Business students at the University of South Carolina Aiken are learning how to run a global business with an innovative online game simulation competition where students compete against peers from participating universities around the world.
Student teams participating in the Global Business Simulation Game ("GLO-BUS") are responsible for analyzing market conditions, formulating competitive strategies, and adapting to changing business dynamics to maximize their company's performance and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage in two product categories: wearable video cameras and sophisticated camera-equipped copter drones.
Two USC Aiken teams of undergraduate and graduate business students were recently recognized for their outstanding performance in the game after competing against 392 teams from 28 participating colleges and universities.
Students Eric Garcia and Matthew Robinson (Company C) were recognized for their performance in earnings per share ($16.65/share), placing them 37th in the worldwide rankings and 28th in the world for stock price ($531.82) for the week ending July 30. For the week ending August 6, the team earned a Global Top 25 ranking on overall game-to-date score (105.5, tied for 25th best worldwide), earnings per share ($23.11, 7th best worldwide), and stock price ($559.75, 15th best worldwide).
"The simulation has been fun and interesting. The experience has helped me better understand decision-making in real-world situations," Garcia said. "It's taught me how to work in a team setting and make decisions that affect our company's performance. We've had to learn to balance making ethical decisions with making sure our company makes a profit, while also adapting to what our competitors are doing."
Another student team of co-managers (Company F) consisting of Ralph Mabe, William Newsome, and Uri-Malcom Young also were recognized for their exceptional performance in return on average equity (125%), ranking 10th globally for the week ending July 30.
MBA students Parker Baxley, Ashton Parker, and Philip Simer, representing H Company, secured a Global Top 50 ranking for overall game-to-date score. Their score tied for the 40th best overall game-to-date score performance for the week ending July 30.
These achievements reflect the dedication, skill, and strategic thinking of the co-managers from each company who have proven their ability to excel in a competitive and challenging business environment, said Dr. Terry Whittington, assistant professor in the School of Business Administration at USC Aiken.
"I believe the GLO-BUS simulation is one of the best learning tools I have ever used," he said. "For undergraduate students, the simulation exposes them to the wide range of decisions that a business must address to remain competitive and to survive in the business world. It forces the students to bring all functional areas of business together, constrained by a budget and the ability to make sufficient profit to finance all business operations. Most students find the simulation to be very educational and enjoyable."
GLO-BUS is an online business simulation used as an experiential learning tool that allows students to run a virtual company and make strategic decisions across various functional areas, such as marketing, production, finance, and human resources. Participants compete with teams from other universities around the world to achieve the best performance in a simulated global business environment.
For more information, contact Kate Channell, 803-643-6777, Kate.channell@usca.edu