The evolution of management and its practices witnessed a paradigm shift in the present era, one of the most prominent being a shift from individual perspective to team excellence. Team players are what companies look for and there is no denying the fact that what an individual brings to the table gets doubled, when it comes across through a team effort.
Performance is judged more explicitly when the criterion is laid down by the team. Especially for entrepreneurship, a team perspective is more successful, despite the romantic notions of the entrepreneur being a lone warrior. An innovative project these days may not be the ‘baby’ of a single individual but the ‘soul child’ of a team.
This sense of team entrepreneurial is imbibed in all but can be culled out through proper guidance — facilitated in the apt supervision of home and college environment. It is here that one acquires the collective rush to achieve and cross the mountains together. Yet, if teachers wonder how colleges and the curriculum can promote team entrepreneurship and guide towards the right path, here are a few veritable ways:
Focus more on case studies: Case studies are an efficient tool to spur students’ curiosity, while putting them on a facing front, to observe real-life business situations and in turn, learn from them. By studying past or present corporate success stories and learning about operational hiccups, students can dig deeper into the mind frame that executives imbibe to make stellar decisions.
Curricula and real-world challenges: Universities can create a niche in education by linking their curricula to real-life business challenges. While teaching social media marketing, a lecturer can explain how companies like Facebook and Twitter have become the leveraging quotient for many businesses around the world. Simulating a similar environment instils a sense of ownership and a first-hand experience into the thick of things.
Create opportunities for students: Competition brings out the best in people — it tests people’s acumen and helps bring out their best skills. There is nothing more hands-on than letting students participate in some type of entrepreneurship contests. Creating a team to win can help students forge relationships and put their skills to test.
Partner with businesses: An earlier start in the job sphere stars from apprenticeships and internships. These programmes teach students valuable lessons in life, while channelling in a fun side to the job.
Entrepreneurship-in-Residence is also an innovative way to foster practical knowledge and allow young professionals to rub elbows with established entrepreneurs. Schools and colleges are picking up such associations to promote their curriculum as well as provide students a microscopic experience at job.
Including technology topics: Technology has asserted its supremacy everywhere, leaving an impact on today’s global economy. Institutions take this leverage point and jump-start their students’ careers by incorporating more technology topics in the curriculum. The idea is to teach strategic ways companies and entrepreneurs are using technology to innovate, communicate, advertise, and make money. This would empower students to leverage technology and teamwork to grow and thrive.
In this current era of cut-throat competition, the importance of building successful teams cannot be ignored within the entrepreneurial journey. Rather than working independently and taking on more tasks than you can do, collaborating with other like-minded individuals can help you in making the journey more successful. This can be imbibed from the curriculum, with judicious guidance from teachers.
(The author is founder, Big V Telecom, Pune)
