High-stakes negotiations, operational crisis, and ever-changing business requirements demand more than theoretical knowledge. They require leaders who can think critically and act decisively. Unfortunately, much of corporate training still doesn’t take this into account and relies heavily on academic lectures and passive learning.
It’s why forward-thinking organizations are rewriting the rules of executive learning through experiential learning. They’re aiming to create agile leaders by immersing them into real-world situations that helps them adapt to current problems while simultaneously prepare for future ones.
The nature of complex problems
The non-linear character of businesses today creates multi-faceted and rapidly evolving problems, which can be defined by:
- Unpredictability – Rapid technological shifts, economic fluctuations, volatile consumer behavior, and global events can upend industries overnight. Generative AI is a prime example of this, with the redrawing of competitive boundaries between Open AI/Microsoft and Google.
- Interconnectivity – No business operates in isolation and is affected by decisions outside of its control. Circumstances can have a cascading effect across industries, as seen by Evergreen’s container ship blocking global trade in the Suez Canal.
- Ambiguity – Challenges can often lack clear-cut solutions and require leaders to make decisions under a veil of uncertainty, driven by incomplete data, shifting markets, and conflicting opinions.
We’ve seen this play out in different scenarios across the globe. Think of how digital disruption led to Kodak’s downfall while simultaneously leading to the rise of Netflix and streaming. Both faced an opportunity and a multifarious problem, which required them to move sharply away from their existing business models.
Even geopolitical shifts, like the semiconductor industry shortages, and global crises, like the COVID-19 pandemic, can amplify this complexity and warrant an approach where executives have the experience to handle the concerns.
Enter experiential learning.
Orchestrating Winning Performance
But what is experiential learning?
Experiential learning is the process of learning through direct experience and exposure to real-world scenarios. Contrary to traditional learning methods that rely on passive instruction, it encourages active engagement and allows individuals to develop skills through hands-on problem-solving.
This can be achieved through tactile simulations, role-playing activities for crisis scenarios, action-based projects, and live business challenges. An example of this is the IMD Spherico2 platform, which simulated a futuristic carbon capture facility where scientists were tasked with preventing an environmental disaster in a deep-sea lab.
The aim is to incorporate multi-sensory learning where professionals are faced with high-stake situations, to learn from their responses, and refine their approach.
It can help with tackling complex problems:
- Enhanced decision-making – By recreating real-world dilemmas, individuals can develop the critical thinking required to analyze situations and make informed decisions.
- Agile leaders – It allows executives to experience uncertain situations in controlled environments, building their capacity to pivot and stay resilient.
- Collaborative and collective learning – Experiential learning often involves teamwork and the sharing of diverse views, which allows participants to address problems with a unique perspective.
- Bridging knowledge-action gap – This form of learning can ensure the immediate application of training into real-world business settings, unlike traditional learning.
An iterative approach to learning ensures continuous growth and agile tenacity, which can be key skills for business leaders in the modern era. However, it’s important to identify how people engage with these experiences.
The one-size-fits-all model goes against the whole concept of experiential training, as some might prefer hands-on engagement while some prefer learning through reflection and conceptualization. Tailor the programs to accommodate different requirements and learning styles, to eventually create an effective learning outcome.
Strategies to implement experiential learning in business
There are various methods of deploying experiential learning within your business, but assessing the company needs and resources available is a critical first step. Businesses can then use any of the following strategies, test them out, measure the outcomes and then roll out for a larger audience.
Simulation Exercises
These can create risk-free environments for executives to test their strategic and crisis management skills. It could even involve different forms of technology such as Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Artificial Intelligence (AI).
The Spherico2 simulation offered such a controlled setting for safe experimentation and immediate feedback, accelerating the learning curve and cultivating innovative approaches to high-pressure situations. The experience challenged participants to employ situation awareness, cooperative problem-solving, and critical thinking.
- Market disruption simulations – Testing executive response to competitive threats or sudden downturns in the economy.
- Crisis management – Simulations based on quick and strategic interventions, such as for cybersecurity breaches, can prepare executives for those potential scenarios.
Project-based assignments
Deploying your executives and future leaders into real-world business projects, can help them enhance agility and strategic thinking.
- Live business challenges or learning sprints – Create short-term, high-intensity problem-solving exercises to encourage rapid learning and execution. This can be done in association with startups, institutes, or even NGOs.
- Cross-industry immersion – Generate opportunities for leaders to work in sectors that differ from their own, allowing them to gain fresh perspectives on the same problems.
Job rotations and experiential programs:
Expose leaders to diverse roles and broader strategic thinking, which presents opportunities for further growth within the company.
- Cross-functional rotations – High-potential employees can be allowed to rotate through different verticals or different geographies. This forces leadership skill development and a broader grasp on business functioning.
- Shadowing and mentoring – Professionals can learn by observing senior leaders and executives as they go about their day. McKinsey and Bain & Co also have experienced mentors who can provide practical learning.
The importance of experiential learning
The role of reflection and assessments should not be understated in effective experiential learning. Executives must apply any new-found knowledge to their work and assess its impact on progress.
Companies can provide the tools required to make this process seamless and nurture an environment that welcomes experimentation, building a future-proof business which stays competitive.
Companies should now look at experiential learning as a strategic imperative, rather than an additional resource utilization. Because when leaders learn by doing, they don’t just absorb information – they develop instincts, refine judgment, and gain the confidence to act decisively in high-stakes situations.
If you’re interested in learning more about how experiential learning can be a cornerstone for your company, read our latest impact stories.
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