Open canteens

Again, this is not an idea I had, but rather one I stole. But, hey, stealing is also a form of creativity, isn't it? Anyway, I was surfing the website of the "taz", a leftist german newspaper based in Berlin. The taz has, as many companies do, a canteen for their staff. But their canteen - called tazcafé - is more: It's a restaurant and café open for the public, and it's the place where the taz editors have their daily conferences. And it's a culture venue. Bottom line: It's, as the taz itself puts it, a "meeting place for the newspaper and its readers".

What a wonderful idea! There are a lot of companies in cities that have canteens only accessible for their staff. Why not open up the lunchplaces, invite your clients and the public to sit with you, talk with you and eat with you? First of all, this probably would generate some revenue - there is already a restaurant infrastructure in place, and while staff normally gets a discounted price, external customers could be charged normal prices. But more important, it makes the company and its staff more accessible, turns the company headquarter into a public place, which in turn gets the company more public attention; it allows direct contacts between staff and clients (or soon-to-be clients) on a very informal level, which is not only guaranteed to make the clients feel respected, but also gives staff a better feeling for the clients' needs. And encouraging staff to hold meetings in the open canteen ads even increases the transparency. Add some cultural events in your canteens on evenings, and your company will suddenly be featured in the "Going Out" section of the local newspaper.

To be sure, this idea is probably not suited for every company. Newspapers as the taz - and media companies in general - are among those who can profit from an open canteen, whereas companies whose business model is based on secrecy probably will think twice about opening up in this way. But for banks, insurance companies and many others, opening up their canteens could turn out to be quite a good idea.