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Merger Crisis Role-Play: Organizational Behavior in Action
Jyro B. Triviño
Ateneo de Manila University , Philippines
Volume 19: 2026, pp. 00-00; ABSTRACT
To advance professionally, students must be prepared to navigate dynamic and
contentious organizational environments by articulating their varied views, protecting their personal
and professional intentions, anticipating challenges, and then fostering consensus. This paper
addresses a high-stakes, multi-round immersive role-play simulation of a company merger in an
undergraduate Organizational Behavior course. Grounded in the core pillars of experiential
learning, adaptive leadership, and organizational sensemaking, this classroom exercise places
students in a pre-set, realistic post-merger leadership team facing immediate business challenges.
Compared to traditional case studies, this method requires students to demonstrate real-time
organizational behavior competencies, providing a powerful platform for negotiation skills and
group dynamics. This simulation successfully bridges the knowing-doing gap, preparing students
not just for academic success but for the complex and pragmatic realities of professional leadership.
Keywords: immersive role-play, simulation exercise, experiential learning, organizational
behavior.
