Developments in Business Simulation and Experiential Learning(Texas Digital Library - TDL E-Journals)
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Application of Haekel’s Thesis to ABSEL Development
No full textIn this paper the authors use a model of embryonic development proposed by Haekel to retrace the development of the DECIDE simulation and the development of several key evolutionary stages of ABSEL research. The paper highlights four distinct development stages that the DECIDE simulation went through including; (1)the Demand Functions, Fortran (or BASIC), Mainframe Computer, and Hollerith Card Era, (2) the Administrator’s Summary Sheet Era, (3) Decision Input and Decision Support Systems Era, and the (4) the Artificial Intelligence and Expert Systems Era. Following Haekel’s Thesis the same four evolutionary stages are detailed for ABSEL research
Online Marketing Control with the Strategic Business Unit Analysis Package
No full textThe Online Strategic Business Unit (SBU) Analysis Package enables competing participant teams to assess the contribution of each SBU within their brand portfolio to the overall profit or loss of the company. Participants enter regional sales force time allocation and advertising expense as well as product RD& expenditure. The SBU sales revenue and cost of sales are extracted from the simulation results. Other SBU operating expenses are computed from regional operating expenses and company-wide salesforce salary and commission decisions extracted from the simulation results. Based on these inputs, the SBU Profit or Loss is computed. Cell comments clarify input variables used and calculations made
Asia Marketing: An International Business Game
No full textAsia Marketing is a flexible simulation set in the small size laptop manufacturing industry. Players face the challenge of making synergies of the logistic and international competition in the Asian region. The simulation offers users the following background and features
Service Launch
No full textSERVICE LAUNCH covers pricing & promotion responses, the Product Life Cycle, profits & cash flow
Experiential Exercises in the Online Environment
No full text"The evolution and rapid progression of the online learning environment has afforded many new technologies for course structure and design. Although an advantage of online learning is that every student in the class has an equal opportunity to participate, the disadvantage is that students are unable to interact with each other as they would in a traditional classroom setting. This poses a challenge to the use of traditional experiential learning methodologies designed for the classroom. While computer-based simulations are greatly enhanced through web-based technology, experiential exercises that rely upon rich communication means are likely to be degraded in an online class. The purpose of this presentation is to explore the nature and effectiveness of experiential exercises in the context of online environments. The presentation also examines the extent of existing technologies that can be used to enhance experiential exercises conducted online. After defining what we meant by an experiential learning exercise, as opposed to a computer-based simulation game, this presentation will classify experiential exercises according to the degree to which a particular exercise relies upon face-to-face, real-time interaction with other students in order to be effective. At the other extreme, we identify exercises that would be effective in an asynchronous environment. In the interval, we distinguish exercises that require varying degrees of synchronous participation or face-to-face interaction. Similarly, we then identify those technologies that align with particular exercises. The goal of the presentation is to offer a taxonomy from which teachers can identify those exercises most suitable to the online environment. In like manner, professors can use the scheme to classify the exercises which they create. This approach has the potential to generate a perspective that reveals the need for a whole new breed of experiential exercises; those being designed solely for use in the ever-growing online learning environment. The presentation also identifies new technologies that will be needed to allow for the use of particular types of experiential exercises. We also expect that this presentation will open up a whole new dimension of perspectives, research ideas, and papers for ABSEL, as well as the larger experiential community.
The Business Student Satisfaction Inventory (BSSI): Development and Validation of a Global Measure of Student Satisfaction
No full textThis paper describes exploratory research on Business students’ satisfaction with their academic experiences. Herein, we report on the development of the Business Student Satisfaction Inventory (BSSI). Using data from 545 business students, we explore underlying factors of student satisfaction and validate the BSSI. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses yielded 17 items reflecting four factors: Quality of Business Education Outcomes, Quality of School Climate, Quality of Advising, and Quality of Computer Resources. Validation tests and implications for usage of the BSSI are discussed. This paper has relevance to ABSEL experiential educators since quality delivery of learning services and student satisfaction remain core matters of significance in experiential learning
“Viva Voce”: Oral Exams as a Teaching & Learning Experience
No full textThis paper describes the background and use of the oral exam format in a strategic management course. The paper discusses the history and rationale for using oral exams, and provides a model for instructors of upper level business courses to augment their course pedagogy by using the oral exam format. The paper concludes by offering a set of guidelines for implementing the oral exam methodology in selected upper-level business courses
Target Profit Pricing With the Web-Based Breakeven Analysis Package
No full textThe web-based Breakeven Analysis Package enables competing participant teams to consider cost and demand factors when setting price. Participants set target profit and desired margin or price for each strategic business unit (SBU). The fixed and variable costs are computed based on inputs extracted from the simulation results. Based on these inputs, the unit and dollar sales needed to achieve the target profit at the set price are computed for each SBU. Participants can adjust the desired profit and margin or price until the unit and dollar sales needed to achieve the target profit at the set price are realistic. Cell comments clarify input variables used and calculations made
Are Good Strategy Decisions Consistently Good? A RealTime Investigation
No full textThe present study is a variation of an earlier study by Green and Faria (1995) that examined the consistency of good simulation game strategies across industries. The original study used post-facto data where, a winning strategy in one simulation industry was randomly transferred to a second industry and then all decisions were rerun to test the effectiveness of the strategy in a different competitive environment. The winning strategies were identified at the “end” of the simulation and the strategies stood on their own. Further, in the re-run neither the original winning strategies nor competitor strategies could be adjusted in real-time. The present study, using Merlin: A Marketing Simulation (2004), sought to overcome these limitations by introducing an “optimal” winning strategy decision in every industry, by adjusting the strategy period-by-period and by having the optimal strategy decision introduced during interactive game play. The study, involving 423 students grouped into 73 different industries, found that an optimal strategy decision was significantly superior in seven out of eight simulation competition decision periods and the set of optimal decisions were superior at the end of the simulation play. It was concluded than an optimal strategy decision is consistently good and is transferable in a simulation environment
The Role of Learning versus Performance Orientations When Reacting to Negative Outcomes in Simulation Games: Further Insights
No full textWe study student reactions to negative outcomes from simulation games in order to investigate whether “trial and error” learning is in fact a positive learning experience. Drawing on Dweck’s (1990) body of work, we expect that students with learning orientations will react very favorably to negative outcomes, but that students with performance orientations will not. The possibility of learned helplessness resulting from game play is a dismal outcome for students with performance orientations. A study was conducted in 2005 using a simulation experience in an MBA Marketing class at the University of Windsor (n=33). The results showed a modicum of support for the contention that learning oriented students handle negative experiences with resilience; these results were presented at the ABSEL Conference in San Francisco. However, numerous measurement problems were encountered in attempting to classify students as learning oriented OR performance oriented. Alternative measurement instruments for the constructs were tested at three other academic institutions (n=489) and a second simulation study was conducted at the University of Windsor. Partial results (measurementoriented) are reported here and the results of the second study would be reported in San Antonio