MANAGEMENT GAME REVIEW SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Learning, Volume 27, 2000 MANAGEMENT GAME REVIEW SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT Katsuyasu Fujita, Hokkaido Institute of Technology, Sapporo, Japan Sadao Murahara, Musashi Institute of Technology, Tokyo, Japan ABSTRACT Management game review system is developed to allow participants to view competitor’s decisions made and bids offered throughout the game. This system is an effective debriefing tool as it allows students to compile reports or establish plans for the following term. INTRODUCTION Musashi Inst. of Tech. and Hokkaido Inst. of Tech. are using the Internet to execute a business simulation on a system called Internet Management Game (Internet MG) for their students who major in Industrial Engineering. Musashi Inst. of Tech. uses the game for their freshman and sophomore students while Hokkaido Inst. of Tech. offers it to their juniors. After executing the game on the Internet for several periods the students are responsible for writing reports, however, the students sometimes have difficulty remembering the finer details of the exercises. Management Game Review System is a system that has been designed to allow the students having difficulty retaining information to log back on so as to better understand and verify some of the finer details and contents of the game. As a result, students are better able to compile more accurate, complete and professional reports. It is an effective tool that allows the students to review the information more closely providing an opportunity to establish plans for the following term. Table1: Contents of Decision Card • Submit bids for sale of products • Purchase materials • Purchase machines • Transfer units to factory • Hire new employees • Buy R&D chips • Do Nothing Table2: Contents of Risk Card • President gets sick • Salesperson retires • Warehouse burns down • Machine breaks down • Failure in R&D • Accident in the factory • Excursive sales • Successful new development etc .(Total of 18 items) THE GOAL OF MG The rules of the Internet Management Game are stated in the "Board MG" which was created by CDI(Career Development International) Corporation under the umbrella of Sony. The students must manage a company with small capital. It is an optimum management education tool for the institutions' beginner management 239 Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Learning, Volume 27, 2000 240 class. Four to six students draw cards and make management decisions in order, concerning the company just as they would in reality. The decision-maker is responsible for determining the essential issues to be dealt with, select one, and follow it through completely. Risk cards comprise 20% of the deck. Contents of “Decision card” and “Risk card” are shown in Table1 and Table2. When a risk card is chosen, a specific (mis)fortune will occur and each company is responsible for achieving profits during that period, as they are all competing with one another. There are six major objectives of the Internet MG. 1) To experience managing a company for a short period of time 2) To understand all relevant elements within a company structure 3) To master basic accounting skills 4)To understand the importance of proper planning 5) To master the ability to analyze past data and data from other companies 6) To seek out cause/effect solutions that lead to failure or success Figure2 shows one of the student responses to the Internet MG. They participated the game very positively and enjoyed the game After several periods of Internet MG the students are responsible for submitting reports detailing whether or not the six objectives were achieved. Objectives one through four must be clearly represented in a financial statement, however, the ability to analyze data, seek out cause and effect solutions of failure and success, as represented in objectives five and six, must be thoroughly understood by the complete review of the game. flow of decisions REVIEW OF MG CONTENTS At the Board MG site, students must compile the cash flow table during the process of the game and are able to revisit certain parts of the game. As well as compiling financial reports, students are able to collect data concerning other company's finances and recent decisions through computer network correspondence during the Internet MG. However, the game information concerning the details and contents of any bids or offers made, which is the most dramatic part of the game, will not be displayed. The number and value of bids and companies who made successful bids will remain undisclosed. Figure1: Map and Flow of MG Developments in Business Simulation & Experiential Learning, Volume 27, 2000 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 Undersatnd M G ? m anaged successfully want to try m ore ? Figure2: Reactions from students (1st year students of M usashi Tech.) persons Yes No No No Yes Yes MG REVIEW SYSTEM CONTENTS This system allows students to view decisions made by competitors, risk cards taken and number and value of bids. This information can only be seen on the MG Review System. The purpose of this system is to allow the students to achieve the objectives in numbers five which is to master the ability to analyze past data and data from other companies and six which is to seek out cause/effect solutions