Panorama - Strategy Simulation

PANORAMA AT THE CROSSROADS: A Strategy Simulation for Fast Track Management Training and Development

Do you have the following training issues?

• Sessions are too alike, too many “talking heads”, too little variety in teaching methods, too little emphasis on adult education principles and on experiential approaches? Participant boredom and complaints about relevance?
• Not enough time devoted to application of program concepts?
• “Me-too” programs rather than unique and fresh approaches?

THEN PANORAMA MAY BE YOUR ANSWER!

WHAT IS PANORAMA AT THE CROSSROADS?

Panorama is a multi-media, interactive, business simulation for individuals or small groups of 2 to 6 people. Participants are presented with a case study depicting a strategic challenge and must make three strategic decisions that will guide the company to a prosperous future or alternatively to the verge of bankruptcy.

WHY USE PANORAMA?

Our experience indicates that the individual's learning experience is greatly enhanced through the use of interactive multi-media simulations. By using a tested mix of interactivity, challenge, competition, and facilitated discussion, participants gain valuable insight into more than just the concepts behind the simulation – they also learn about the importance of process, planning and group dynamics.

PANORAMA PROMOTES INVOLVEMENT

One of the key benefits of Panorama is the reinforcement of good group decision-making skills. And success depends not only on the knowledge of the group but also group processes. The importance of teamwork is reinforced.

PANORAMA ACCELERATES AND REINFORCES LEARNING

The program's focus is learning – through reinforcement of proven models of strategic choice. And because it is highly involving, experiential and gives immediate feedback, it accelerates participants’ learning about strategy.

BACKGROUND ON THE PANORAMA SIMULATION

The Panorama Company is in trouble and the executive wants you to help decide on the right strategy for the future.
Panorama supplies graphics hardware and software to the personal computer industry. It has since grown in size and reputation to become a well-known producer of affordable, high-quality graphics products for the personal computer. Over the first decade of its existence, Panorama’s sales and employment levels climbed steadily. However, after the company moved to luxurious new headquarters and hired a number of computer science graduates for the R&D department, cash flow became a problem and the company suffered its first loss in recent memory. The bleeding has continued into the present fiscal year and the CEO is worried that Panorama is headed for real trouble.
Can you help? Listen to the proposals made by company executives and decide which ones make sense and which will lead us up the garden path. Can you decide on the right strategic direction to help save the company? Or will your decisions make things even worse?

WARP SPEED EDUCATIONAL SIMULATIONS

Most adults learn through experience, while most education and training methods are based on lectures and discussion – an obvious mismatch. A deep body of theoretical literature asserts the power of simulations to change behavior by giving participants the opportunity to experiment, test their assumptions and learn from their mistakes in a risk-free environment. If properly designed, simulations can play a critical role in successful transformations.
Warp Speed starts with a learning objective, tied to a specific business concept or curriculum, and from the objective, we identify companies that have gone through a relevant business experience. The model company is used as the basis for an interactive simulation that enhances and accelerates the learning experience for users of the simulation by engaging them in a near real-world experience.
The user faces the business challenge as seen through the eyes of multiple organizational characters, as played by actors and delivered via videoclips within the simulation. The simulation thus provides a compelling and immersive experience because of the combination of verbal, paraverbal and body language that brings in the human and political dimensions of business absent in a traditional paper based experience. The simulations also give users the ability to go back and try different scenarios that allow them to test out different decisions and generate different outcomes.

CONTACT INFORMATION

For more information, to arrange a demonstration or to license
“Panorama at the Crossroads”

Telephone us at:
(613) 531-0462

HARMON HEALTH: A Strategic Choice and Implementation Simulation for Fast Track Management Training and Development

Do you have the following training issues?

• Sessions are too alike, too many “talking heads”, too little variety in instructional methods, too little emphasis on adult education principles and on experiential approaches?
• Participant boredom and complaints about relevance?
• Not enough time devoted to application of program concepts?
• “Me-too” programs rather than unique and fresh approaches?

THEN THE HARMON HEALTH SIMULATIONS MAY BE YOUR ANSWER!

Click here for a free report about the many benefits of using simulations in management training.

WHAT IS HARMON HEALTH?

Harmon Health is a business simulation for individuals or small groups of 2 to 8 people. You are to help a company that is faced with an important strategic decision. You will have the opportunity to interview up to 20 Harmon managers to obtain more in-depth information about the company and its challenge. You will then give recommendations concerning the strategic direction that Harmon should take. You will also have access to a corporate “Library” filled with articles and reports to help you make your decisions.
The executive team will consider your recommendations and then the CEO will ask you to help plan the implementation of their preferred strategy by choosing a transition structure and actions or interventions to guide the change project through to successful completion. Throughout the simulation, you will receive feedback on the quality of your decisions and will be able to reflect on your decisions.
Harmon Health can be played as two separate modules, strategic choice module and change implementation module, or as one. Each separate module takes approximately three hours to play.

WHY USE HARMON HEALTH?

By using our tested mix of interactivity, challenge, competition, and facilitated discussion, you will gain valuable insight into more than just the concepts behind the simulation – you will also learn about the importance of process, planning and group dynamics. Success depends not only on the knowledge of the group but also group processes. The importance of teamwork is reinforced. And because it is highly involving, experiential and gives immediate feedback, Harmon Health accelerates participants’ learning about strategy and change.
Click here to learn more about the Strategy Module of Harmon Health.
Click here to learn more about the Implementation Module of Harmon Health.

