Abstract:

One of the main missions of universities is to train future working life experts and leaders. Professional leadership skills are not learned only by reading theories but also by practicing leadership in real life situations and with team members. Modern leadership skills include self-confidence, courage, communication skills, creativity, innovative and solution-oriented thinking, resilience, openness to change, appreciation and respect.

Laurea University of Applied Sciences (LUAS) has developed a unique project learning model, called Peer to Peer (P2P), where students practice leadership and project management skills by leading teams in real working life assignments and in business development projects. P2P is based on Laurea´s pedagogical strategy called Learning by Developing (LbD), meaning authentic co-operation between working life, students, and lecturers of LUAS. The P2P model is used in the bachelor studies of Business Administration on two campuses at LUAS.

This article examines how the leadership skills of project managers develop when they study project management and leadership in P2P projects. The target group of the study are student project managers who lead business development P2P projects assigned by the working life partners. Partners represent different business fields, and the size of the companies vary from SMEs (small and medium-size enterprises) to large multinational companies.

The aim of the P2P model is that the working life partner gets benefits for its business from the project, and on the other hand, students learn business and working life skills during the project. The student teams consist of groups of students where one is working as a student project manager. Project teams are coached by the senior lecturers. The working life partner´s role is to assign the project, participate in the project and give feedback on the milestones in order to meet the goals set for the project. The student project managers are supported by various coaching methods.

The theoretical background of this article consists of the Learning by Developing strategy, the P2P model, and development of leadership skills. Earlier studies of the P2P model show that working as a student project manager supports the development of many leadership skills. This article also takes a closer look at how leadership skills are created through student project manager experiences.

The main research question of this study was: What kind of leadership skills do students learn when they work as project managers in P2P projects? The study methods utilised were a quantitative electronic survey and the final feedback workshop of the Project Manager Coaching Course. The electronic survey was conducted in autumn 2021. The survey was answered by 37 student project managers. The workshop was organised for 10 student project managers conducting the course.

The main result of the study shows that leadership skills were strengthened among the student project managers such as trusting one’s own abilities, resilience and openness to feedback. The results of this study will be used in the further development of working life-connected leadership education.

Keywords:

Leadership skills, leadership learning, working life projects, Learning by Developing, Peer to Peer.