming efforts while the remaining guests decamp tothe living room

Focus the clean-up crew on highest impact activities. Pack up theless delicious leftovers that wont fit into the fridge for the gueststo take away. Fill the dishwasher. Leave any hard to clean potsor platters soaking until morning

Bains Top 5 Thanksgiving Simplification Tips:#5 Crash the Clean-up


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Create an integrated schedule for asuccessful, stress-free Thanksgiving

Saturday Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday

qSurvey guestsby phone to:

confirmavailability

get preferencesand lessonslearned fromlast year

assessinterests andwillingness tohelp: cooking,buying wine,planningentertainment,bringingflowers etc.

qPlan menu,car-pooling,overnightaccommodation(as required)

qNegotiate

with priorityguests/ sellthe plan foroutsourceddishes,entertainmentand flowers

qDesign andsendinvitations

confirmingdetails withdirections

qArrange torent extratables, chairs,place settingsand glasses(as necessary)

qOrder 24lbturkey

qShop foringredients(see shoppinglist on nextpage)

qEnsure

storage inplace forTurkey onWednesdaynight

qPick up theextra tables

etc.

qClean anddecorate thehouse, set uptables(outsourcingopportunity or

the kids helpout)

qPick up the

turkey andrefrigerate

qPreparestuffing andrefrigerate

uncooked

Relax/enjoy latte

10am preheatoven to 350,prep turkey

10.30am roast

turkey for ~5hours

Relax/basteturkey

3.30pm cookstuffing inoven (whileturkey rests)

4pm Keep foodand plateswarm in oven.Make gravy

4.30pm Reheatother dishesin microwave

5pm Serve, eat

and clean-up


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Impact of complexity and outsourcingstrategies on shopping and budget

If you dont get help fromfamily and friends:

Dishes:

Shoppinglist:

Total items:Weight*:Cost*:

Baked ham Mashed potatoes Sweet potatoes Green beans

Cranberry sauce Pumpkin Pie Apple Pie Beverages

46+ items~150 lbs

$217-528

AlmondsApple juiceBaking powderBread crumbsBrown sugarButterButtermilkCeleryChicken bouillonCinnamonCorn

Corn breadCranberriesCream cheeseDill weedDried parsley

EggsFlourFuji applesGarlicGranny smith applesGreen beansGround gingerGround nutmegHoneyJalapenos chillisMilk

Onion saltOrangesPepperPie crustsPotatoes

World-classcooking of top 3:

Turkey Stuffing Gravy

ButterCeleryChicken bouillonCornCorn breadDried ParsleyFlourGarlicJalapenos chillisOnionsPepper

Poultry seasoningSaltSausageThymeWhole turkey

16 items~45 lbs

$72-136

Poultry seasoningPumpkin chunksPumpkin spiceSaltSausageSea saltShorteningSour creamSweet potatoesSugarThyme

Whole turkeyWine and beveragesYeast

65%70%

40-85%

* Depends on guest appetite and shopping preferences

Saving


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Simple but delicious recipes for 24 toreduce complexity on the day

Turkey1 (24 pound) whole turkey12 tablespoons butter, divided up8 cups warm water6 tablespoons chicken bouillon4 tablespoons dried parsley4 tablespoons dried thyme2 tablespoons seasoning salt

1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175degrees C). Rinse and wash turkey.

2 Place turkey in roasting pan. Separateskin over the breast to make littlepockets and put 6 tbsp butter on bothsides between the skin and breastmeat.

3 In a medium bowl, combine the waterwith the bouillon. Sprinkle in theparsley thyme. Pour over the top of theturkey. Sprinkle seasoning salt overthe turkey.

4 Cover with foil, and bake in thepreheated oven for 5 hours, until theinternal temperature of the turkeyreaches 180 degrees F (80 degrees C).Remove foil for the last 45 minutes sothe turkey will brown.

Gravy10 cups chicken stock and/or

drippings from turkey2 cups water cup all-purpose flour2 teaspoons poultry seasoning1 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon ground black

pepper

In a saucepan, bring thestock and drippings to aboil. In a small bowl,dissolve flour in water.Gradually whisk into theturkey stock. Season withpoultry seasoning, salt andpepper. Bring to a boil,reduce heat, and simmerfor 8 to 10 minutes, or untilthickened.

Stuffing6 ears of corn1 pound chorizo sausage, peeled2 sticks unsalted butter (1 stick melted)2 sweet onions, minced (3 cups)4 celery ribs, finely diced (2 cups)4 large garlic cloves, minced4 large jalapenos, seeded and diced2 tablespoons chopped thymeCorn bread, coarsely crumbled (20 cups)4 cups chicken brothSalt and freshly ground pepper

1 Preheat broiler with rack 8 inches from heat. Broil corn untilslightly charred, ~7 mins. Let cool, then cut the kernels fromthe cob.

2 Chop chorizo into 1/2 inch pieces. Cook over medium heat inskillet for 5 mins. Drain and transfer to paper towel-lined plate.Discard the fat.

3 Melt 1 stick of butter in skillet. Add onion, celery, garlic,jalapenos and thyme. Cook over moderate heat until softened,

about 10 mins. Scrape into large bowl. Add chorizo, cornkernels, corn bread, melted butter and broth. Season with saltand pepper and stir well. Let cool. Refrigerate uncooked stuffingovernight.

4. While turkey cooling, bake stuffing in dish at 375F for about 30mins or until heated through and crisp on top.

Prepare and cook on Thanksgiving Prepare on Weds, cook on Thurs

Plan B for the seriously cooking challenged:

purchase store-cooked turkey and pre-packaged stuffing mix


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About Bain & Company, Inc.

Bain & Company is one of the world's leading globalbusiness consulting firms, serving clients across sixcontinents on issues of strategy, operations, technology,organization and mergers and acquisitions. It was founded

in 1973 on the principle that consultants must measure theirsuccess in terms of their clients' financial results. Bain'sclients have out performed the stock market 4 to1. Withoffices in all major cities, Bain has worked with over 2,700major multinational and other corporations from everyeconomic sector, in every region of the world. For more

information visit www.Bain.com or contact Cheryl L. Kraussat [email protected] 646-562-7863 or 917-783-0013.

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