© SimTeam

CorporateEntrepreneurshipcourseswithSimTeam

Theever-changingeconomyrequiresthatmanagementmustbeflexible,adaptable,speedy,innovativeandtohaveanaggressivecompetitivespirit.Inthiscompetitiveeconomicenvironmentthemajorgoalis to discover, obtain and sustain a competitive advantage. An entrepreneurial mindset is a vitalrequirementforbusinesssuccessinnewlyestablishedenterprises.ThedefinitionofcorporateentrepreneurshipCorporateentrepreneurship(ShakerA.Zahra)isasetofactivitiesdesignedtoenhanceacompany’sabilitytoinnovate,takerisks,andseizetheopportunitiesthatarearisinginthemarket.Corporateentrepreneurship is targeted on new business establishment, opening to new markets or both.Corporate entrepreneurship comes from a combination of the entrepreneurial activities ofmultipleparticipants(RobertA.Burgelman).External entrepreneurship is a line of entrepreneurial activities that combine resources that aredispersed in the environmentwith resources that are held by the company to create a newuniquecoalitiontoachievefinancialprofit.Internalentrepreneurshipisrealizedintheabilitytocraftnewcombinationsofthecompany’sexistinginternalresources(MichaelG.Brizek).Whyiscorporateentrepreneurshipuseful?An organisationwith high corporate entrepreneurship level will have a higher probability than itscompetitors of identifying market opportunities and of implementing effective solutions to realisethoseopportunities.Howcanwecultivatecorporateentrepreneurship?

Individuals are the core elements of corporateentrepreneurship. Corporations need employeeswho are readily joining efforts at innovation.Individual entrepreneurial capabilities can bedevelopedandboostedthroughspecific trainings.This training – together with establishing acorporatecultureofcorporateentrepreneurship–willbeamongthemostimportanttasksduringtheimprovementofcorporateentrepreneurship.The SimTeam simulation platform suits thecurriculumofentrepreneurshipcoursesperfectly.Participants practice teamwork, face competition

andlearnvarioustechniquesthatwillbefundamentalfortheimprovementoftheirskills.

# Our partners can customise the course objectives, the list of focus topics and participants’learningoutcomesaccordingtothefocusoftheircourse.

© SimTeam

Courseobjectives/Learningobjectives§ Participantswillexperiencesituationswheretheycanunderstandandpracticeentrepreneurial

approaches.§ Participants’(virtual)companieswillfacechangingmarkets,unexpectedcircumstancesandlive

competition.Theywillneedtoworkoutinnovativeanswerstothesechallenges,evaluaterisks,andco-operatewithteammates.

§ Participantscanlearnhowtoseethebiggerpicturewhenmakingimportant,complexdecisions,andtheywillneedthecooperationandinputofeveryfunctionalareaofthecompany.

§ Participantswillbe forcedto thinkandmakedecisions for the longrun,but theyalsoneedtobalanceshorttermandlong-termgoalsofthecompany.

Topicscovered§ Establishmentanddevelopmentofastart-up

enterpriseinanever-changingexternalenvironment.

§ Proactivedecisionmaking.§ Awarenessofadecision’sfinancial

consequences.§ Developmentoflong-termcompetitive

advantageonthemarket.§ Recognitionofopportunities.§ Resourceallocationamongprojects.

ParticipantLearningOutcomesDuringthecoursetheparticipantswill:§ Actinanenvironmentwheretheirinnovativeapproachcanbethecoreelementoftheirteam’ssuccess.

§ Learnhowtoevaluatethemarketenvironmentandtoadapttoit.

§ Understandriskevaluationandpracticerisktaking.§ Experiencethefinancialconsequencesoftheirdecisions.§ Practiceteamwork.§ Understandtheimportanceofstrategicthinking.§ Understand the concept of creating new business withinestablishedfirmstoimproveorganisationalprofitability.

§ Practiceautonomousstrategicbehaviour.§ Improvetheirawarenessandrecognitionofopportunities.

Whoshouldattend?Thiscourseisdesignedforthefollowingtypesofparticipants.

§ Managersoflargerorganisationswhoseentrepreneurialcapabilitiesneedtobedeveloped.§ Start-upprofessionals.§ Business schools and university students in management courses that emphasize

entrepreneurship.

