Business Simulation and Global Governance

Introduction

The core of this module is a business simulation – a management game.
First, it allows students to be a “Global CEO for a day” and to make decisions accordingly, to evaluate the results of their decisions, and to make new decisions, etc. Students can practice what they have learned during their Master in the lifelike, but safe and fast environment of the game.

Second, the theoretical framework for the module rests on three traditions: Global management, corporate governance and complexity theory.

Third, it is a practical way to introduce large groups of Chinese students to the Norwegian business life. The case to be simulated is a company operating cross-nationally in China, Germany, and Norway.

Course content

1 days of computer simulations and discussions. 2 days of classroom lectures and group discussions with students from other classes and nations.

On the 1st day, the students will be introduced to central theoretical concepts and the simulation method. They will run the simulation in groups, take notes and discuss.

The 2nd day the students will use the simulation results and experiences to formulate a strategy for a company/firm in which address market objectives, internationalization, and resource utilization are described, using as much of the previous course modules insights and tools as possible. The result should be max 15 slides with a presentation to a faculty panel at the end of the day (last 2 hours: 15 min presentation, 30 min feedback).

On the 3rd day in the morning, students present on individual basis the 3 content topics and 3 skill topics that each of them has learned from both the business simulation and from the governance challenge of the preceding 2 days. The results are to be presented on a poster page-size on MS Word, subsequently printed on an A2 and hung into a classroom, the result will be about 40 posters.. These results are commented and discussed by the professors until lunch.

On the 3rd day in the afternoon, the students do the same thing again, but this time for their company - what did you learn from the business simulation and the governance challenge that you can apply to your company in the short-term, mid-term, and long-term? The rest of the day is for discussing the process, and letting the Chinese and Western students comment on each other’s observations. The professor sums up.