Supply Chain Gaming

Summary

Gaming gives students and company representatives the opportunity to learn and participate in supply chain problems in an informal way. It helps to see each others positions and discuss a wide range of issues during game play or afterwards in facilitates sessions. Topics for games that student will play, analyze, design and develop are based on setting and trade-off that occur in supply chains and where companies have to make appropriate decisions (see below in italic).

• Supply chain management is about the exchange of product, information and money between companies that are part of a supply chains or demand/supply-network. Supply chain management contributes to the competitive strength of companies and supply chains in the market place. The supply chain management co-ordinates and controls operational business value adding processes in and between companies. For a large extent supply chain management determines the position of companies in the supply chain and marketplace and the flexibility of companies to respond to market changes and determines the efficiency of the internal processes within companies, as well as the inter-company processes. Logistical and supply chain decision-making frequently relates to situations in which conflicting wishes and desires from various parts of organizations have to be brought together cohesively. Gaining insight into the performance indicators of a company, its logistical costs, customer expectations and the opportunities to improve these aspects is of vital importance for the survivability of companies.

Based on earlier gained knowledge (see text in italic) and additional required domain related knowledge groups will during sequential lectures design and develop a realistic and playable serious supply chain game/session (board game, card game, role playing game etc) for a (hypothetical) client.