Company Creation & Team Formation: Learning by Doing

In most classrooms, students work as individuals: completing assignments, submitting papers, or delivering solo presentations. But in the professional world — especially in welfare administration — success rarely happens alone. Teams, not individuals, carry projects forward. This is why designing classroom experiences that simulate real-world teamwork can be so powerful.

Why Simulated Teamwork Matters

Creating a “company” in the classroom may feel playful, but research shows it’s an effective way to build both skills and confidence. Team-Based Learning (TBL) emphasizes structured group work where students depend on one another to succeed. Michaelsen & Sweet (2008) argue that these experiences deepen learning by fostering accountability and collaboration.

Experiential learning theory supports this as well. Kolb (1984) describes learning as a cycle of experience, reflection, conceptualization, and experimentation. When students create a company profile, they aren’t just imagining a workplace — they are actively rehearsing the roles, negotiations, and storytelling required in one.

Building Professional Identity and Soft Skills

For social welfare students, forming a team profile page is more than a writing task. It invites them to think of themselves as professionals:

  • Professional identity: Naming a company and deciding on a tagline helps students frame their strengths as a collective.

  • Soft skills: Negotiating roles, listening to partners, and merging ideas are all essential for administrative work.

  • Early career skills: Branding and storytelling — once seen as “business skills” — are now critical in public service and nonprofit sectors, where communicating effectively with communities and funders matters.

Beyond the Classroom

What begins as a classroom simulation can have lasting impact. Students who practice company creation are preparing for the collaborative environments they will encounter in their careers. They leave not only with better English skills, but also with stronger teamwork, problem-solving, and identity-building abilities.

Takeaway

“Company creation” exercises may look simple on paper — a name, a tagline, a short profile — but they spark deep learning. They bridge the gap between academic tasks and workplace realities, helping students see themselves as future professionals, ready to contribute to a team.

References

  • Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. Prentice Hall.

  • Michaelsen, L. K., & Sweet, M. (2008). The essential elements of team-based learning. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 2008(116), 7–27.

  • Yorke, M. (2006). Employability in higher education: What it is – what it is not. Higher Education Academy.

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