Innovation Through Developing a Total Enterprise Computer Simulation: Teaching Responsible Decision Making

Abstract

The increasingly interconnected and complex business environment demands business executives to be equipped with highly developed cross-functional skills and the capacity to integrate responsible decision making in business. To develop students with these attributes, the business higher education sector is expected to employ teaching and learning techniques that produce graduates with the ability and capacity for managing businesses responsibly. However the traditional, linear thinking embedded in current business higher education material and delivery methods hinders such an approach. This article presents an innovative approach to teach responsible decision making through the design, development, and implementation of an online simulation. This teaching approach uses a total enterprise computer simulation which exposes students to interactive, multidisciplinary decision making across functional, societal, environmental, and economic issues. The article also discusses the implications of the findings for theory and practice of designing and using computer simulations for teaching and learning in business higher education.