© SimTeam

SuggestedtrainingoutlineThefollowingstructureissuggestedforthecourse:1. Introductiontotheconceptofcorporateentrepreneurship(1-2hours)2. Introduction of the learning environment and explanation of the simulation’s rules - (0,5 - 1hour)

3. Settingthetargetsfortheteams-(0,25hour)4. Run a simulation to emulatemarket changes and competition among teams, duringwhich theparticipantscanpracticetheprinciplestheyhavelearned-(4-6hours)

5. Focused topical exercises (during the simulation): setting strategic goals for the companies,assessingmarketevents,adaptingthestrategytobothmarketchangesandcompetitors’actions

6. Evaluationandfeedback-(0,5-1hour)Totaltimerequirement:1-1,5days

Howcanyouusesimulationduringthecourse?Theprimereasonforusingthesimulationistoexercisethenewknowledgepresentedonthecourse.Simulationsenhancethelearningprocess.Unlike lectures, where it is difficult to reflect and still listen to the lecturer, simulations provideopportunitiesforreflectionwithparticipantsmovinginandoutofthediscussionasrequired.

Simulations are motivational events and participants are veryinvolved in the process. This is because participants usually seesimulationsascompetitions.Thismotivates in-depthdiscussionamongthem,ensuringdeepprocessingandthereforeassimilation.Studies show that different learning approaches have differentretentionrateswithpracticebydoing(throughsimulation)deliveringaseventy-fivepercentretentionrate.("Learningpyramid"-MotorolaUniversity:CreatingMindwareforthe21stCentury,CorporateUniversityXchangeMay/June1996,Vol 2 No 3.). Simulations can be used to "revitalise" and motivate thegroup. This will also have a positive effect on the participants’absorptionofknowledge.Simulationscanhelplinkingtheorywithpractice:thetheoreticalcontentmustbecomplementedbysessionswhereparticipantstesttheirskills.When combined with traditional learning methods, business gamesincrease efficiency of learning and help students make the connectionbetween theoretical knowledge and professional challenges they willfaceintherealbusinessworld.Participantscanexperiencethedecision-makingroleofmanagers.Asparticipantsmakeactualbusinessdecisions

anddealwiththeconsequencesoftheirmistakes,theirknowledgeretentionincreasesexponentially.Entrepreneurship studies are challenging for trainers because the topic requires an exercise basededucational approach. A conventional lecture-based training in this field is not effective.By usingsimulationspractitionerscanenliventheirlearningenvironmentsandimproveknowledgeretention,skillsandapplications.Thiswillkeeptheaudiencemembersinteractingwitheachotherandwiththecontent.

© SimTeam

AboutSimTeamsimulation

SimTeam is a business simulation platform thatmodels the operation of project-basedenterprises. During the simulation participantsform teams representing different modelcorporations. The participants act in differentmanagerial roles inside themodel corporations.The software simulates a competitive marketwhere the model companies compete. In thecourseof the contest theparticipants learnhowto formulate a corporate strategy and how tocreate an effective and efficient organisation toachievetheirstrategicgoals.

SimTeam has automated financial functionalities (general ledger; balance sheet, profit and lossaccount,cashflowoverview)accordingtogenerallyacceptedaccountingrules.Eachteamoperatesamodelcorporation,wherethistheywillfaceimmensemarketdriven(external)challenges (which vary in the different case studies) and operational challenges arising from theiravailable manpower and their cash flow situation. The trainer can assign individual missions andpersonalgoalstotheparticipantsbasedontheirmanagerialroleinthesimulatedorganisation.Theseindividual missions and goals can be conflicting, which could lead to arguments among the teammemberssimilarlytoareallifechangemanagementsituation.Thetrainercanalsoprovideexercisesfortheteams(e.g.reviewandpresentstrategy)inthecourseofthesimulation.

UsingcasestudiesduringthesimulationDuringthetraining,thetrainerscanusedifferentcasestudies.Casestudiesarepreciselyconstructededucationalprogramswithspecificstartingpositionsfortheteams,pre-recordedmarketevents,anddefinedgoalsfortheparticipantsduringthewholesimulationprogram.Thefollowingcasestudiescanbeappliedtothecorporateentrepreneurshipcourse:• Case studies where the participants develop their model corporations and are asssignedexercises alongside the management of theircompany(CaseStudy5and6).

• Case studieswhere there is a specified initialconditions and special mission (e.g. crisissituation;marketchallenges).(CaseStudy1,2,3,7,8,10,11).

• Casestudywheretheparticipatingteamshavedifferent backgrounds and different targets(CaseStudy4).

• Case study where two holding companiescompete(CaseStudy9).