that lead to failure or success. From the beginning all sites can be revisited at any time according to the desire of the individual companies. It is also possible to study how the competition sets up bids and to review the cost of each bid. By this system, MG can be revisited any time and so is expected to be an effective debriefing tool as it allows students to compile reports or create better management strategies CONCLUSION Through utilization of the MG Review System, students can review each decision, bid etc. made throughout the course of the game. This system will be made available from the new school term in October. When the system is introduced there will be a demonstration performed on the conference day and a more detailed explanation of the contents of the system will be made available. REFERENCES Fujita, K., S. Murahara and J. Mitamura,” Inter Institutional Use of Educational Resources”, Developments in Business Simulation and Experimental Leaning, Vol.26, pp.255-259, 1999 Figure3: Display of All Company’s Decisions Figure4: GUI of MG Review System 241 Table of Contents Volume 27, 2000 Internet International: A Simulation Exercise for Understanding Technological Innovation and customer Service In a Rapidly Growing Internet Server Company Simulations and Learning: Dialog and Directions Endnote Activity: A Tool for Integration of Course Content and Communication Skill Practice Incorporating Video as a Teaching Strategy in Interpersonal Communication Vision Quest: An Alternative Approach to Industry Analysis for MBA Courses in Strategic Strategic Management: An Evaluation of the Use of Three Learning Methods Trainer, Mentor, Educator: What Role for the College Business Instructor in the Next Century? Using the Internet and Shareware to Facilitate Computer Simulation in Distance Learning Classes Visual Modeling of Business Simulations Teaching about Information with Management Games A Self-Evaluation Based on the Discussion and Decision in Experts' Business Gaming The Restaurant Game Using Journals to Enhance Computer Simulation Based Learning Exercises to Facilitate Better Student Writing in the Undergraduate Strategy Class Identifying, Resolving, and Managing Common Ethical Dilemmas in the Workplace: An Experiential Approach Integrating the Digital Revolution into the Classroom The Wheel of Learning: An Integrative Business Curriculum Experiment The Changing Nature of Simulation Research: A Brief ABSEL History Perspectives on Simulation & Gaming's Review Process Experiential Learning Across Disciplines: Mixing International Business and Accounting Simulating Governmental Effects on Economic Development Internationalizing the Introduction to Business Course Using an International Text and Domestic Simulation with a Twist Using Stock Value as the Performance Measure in a Business Simulation Game Introducing Cross-Elasticities in Demand Algorithms Validating a Model of Currency Valuation An Exercise for Exploring the Relationship between Jungian Psychological Types and Organizational Politics Exercise: Preparing Financial Reports Using the Group Categorizing Technique Effect of Trust and Cultural Beliefs on Negotiation Processes: Data from an Experiential Role Play Experiential Learning Gets Stamp of Approval From the Boyer Commission Talent Search 2000 - An Experiential Activity to Help Strengthen Skills in Employee Recruitment and Selection Clemson University's Collaborative Learning Environment Initial Data on a Test Bank Assessing Total Enterprise Simulation Learning Changing the Assessment Paradigm: Using Student Portfolios To Assess Learning from Simulations How We Learn and Why We Don't: The Cognitive Profile Model: A Workshop in Teaching to Reach Your Students Knowing Thyself: A Portfolio Approach to Student Self-Assessment Collaborative Learning and Web-Based Instruction in a Cognitive Apprenticeship Model Teamwork Attributes in a Classroom Simulation Virtual Teams: Meeting the Next Challenge for Experiential Education New Age Learning: Nuance or Nonsense Developing Charisma: An Experiential Exercise in Leadership Problems and Solutions in Going Web-based with an Agribusiness Simulation Creating a Comprehensive Web-Enhanced Classroom Your Class is in Session, Now What? The Challenges of Teaching On-line An Application of Process Control Charts for Attributes as a Form of Classroom Assessment for Experiential Learning Work Goals and Life Aspirations: Do You Have What it Takes to be an Entrepreneur An Exercise to Develop Initiative: Possible Dream? The Ball Point Pen Assembly Company Management Game Review System Development Total Enterprise Simulations and Optimizing the Decision Set: Assessing Student Learning Across Decision Periods Facilitating Learning in the New Millennium with the Complete Online Decision Entry, System (CODES) The Marketing Management Experience The Right Venue for Your Simulation One More Time: Overall Dominance in Total Enterprise Simulation Performance A Profile of ABSEL Conference Attendees Learning Readiness: An Underappreciated Yet Vital Dimension in Experiential Learning Active Learning in a Professional Undergraduate Curriculum The Problem Is - They Think Differently! Cultures Integration in Mergers and Acquisitions: Putting Managers Together in a Business Simulation The Global Business Game: A Strategic Management and International Business Simulation