In June 2012, April Training ran a simulation event at Liverpool University as part of the MSc Management degree, involving the use of Executive to illustrate some of the key business ideas that made up part of the academic study for the course. It was run with over 400 students simultaneously, with participants split into small teams, which competed in leagues of 8 or 9 teams.

The aim of the simulation was to consolidate the business principles taught by the lecturers through active learning, using a realistic model of the current car manufacturing industry as a base. Before the simulation began, the students researched a real manufacturer in detail with focus on its business strategy and company image, in order to gain an appreciation of the industry. The students created posters to present their findings.  They also developed a business plan and strategy for the company they would create within the simulation environment.

The simulation event began with a trial run  to enable the students to get used to the functionality of the software and test out some initial ideas.  With the students confident in using Executive, the real simulation event was launched and the competition began!

Students set up a company from a greenfield site and built up the business over four years (each simulation round is equivalent to one year).  By using a start up scenario participants had free rein to use their ideas for business strategies and see how they played out over the years.  The exercise allowed them to put into practice the skills they had learnt over the degree course, as well as applying their own business intuition and acumen to find innovative solutions. The results were very interesting, with all teams submitting sensible and well thought-through decisions that led to most companies prospering, despite the intense competition within most market sectors.

Congratulations must go to the staff involved at Liverpool University for the superb organisation and smooth running of the programme, despite the large number of students. The simulation will be run in a similar way with next year’s cohort, with numbers set to increase substantially.

Simulations are now well-established teaching methods in universities all over the world, but why are they so popular? Harvard Business Publishing investigated by asking a group of simulation authors (Prof.  T. Luehrman, Prof. W. Shih, Prof. A. Edmondson, Prof. R. Casadesus-Masanell; all  Harvard Business School,  Prof. M. Roberto; Bryant University, Prof. R. Ernst; Georgetown University, Prof. R. Austin; University of New Brunswick) about the real reasons why students love to learn in a virtual environment.

What does a simulation do for student learning that other methods don’t?

Prof. Luehrman: A simulation stimulates active engagement of students. They are playing a role, not just reading and analyzing. They make decisions and see the results of their decisions in the response of other players and the outcome of the sim. Simulations generate much more energy among students than traditional lectures or case discussions.

Prof. Shih: A simulation forces students to synthesize and integrate what they read and make actual decisions based on facts or data presented in the case. Simulations give students a temporal dimension, an opportunity to experience outcomes that change based on their inputs over time.

How do students react to using simulations?

Prof. Ernst: Students enjoy winning. A well designed business simulation includes an element of competition that encourages them to strive and to impress their classmates (and the faculty) while learning!

Prof. Shih: Students have told me that sims force them to integrate and apply material that they have learned. The opportunity to try things—test a hypothesis and receive immediate feedback—gives the sim a dimension that you can’t get from a case alone.

Prof. Casadesus-Masanell: When I first started using a sim, I did not imagine the energy it would bring to the class. I’ve taught with sims in MBA and Executive Education and with both, the level of discussion is different than with cases—people get much more emotionally involved and competitive—they get hooked and their understanding of the learning points increases.

For faculties who haven’t tried a simulation- what one thing would you say to convince them to try one?

Prof. Edmondson: The students love it. It’s hard to get them to stop talking about it; they want to do it over and over, and to share the experience. They have fun, it’s engaging, they laugh, and they’re surprised. And it’s memorable. It sticks.

Prof. Austin: I’d say “Just wait until you hear the students’ discussion after they’ve used the simulation.” It’s exhilarating, really, the issues the sim gives them access to. This is a really important point: The educational power is in the debrief. A sim is a way to get students talking about what you need to teach them.

The Executive business simulation and April Training‘s other products are used extensively within universities, in the UK and world-wide. For more information about using our simulations as part of a university module or college course, call us on (+44) 1928 735 868 or email info@trainingsimulations.com.

April Training are running an event at Liverpool University starting on Friday 10th June, which involves the use of our Executive business training simulation, aiming to give students a new and exciting insight into the world of business and entrepreneurship. This will give the students the chance to test out their business skills and try some new ideas in order to attempt to build up a successful company in the European car manufacturing business. They will use real-life current market data to make the simulation as realistic and believable as possible, and their performance will be assessed by tutors, along with associated paperwork.Executive is designed to be competitive, which increases motivation of the students at Liverpool University, as well as giving them even more reason to carefully their decisions and make sure that their team follows good business principles. They will be competing against 8 other teams, so the students are separated into ‘worlds’. This prevents the markets from becoming saturated and gives everyone a better chance of success.

