Case-based role play as training to become a professional in the financial sector

Learning activities can take different forms depending on the specific subject. Within sales training, role play is often used as a learning activity to train students’ skills. In the banking industry, selling-related activities are a major task for personal advisors, and there is therefore a corresponding demand for professional sales education and skills related to sales. Sales competencies represent a discipline that is often difficult to master and, as a result, requires hands-on training. As a learning activity, role play offers this by simulating a realistic professional selling situation in a controlled environment that often involves pairing up participants and closely simulating a real-life situation. This role play is based on a learning-by-doing perspective, providing a realistic and meaningful experience for students through customer interaction and giving them an opportunity to apply their theory and interpretation of sales to real-world cases through a practice-based experience. This study is based on quantitative data collected from students undertaking the bachelor’s degree in financial management and service program. The question guiding this research is: How do students experience the learning activity in the communication laboratory, and do they feel pressured in relation to the learning process as a whole? Role play often involves pairing up students, but our results show that this activity can be enhanced with the involvement of external practitioners from the financial industry playing the customers. Our results indicate that students feel both professionally and personally pressured due to the presence of external professionals in the role play, and they believe that the learning activity is a positive experience closely related to practice, simulating a realistic customer meeting. But to ensure optimal learning outcomes, the research also points out that scaffolding and psychological safety are important.