Playing Harmon Health: Strategy Module

After reading the Harmon Health Annual Report and a special consultant’s report on the company, you listen to the CEO, Chris Palmer, who gives you your challenge. Then you interview the Harmon managers and executives.
The objective of the interviews is to discover the perspectives of a cross-section of Harmon Health employees on the challenges facing their company in the near future. You will have an opportunity to ask several questions of each manager.

After the Interviews, What’s Next?

Select the Strategic Direction
Next you make the first of three decisions about the strategic direction that you believe Harmon Health should adopt. The initial choices are:
Focus on Improving Profit Margins
Focus on New Product Development
Focus on New Customer Services
Be careful. Once you have decided on one of these, your next two choices will be crucial. Not all of the choices will result in a good outcome for Harmon Health. The CEO is counting on you to give good strategic advice. Can you help? Or will your decisions make things even worse?
Harmon Health is based on a combination of real companies in the pharmaceutical distribution industry. You will receive feedback about the successful strategies planned by these leading companies. Remember, even if you did not choose an excellent strategy, the simulation is meant to be a learning experience.It’s better to learn from mistakes in a simulation than with your organization’s real outcomes.
Click here to learn more about the Implementation Module of Harmon Health.

Playing Harmon Health: Implementation Module

The executive of Harmon Health, in its wisdom, may not agree with the strategic direction you have recommended. If this is the case, they will ask you to give recommendations about implementing a strategy they favor. That’s life. All we can do is give our best advice; we cannot ensure our managers will take that advice.
So, in essence, you may be asked to help implement a strategy you do not agree with. Still, it is in your best interests to ensure that Harmon Health thrives, so put your best efforts into this task. Chris Palmer has promised your group a sizable bonus for helping Harmon Health manage this change initiative.

Tasks:

Your group will be asked to give advice about the following issues, in the following order:
Steering Committee Membership: Who to recommend for membership on the project Steering Committee and how many members there should be?
Champion and Executive Sponsor: Who should be the Champion (or Project Leader) and who should serve as Executive Sponsor?
Analyze Resistance: Analysis of the major players’ support of the strategic direction – who is in favor of the strategy and who is not?
Ready for Change: Can you select the right initiatives to help Harmon “sell” the new strategy to its stakeholders?
Vision: Can you choose the appropriate initiatives to help Harmon create and communicate a vision and strategy?
Fire: Can you choose the right Initiatives to help Harmon move to action and to align the company behind the new strategy?
After each of the above decision modules, you will receive feedback about whether or not your advice was sound. You will also receive a Bonus from Chris Palmer for your efforts. Remember, even if you did make best choices, the simulation is meant to be a learning experience. It’s better to learn from mistakes in a simulation than with your organization’s real outcomes.
Click here for a free report on the many benefits of simulations in management training.

CONTACT INFORMATION

For more information, to arrange a demonstration or to license “Harmon Health”,
Email us:

Telephone us at: (613) 531-0462

CHANGE-O-METER: A Change Management Simulation for Fast Track Management Training and Development

Change-O-Meter is a business game for individuals or small groups of 2 to 6 people. The group is presented with a situation based on a case study of management of change. The group must then organize and choose interventions to guide the organization through to successful completion of the change project. Once the players have chosen their interventions, the computer program provides feedback on the quality of their decisions by giving them a score.
Click here for a demo of Change-O-Meter

WHY USE CHANGE-O-METER?

Change-O-Meter promotes involvement.
The simulation’s mix of interactivity, challenge, and competition creates an intense learning experience for participants.
Change-O-Meter promotes teamwork.
One of its key strengths is the reinforcement of good group decision-making skills. And success depends not only on the knowledge of the group but also group processes. The importance of teamwork is reinforced.
Change-O-Meter accelerates and reinforces learning.
The program's focus is learning – through reinforcement of a proven change model. And because it is highly involving, experiential and gives immediate feedback, it accelerates participants’ learning about change. And it does all this in 90 minutes of play time.
Change-O-Meter is customizable.
It can be adapted to specific industries or companies. Whether it be a strategic, structural, technology or most any type of change case, we can program it into our simulation.
Change-O-Meter may already fit your change challenge.
To date, eight different case studies have been programmed into Change-O-Meter, an amalgamation case in a School Board, an e-commerce case in a consulting company, a strategic change case in an electrical utility, a structural change in a hospital, a strategic change in a high-tech company (both English and French versions), a structural change at a government ministry and a merger of two insurance companies.

WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM USING CHANGE-O-METER?

Change-o-Meter is an ideal tool for facilitators and instructors to apply and reinforce the concepts of change management in an efficient and engaging session. This simulation can be used by individuals or groups and it is well suited for diagnosing or reinforcing the participants’ knowledge of good change management practices. It can be used with an introductory lecture or readings package for groups that are not thoroughly familiar with basic change models. If you also want to train groups in team decision making skills, the simulation is well suited to both diagnosis and development of these skills.

WHY USE SIMULATIONS?

An individual's learning experience is greatly enhanced through the use of interactive multimedia simulations. We have been using multimedia simulations in management education for over ten, and they have been very successful in creating participant excitement and enhanced learning. The simulation’s mix of interactivity, challenge, competition, combined with facilitated discussion, helps participants gain valuable insight into more than just the concepts behind the simulation - they learn about the importance of process, planning and group dynamics. Join with us on the leading edge of learning!
Click here for a free report about the many benefits of simulations in management training.

CONTACT INFORMATION

For more information, to arrange a demonstration or to license “Change-o-Meter”,
Email us: