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The library of essays of Proakatemia

learning journey: learnings and experiences



Kirjoittanut: Hassan Chakir - tiimistä SYNTRE.

Esseen tyyppi: Yksilöessee / 2 esseepistettä.
Esseen arvioitu lukuaika on 4 minuuttia.

In March of 2022, Team SYNTRE of Proakatemia had the opportunity to collaborate with Novio, a team company from Switzerland in HES-SO Team Academy, for a two-week learning journey. The journey was a part of the English-speaking teams’ curriculum, and the idea was to identify what the team needed to learn together, specify the learning objectives, plan how to achieve them, and execute the learning journey overall. Although the Learning Journey was counted as a 5-credit course, the point was not to count the hours to pass it, but rather to be responsible for leading one’s own learning and actively contributing to achieving team goals (Tampere University of Applied Sciences, 2021).

 

Both Proakatemia and HES-SO Team Academy have integrated programs in Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, and through innovative teaching methods, students develop their managerial skills by carrying out practical projects and working for clients that are part of the regional socio-economic fabric from day one. Teamwork and learning by doing are at the heart of this pedagogical model that is disrupting teaching conventions (HES-SO).

Our teammate Doneé Barendze led the collaboration, and the teams divided into four groups: project planning and hosting, project team, company visits, and welcoming and team building. The first days focused on getting to know each other, building team bonds, and exploring cultural differences between Finland and Switzerland.

The first days were more about getting to know each other and building some team bonds. From our part we show the Finnish culture (and Moroccan culture of course). However, Switzerland has its own cultural differences as well. Besides the machinery of watches and the banking system, Swiss people are more social, their Sundays are sacred which they should not work at all, and owning a small pet has some rules like they should be two of them, so they don’t get depressed (Dafina, 2020).

The following days were a mixture of company visits, project plannings and Pajas, but all of them are working together for learning purpose. The easiest to go with is the company visits, which has the goal of showing some of the Entrepreneurial environments in Tampere as well as the work style and ethics in Finland. To achieve this, we visited Platform 6 and saw all the premises that Startups and entrepreneurs can use. Additionally, we had visits to private companies such as GoFore and Futurice and hosted both of our team academies warmly and showed how is the business life going. Finally, we had out lovely alumnies of Proakatemia Heimo Films and Mind Me Solutions from a previous team named Value, both alumnies were a good example of the successful entrepreneurs that come out from Proakatemia.

The project that SYNTRE needed to organize was preparing for the sales days, and since the Swiss team was with them, they had the human power to do as much as possible. However, it didn’t go as planned since the project leader dropped from the leading position in the last second. This brought the need to react quickly and actively from team members. Only the active members of the team addressed the situation and kept going, raising the question of where the others were. The best thing to have happened would have been providing support from all team members during this time. By providing support to team members, they could help mitigate the negative impact of a leadership dropout and keep the team focused and productive (Golemen, 2002).

Personally, I believe the best thing to do as teammates to address situations like this is to take steps such as communicating with others, sharing resources, leading by example, and recognizing contributions (BalanceCareer, 2018). Such actions would help create a culture of support and collaboration within the team, which could benefit the team in the long run.

The last part of the learning journey was mostly about wrapping up the project planning and coming up with a plan for the learning journey. But the best part of it was the last Paja where we had to create memes about ourselves and the unusual stuff we see in our cultures. However, the amount of work that was invested into making memes was more than we had while doing our project. I think this shows that you can put more effort into something fun and enjoyable (Crenshaw 2017).

After the learning journey was over, some complaints were made stating that there wasn’t a good amount of learning in those two weeks, which I disagree with. Learning is a choice that individuals need to make for themselves. It requires a willingness to explore new ideas, engage in challenging experiences, and be open to feedback. While external factors such as a supportive learning environment or access to resources can facilitate learning, the motivation and commitment to learn must come from within (Dweck, 2006).

In conclusion, the learning journey with the Swiss team from HES-SO was a valuable experience for our team. We had the opportunity to learn from each other, experience different cultures, and gain insights into entrepreneurship and business. The project we were tasked with was challenging, but it allowed us to grow and develop our teamwork and leadership skills. It is important to remember that learning is a continuous process, and we must always be open to new experiences and ideas.

References:

 

Dafnia, Z. 2020. 42 Fun Facts About Switzerland You Had No Idea Of. Read on 31/03/2023. 42 Fun Facts About Switzerland You Had No Idea Of – Studying in Switzerland

Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., and McKee, A. (2002). The New Leaders : Transforming the Art of Leadership: Goleman, Daniel, Boyatzis, Richard, McKee, Annie: 9780751533811: Amazon.com: Books,’ London: Sphere.

 

“How to Deal with Disengaged Employees” by The Balance Careers: https://www.thebalancecareers.com/how-to-deal-with-disengaged-employees-1918426

 

HES-SO Team Academy. Team Academy HES-SO | HES-SO Valais-Wallis (hevs.ch)

 

Crenshaw, D. 2017. The Power of Having Fun. Read on 31.03.2023. https://powerofhavingfun.com

 

Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Random House.

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