MGTS7303 Principles of Strategic Management

Simulation Reflections Assessments: Task Description

Type: Simulation Individual Reflections

Length: 2000 words maximum per simulation reflection Weighting: 60% (30% per simulation)

Due Dates:

Simulation 1 Reflection:

October 14 @14.00 pm to Turnitin via Course Blackboard site

Simulation 2 Reflection:

October 28 @14.00 pm to Turnitin via Course Blackboard site

Objectives: 1, 2, 3, 4

Objective:

This reflective assessment is based on learning experiences you will gain as a result of live simulations undertaken. There are two simulations which you are required to reflect on. In the first half of the semester, you have learnt to analyse a situation and recommend a strategy. The simulations will give you a unique opportunity to practice two other important skills of a master strategist:

The ability to execute your strategy by deciding on and taking strategic actions.
The ability to critically reflect on your actions and their outcomes to recommend changes for future actions you may undertake. The difference between analysing a case and managing a company in a simulated environment is that you will need to learn, adapt, and live with the consequences of your strategic decisions.

PLEASE CHECK THE COURSE BLACKBOARD SIMULATION SELF REFLECTION ASSESSMENT PAGE TO ENSUTE YOU READ ANY BRIEFING DOCUMENTS / INSTRUCTIONS RELATING TO THE SIMULATION THAT ARE RELEASED TO STUDENTS IN THE DAYS BEFORE THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE SIMULATION!

How to do the simulation:

We will run the simulation twice.

During class in the weeks 10 and 12 you have an opportunity to carry out simulations. We will aim to run a practice simulation before we carry out a final run for assessment purposes. Students who practice tend to perform much better as they have a better grasp on what they need to do.
After practice, the simulation will be reset and you will play again for your actual assessment during the class time. Please note that you will only have ONE chance to play the real simulation round. If you didn’t practice or made a mistake, you will just have to make do. The reason is that the program simply does not allow individual student simulations to be reset. Resetting it for one student means that it will wipe the results of all students.
- Be mindful that the real simulation may be based on a slightly different scenario than the practice run. So be mindful to make the necessary adjustments.
Make sure you follow steps 1-4 below for both simulation runs, but you will only need to hand it in for the final simulation run.

Set any prior required planning by the simulation such as your strategy and objectives etc before you play.
Execute your strategy through playing the simulation
1. Keep track of how you are performing relative to your strategy and objectives.
1. Adjust your actions where needed.
1. Make notes of your strategy and objectives (as you will use these notes for your self reflection).
Reflect on your actions and performance. Analyse key actions you took and the resulting outcomes against what you had planned and against what the theory told you should occur.
Recommend what you could do better next time.

Assignment structure:

Strategy and objectives:
1. Briefly describe your strategy and objectives and succinctly justify them from a theory perspective. Focus on the task at hand and metrics you can control in the simulation. For example, there is no point in setting a strategy of going international if that is not a possibility in the simulation.
1. Pick appropriate measures and target values (kpi’s) to assess if you are meeting your strategic objectives.
General reflections on performance and actions relative to strategy.
1. Reflect on how you performed? Did you meet your strategy and objectives? In pursuing your objectives. What did – and didn’t – work? HINT: Be candid and objective based on the numbers generated by the simulation. (NOTE: You will NOT be downgraded if you performed poorly on the simulation – we care about your reflective learning, not your simulation performance.)
1. In pursuing your objectives, discuss which of your actions did – and didn’t – work. Focus on actions that had the biggest impact on your performance relative to objectives (positive or negative).
Analysis of performance and key actions relative to strategy using theory.

• Use course theory and simulation evidence to understand why you got that outcome and how you could improve the outcomes for your organisation.

Recommendations
- Recommend what you would do differently next time and justify why. How would you change your actions to improve your performance during the simulation and what you would do better next time.
- Focus on your key learnings. Make sure they follow logically from your analysis.
References
- Please use in text referencing such as Harvard or APA and ensure it is consistent.

Appendices

Include tables/ screen shots of your actions/ performance. You may attach your reflection notes in the appendix.

Format of assignment (to Turnitin):

It is compulsory to use the following format:

Title page with name, student number, course, simulation and wordcount
1. Font size: 12. Line spacing: 1.5. New paragraphs indented. Margins should be at least

2.5cm all around.

Wordcount penalties

The wordcount is indicated as 2000 words per simulation reflection submitted to Turnitin. Penalties applied if over max wordcount and markers will stop reading at max word count limit.

Wordcount excludes the reference list and appendices.

Tips for a great assignment

Preparation: reading the assignment case, instructions, do the practice simulation run. Be familiar with the theory, the situation, objectives, actions, and metrics in the simulation as this is essential for a meaningful strategy and actions.
Write down a strategy and objectives before playing. Otherwise you don’t know what actions to take in the simulation and even worse you don’t know what to reflect on. The worst assignments are typically the ones where students try to add a strategy after they played.
Take care when playing. You cannot reset the simulation and play again. Just like managing a real company, if you make a mistake, you will have to live with it and adapt.
Take notes and screenshots when playing. You can click through the screens very quickly, but unless you make notes of why you made that decision, what the outcomes were etc., it will be very difficult to reflect on the simulation experience and your strategic actions.
Be honest and objective in your reflection based on the outcomes generated in the simulation. We care about your experiential learning, not your simulation performance. In other words, there are NO marks associated with your simulation’s performance.
Connect evidence in terms of actions and outcomes in the simulation with theory concepts that have been covered in this course. This will provide the basis for insightful, critical reflections as well as recommendations.