What MasterChef Australia's Team Relay Challenge Can Teach Us About Teamwork and Leadership Without Authority

For the past 16 years we've spent August and September watching Masterchef Australia. In our opinion a better version than the UK original!

Now if you’re familiar with Masterchef Australia, you might know about the Team Relay Challenge. For those who don’t, it’s a unique challenge where the home cooks work in teams, but with one major twist: only one cook from each team is allowed in the kitchen at a time. The team members who are waiting their turn wait outside, without sight of the kitchen. Those that have already had their turn wait in a storeroom, able to see their subsequent team members cook (while either cheering them on or holding their heads in their hands, depending on how the cook is going!).

The key aspect of the challenge: each participant can only rely on a brief 30-second handover to understand the vision of the dish, what the previous cook was working on and to pass along the details of their team's intended dish to the next person.

While watching this season's episode over the weekend, I realised that this challenge offers a fascinating insight into both teamwork and leadership without formal authority, making it a perfect analogy for many workplace environments.

Setting the Next Person Up for Success

In a typical workplace, leadership doesn’t always come from the person with the title. It often comes from individuals who know how to set their team members up for success, just like in the Team Relay Challenge. Those cooks who think carefully about the strengths of their team and design a dish to take advantage of those strengths tend to be the ones that succeed. In this most recent episode, the winning dish was a South East Asian inspired seafood curry. The vision of the dish was created by a contestant known for his fish and seafood preparation. He did just that during his 20 minute stint and left the later contestants to add the flavour and spice, which was their specialisation.

During the 30-second handover, the outgoing participant must clearly communicate their thought process, decisions, and next steps to give the next cook the best possible chance of continuing the dish smoothly. It was clear to see that during these handovers, as soon as the outgoing person mentioned the vision for the dish, each team member was on board immediately, realising how well it used their team's strengths; believing they could achieve the vision.

Similarly, in real-world teams, successful collaboration often depends on how well we prepare our colleagues for their next steps, even if we’re not in charge. Whether we’re handing over a project, providing information, or simply offering support, the goal is to ensure the next person is equipped to succeed and believes it's possible. This type of leadership is about empowering others through clear communication, trust, and thoughtful planning.

Leadership Without Authority

What makes the Team Relay Challenge so interesting is that no one participant has complete control over the dish. Each home cook must trust the team and take responsibility for their own section without knowing what will happen before or after their turn.

This is a prime example of leadership without authority—where individuals lead by example, clear communication, and trust, rather than by being in charge. In many organisations, we’re often required to collaborate across departments or teams where no one person has overall authority. In these situations, leadership comes from guiding others, offering support, and ensuring that the team’s shared goals are met, rather than dictating and micromanaging every step.

Teamwork: A Shared Vision

The most successful teams in the Relay Challenge are those who manage to align on a shared vision for the dish. Despite only having seconds to communicate, they remain focused on the end goal and adapt to challenges along the way. This reflects how effective teams in the workplace operate—by keeping a clear vision in mind, communicating effectively, and staying flexible when circumstances change.

So, what can we learn from this high-stakes, fast-paced environment?

• Effective handovers matter. Clear communication during transitions can be the difference between success and failure. Ensure that sufficient time is allowed for handovers (Masterchef team relays often go wrong because the handover is so rushed). Consider the communication style of the person you're communicating to; would they respond more effectively to visual communication methods, as well as written or verbal?
• Leadership isn’t about authority. It’s about empowering others and contributing to the team’s success, even when you’re not the one in charge. I have worked with numerous people who believe they can't lead without the title to do so, which just isn't true. Leadership is a choice.
• Harness the strengths of the team. Consider the most effective ways in which individual team members can contribute to the team. Also consider which will be most motivating (or not!) for them. If you work with DiSC styles and have access to the profiles/ knowledge of those styles, use them to your advantage! See here for other articles about DiSC Harnessing the power of DiSC for Leadership and Unpacking leadership lessons from Ted Lasso, through the lens of DISC profiling
• Trust is crucial. In any team dynamic, trusting your colleagues to pick up where you left off—and knowing they trust you to do the same—creates a cohesive unit.
• Focus on the big picture. Keeping the team aligned on the end goal, rather than getting caught up in individual roles, is key to success. In the Masterchef example, those contestants who are too precious about their initial idea tend to come across particularly negative (helped by the editing, I'm sure!).

Whether you're in the kitchen or the boardroom, these lessons in teamwork and leadership without authority are essential for creating high-performing teams.

In what other surprising places have you found leadership lessons? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

What are you doing to develop your future leaders, or the leaders who don't yet have responsibility for teams?

If you'd like to find out more about what I do and how I support Leaders in people-focussed and results-driven environments to build high performing teams, check out my website at www.leanintolearning.co.uk , connect with me on LinkedIn at https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/briony-platt-lean-into-learning/ or book some time into my diary for a conversation here: Book time with Briony Platt: Virtual coffee