Organizational Development and “The Bear”

“The Bear,” an engaging and award-winning series centered around Carmy, a former top Chef de Cuisine, depicts a fictional tale of family dynamics, humor, and chaos. For viewers, it’s a captivating drama, but to my eyes, with nearly 25 years of organizational development and leadership development experience, it also gives an insider view into a dynamic, sometimes dysfunctional, yet earnest workplace. As I watched this series unfold, it occurred to me that there are several relevant insights to be drawn from “The Bear”. I wanted to further explore a few of the organizational development lessons on offer, starting with the very first episode.

Navigating Chaos

In the series’ initial episode, we learn that Carmy has returned home to take over his family’s restaurant, The Original Beef of Chicagoland. To do so, he relies heavily on his top-level chef training and experience, insisting that everyone in the kitchen call each other “Chef” as a sign of respect, and that they verbally signal to each other where they are in the busy kitchen using words like “behind” and “corner” as they bustle through. While Carmy’s desired changes are admirable, he isn’t able to motivate everyone else to change as quickly as he would like and so he faces resistance, even sabotage, and chaos. The restaurant, once run by his late brother (Michael) and a family friend (Ricky, also called “Cousin”), becomes a battleground between the old guard and the new, resulting in workplace upheaval.

Practical Takeaway: A system is exquisitely designed to get exactly the outcomes it produces. For years, The Original Beef restaurant has delivered solid food to loyal regulars. Carmy only sees chaos and difficulties, rather than appreciating the successes that have existed. New leaders coming into an organization may be naturally inclined to highlight the problems. This makes sense as new leaders are often incentivized to fix things that have been perceived as broken. But doing so, without taking time to first get oriented to what is working, may cause even more problems, requiring even more clean up and more precious energy later.

Navigating Workplace Change

Carmy also faces practical challenges in his new leadership role as he attempts to introduce much-needed change. For example, he faces a meat-order shortfall and needs to pivot very quickly to sourcing meat from a different channel, relying on barter as the restaurant is short on cash. Ricky, however, has the original supplier on speed dial, indicating a pre-existing relationship that Carmy didn’t have and wasn’t aware of. Carmy also recognizes that the restaurant needs new skills and extra resources, so he attempts to hire a new sous-chef with solid high-end restaurant experience, but he doesn’t share his decision with anyone else. This means that she shows up as a surprise and, understandably, has great difficulty integrating into the workplace on a number of levels. The other employees are, at best, neutral to her arrival and, at worst, openly hostile and uncooperative. These struggles demonstrate the significance of understanding historical context and building relationships in organizations. Carmy wants to implement changes but hasn’t yet established himself as a trusted, competent, reliable leader who cares. Instead, he is openly mocked by Ricky, and the other employees don’t see the value in what he is trying to create.

Practical Takeaway: New leaders, like Carmy, often grapple with resistance when introducing change. It’s crucial to communicate a clear vision and engage with the team, fostering a collaborative approach rather than imposing directives. Before implementing changes, new leaders should embark on a “listening tour,” learning about the team’s history, mission, and individual perspectives. Building trusted relationships with loyal workplace veterans, both internal and external, is key to overcoming challenges.

Recognizing Grief and Loss

Michael, Carmy’s brother and the former owner of the restaurant, has recently died, leaving a gaping hole in the leadership team, in the family unit, and in the restaurant community. It is clear throughout this episode that the restaurant employees all have a familiar way of relating to each other, and viewers can imagine the hurt and shock that they experienced at the unexpected loss of Michael. They are not only resistant to change but also grieving the loss of their previous leader and the restaurant’s status quo. This means that there are two losses going on and Carmy, stuck in his own grief as well as his solo stubbornness to change The Original Beef towards his vision of “better”, is unaware of how others around him are feeling. Seeing himself as alone and the only possible savior of the restaurant, Carmy’s struggle to connect with the team and instill a vision showcases the emotional pitfalls inherent in leadership transitions.

Practical Takeaway: Acknowledging and addressing the grieving process is essential. New leaders need to view the situation through their team’s eyes and hearts in order to empathize with their emotions, communicate transparently, and foster a supportive environment to ease the transition. When new leaders acknowledge that change is a loss and grief can be part of the process, even without the death of a former beloved leader, this provides opportunities for new leaders to forge meaningful connections and demonstrate that they care.

So what and what’s next?

Reflecting on Carmy’s journey, viewing “The Bear” through a lens of organizational development reveals several practical strategies for new leaders. Leaders need to fully understand the existing and nuanced workplace dynamics, learning about the team’s joys and pains, and cultivating important relationships. While Carmy tries to single-mindedly and single-handedly bring in what’s worked in other restaurants, this only demonstrates the inadequacy of cookie-cutter approaches and underscores the need for a nuanced, context-specific strategy in leadership. But it doesn’t stop here.

“The Bear” provides much more than entertainment as it also offers invaluable insights for leaders in all sorts of workplaces. As we are brought along with Carmy’s leadership journey, this first episode emphasizes the intricate balance required for successful leadership — and how Carmy struggles to achieve it. There is simply no one-size-fits-all solution, and new leaders should instead adopt a thoughtful, context-specific strategy.

I look forward to sharing more observations with you from “The Bear” as this blog series progresses. Please share your thoughts and ideas with me below in the comments. What are you remarking on as you watch(ed) “The Bear”?