The simulation programme is intense, lasting just over week, meaning that students only have a short time to get to grips with the principles behind the simulation, as well as learning how to input data and making use of the what-if facility built into Executive. However, the short time period increases engagement with the simulation, and gives the students some experience of the time pressures commonly found in a business environment. It will also test their organisational, time-keeping, teamwork and communication skills; all of which are essential for success in the world of business.

Our team here at April wish them good luck, and as always will be on hand to provide both technical support and a helping hand to any teams who find themselves in difficulties.

The aim of business simulations is to gain a better understanding of how it feels to run a corporation and attempt to produce a retained profit. Unfortunately that’s not as easy as it sounds, so here is a list of 5 top tips to do well in any business simulation:

5. Understand as much of the terminology as possible before the simulation starts. This will give you more time to concentrate on planning your decisions rather than attempting to decipher unusual business terms. Help is available, so use it wisely!

4. Make a business plan to give your team a definite strategy. This will make sure that all your decisions have sound logical reasoning behind them, and allow you to get the most out of the simulation in terms of understanding and knowledge.  Also, know what you’re trying to achieve. This will help to start the ball rolling, so make a list of core values that your company should have and design your products and marketing strategies around this. This is a good stepping stone on the way to building a company image.

3. Do some research. Investigating the current real-life market can give you clues and insight into how the simulation will progress, giving you  the opportunity to get ahead with sales and profits.

2. Read up on the facts and how the simulation works. If you know what information you have been given and how to use it, you are guaranteed to avoid silly errors that can creep in through lack of understanding. This will allow your team to concentrate on a cohesive business strategy to build up your business.

1. Most importantly, communicate with your team members! This is vital for success in simulations just as it is in real-life situations. If you consult other members of your team and make decisions diplomatically based around as much knowledge as possible, you are far less likely to make mistakes. This will result in a far more successful business as well as encouraging team spirit and good working relationships.

Good luck!

It’s not too long until September comes around again, so if you’re looking for a new and dynamic way to present a business or management module in your establishment (whether it’s a school, college or university), April Training is the best place to get UK based training simulations. Our range of simulations can blend seamlessly into any academic course and they are guaranteed to keep students alert and engaged through the interactive methods and innovative learning style.

Our training simulations can be run either as an intensive course over a few days, or over a longer period. Many of our current academic clients run simulations that last a whole term, and include extra assignments related to the simulation on which grades are based. This is a great way to integrate learning, and assess how well students cope with applying entrepreneurial and business skills to a realistic environment. All of our simulations are based around the current market data so they remain relevant year after year. In Retailer and Executive (our two simulations that are mainly run on large scales) the tutor can adapt the scenario during the simulation by adding additional events to keep everyone on their toes!

Over 70 Universities across the UK and beyond use our simulations, so if your department is looking for a new way to motivate your students (whether they already study business and management or just require an awareness for their intended profession), our simulations are a perfect way to get them inspired about business.

Run as an integrated programme for all three engineering disciplines, students experience running a business simulation over five virtual years in a real-time period of three months from October to December. This is an integral part of the finance module of the engineering students’ second year course and is the perfect way to help them understand more about the skills needed to manage a successful business.

The nature of the exercise highlights the importance of working together in a team, as each participant has their own unique role within the company, from finance manager to CEO. Modelled on the structure of a real corporation, this allows the students to gain a realistic view of the hierarchy in a business and the depth of knowledge that each employee must have. The realism of the academic business simulation thoroughly tests their ability to deal with the uncertainties that are thrown up on a daily basis in the world of commerce. The adjudicators of the module, made up of both a team of industry experts and Manchester University staff, are highly impressed every year with the final presentations and the standard of learning achieved, seeing it as highly relevant to the needs of the world of employment and providing added value to the degree. April Training regularly receives very positive feedback from the students, who find the simulation enjoyable, testing and a great help to them in understanding the sometimes complex world of business and finance.