9 Simulation Checklist
Note your Industry ID(s). An Industry ID has the letter C or F followed by five digits or five digits plus _000. To register, your students will need to know their Industry IDs or class number and section.
If you are running a tournament competition, make sure that team configuration conforms to your needs. The table below shows a few examples.
| Example 1 | |||||
| Andrews | Baldwin | Chester | Digby | Erie | Ferris |
| Participant | Participant | Participant | Participant | Participant | Participant |
| Example 2 | |||||
| Andrews | Baldwin | Chester | Digby | Erie | Ferris |
| Participant | Participant | Computer | Computer | Inactive | Inactive |
| Example 3 | |||||
| Andrews | Baldwin | Chester | Digby | Erie | Ferris |
| Participant | Participant | Computer | Computer | Inactive | Inactive |
Team configurations for Tournament simulations can be changed from the Manage Industry | Manual Restart link.
Download Capstone.xls or Foundation.xls from the participants' Downloads page.
When Capstone.xls or Foundation.xls first opens, instructors will have an opportunity to play the Rehearsal Simulation . In the Rehearsal Simulation, participants play a limited version of the simulation as individuals before the Practice and Competition simulations begin. An automated Coach in the workbook guides participants as they make decisions through four rounds. The Rehearsal is designed to quickly get participants up the learning curve, even before they join a company.
Clicking "Work on my company's Official Decisions " when Capstone.xls or Foundation.xls first opens allows instructors to review a company's Practice or Competition round (instructors select an Industry ID and company). Once it is open, instructors can print the starting Courier or FastTrack by clicking the Courier or FastTrack menu and selecting Print Reports.
Both Practice and Competition Rounds are opened via "Work on my company's Official Decisions," that is, when the Practice Rounds conclude, and the simulation is restarted to Competition Rounds, decisions sent via this selection will then apply to the Competition Rounds.
The Courier or FastTrack contains the starting conditions for the simulation. Participants use this information as they start making their practice round decisions. The information is also needed to complete the Situation Analysis.
Some instructors find it helpful to duplicate and distribute the Round 0 (beginning) Courier /FastTrack to the class.
Here are a few suggestions for scheduling:
Suppose a class meets twice a week, Tuesday/Thursday, at 2PM. Capsim® would suggest:
Processing on Friday gives participants the weekend and Monday to download starting conditions for the new round and print their reports. Assignments can be posted to the website for both you and teammates to examine before class on Tuesday. Tuesday's class will be the first time that most participants see each other face to face. Many teams will schedule a group meeting before or after class. The better their preparation on the website, the shorter their face-to-face time will be. During Tuesday's class you should discuss the prior round. After Tuesday, students have three days to prepare post work. In this particular Tuesday/Thursday schedule, instructors will also have a Thursday class to teach material beyond the simulation.
In general, instructors will find it useful to adjust schedules so participants have several days between processing and the next class to print reports, digest the results and make decisions.
See Section 3.4.2 Schedule Rounds.
We offer two debrief methods:
If rounds are not scheduled to Auto Process, and if the simulation is not a Self-Paced Footrace , professors need to go to the Manage Industry | Process Round link and follow the instructions. Upon completion, the simulation advances to the next year. Starting conditions for the next round are posted and the simulation continues. See Section 3.4.2 Schedule Rounds.
As an optional measure, instructors can encourage or even specify work methods for participants via the participants' Conference and Email areas.
The Company Conference area allows participants to discuss action plans before team meetings, and to prepare analysis after team meetings. This puts team members on a more equal footing, because slow students can catch up, all students arrive at meetings well prepared, and participants take positions on the important issues before arrival. Meetings are shorter, and the discussions are more focused.
The Company Conference area also presents a reasonable alternative to face-to-face meetings entirely.
The team can post and maintain a description of their strategic vision in their Company Conference. This statement would, of course, evolve with time. For example, a Capstone® strategy might read " Our strategy targets the Traditional and Low End segments. By the end of the simulation we will have three products in each. Our plants will be relatively small but highly automated, so that we can run overtime without burden. Our competitive advantage derives from (1)cost leadership, (2)differentiation via new products, brand equity, and distribution systems, and (3)focus upon two segments instead of five. By improving productivity via automation, we will reward employees with excellent wages and never take a strike. We reposition our products every 2.5 years to keep up with segment drift, and we never plan to retire a product. We aim to achieve 50% share in each of our target segments, 20% ROS, and above average stock price. By the end of the game we plan to have no debt, preferring dividend streams to interest payments."
The team can record the activity in the team meetings and post them in a weekly report in the Company Conference. Were reports presented by individual members? What plans were proposed? Was consensus reached about each tactic, or were matters settled by a majority vote? What results does the group forecast for the next round?
Individuals can record their learning from the round. In what way does their opinion about company direction differ from the group? Do they feel they are living up to the vision statement? The strategy? Do they challenge any of their group's assessment of the scenario?
The email system allows team members to coordinate activities and make announcements.
Review the Peer Evaluation and Homework sections (from the instructor's Homework menu). Peer Evaluation and Homework are great ways to keep every participant involved in the simulation (see 3.9.2 Peer Evaluations).
The Peer Evaluation system allows participants to privately evaluate peer performance. When participants understand evaluations will be conducted, team performance can improve because:
The Homework system offers several stock Capsim® questions, and also allows you to create questions of your own (see Section 3.9.1 Assignments).
Participants can be instructed to prepare slides and text that summarize their company's performance during the simulation. They can also be asked to evaluate their strategy's success, describe their group processes and explain how they arrived at decisions.
Participants can also be asked to outline their plans for the next five years.