This page explores some of the reasons why you should buy from us!

The table below links the benefits of buying our simulations to the reasons behind these benefits. To obtain more information either click on the column or row headings. Or for information linking the specific benefit to the specific reason, click appropriate icon.

			Company Training Focus	Value for Money	Delivering Quality Learning	Easy to Use
Short Durations
Adult Learning Focus
Comprehensive Range
For all Staff Levels
Easily Customisable
Delivered by your own staff
Basic Hardware
Print your own Manuals and Forms
Training Experience
Tutor Support System
Practical Advice
Fail safe designs
Corporate Modelling Background
Design Experience
Innovative Architecture
Depth & Breadth of Designs
Award Winning Research
Simulation Use Research
Learning Process Research

Company Training Focus

All our simulations were designed to be used to train business people on short courses. And, our published research shows that the needs and constraints of company training are totally different from those of pedagogic, academic instruction.

Value for Money

With short durations, a wide range and a lean approach to design we ensure Value for Money. This column shows where and how we achieve this.

Quality Learning

Besides extensive training and simulation use experience, we have an ongoing research programme to ensure that our simulations deliver learning in an effective, efficient and consistent manner. This column shows why this is so.

Easy to Use

All the above are worthless if the simulation is not easily usable and this column explores where and how we have impacted usability.

Short Durations

Our simulations vary in length (from 2 hours to 2.5 days). 30% of our range last half a day or less. Another 30% have durations of between half and a whole day. And about 25% last between a day and a day and a half. So, only 15% are very long (lasting 2 to 2.5 days).

	We develop short simulations because most company training courses have a duration of a week and often much less and so sixty percent of our simulations can be run in a day or less.
	Short durations mean that learners are away from their job for shorter periods and course costs are less.

Adult Learning Focus

In teaching terms adult learners are fundamentally different from students at school or university. Adult teaching is based on recognising this and building on experience; being action oriented, self directed, task or problem centred. And with a focus on the learning process rather than just knowledge content.

	For successful Company Training Courses the needs of adult learners must be recognised. And, so our simulations are designed for use with adult learners on company training programmes rather than for university students
	Because our simulations are designed for and have been used extensively on company training courses they provide appropriate adult learning.

Comprehensive Range

Currently, we have over 40 simulations covering topics including Business Appreciation, Strategic Management, General Management, Finance, Marketing, Sales, Operations and Team Building. Besides different content, our simulations cover a wide range of industrial sectors.

	This means that we are likely to be able to closely match your company training needs off-the-shelf and do not have a one-size fits all policy.
	Also, you save money as there is likely to be a simulation off-the-shelf. Even if a simulation is not available off-the-shelf it is likely that we can customise a simulation at low cost to exactly meet your needs.
	Also, by being able to provide the right simulation to meet your training needs improves the quality of the learning experience as the learners do not waste time on inappropriate learning.
	But, because we use standard interfaces, the tutor does not have to worry about learning about new software or making mistakes when he uses another of our simulations.

For all Staff Levels

Reflecting the organisational pyramid, 70% of our simulations are suitable for junior management and below and about 30% for middle and senior management. However, as most of our simulations are available in several versions and many can be run in an abbreviated form or with smaller team sizes there is a substantial overlap between these two groups for middle managers.

	As we match our simulations to staff level, this means that we are likely to be able to more closely meet your learners' capabilities and needs. So we ensure that the simulation you choose will take into account your learners' prior learning and business experience, their maturity and decision-making experience and authority,.
	Also, by being able to provide the right simulation to match your learners' capabilities and needs improves the quality of the learning experience as it ensures that the simulation that you choose is not too complex or too simple and provides the right level of challenge and learning..

Easily Customisable

Our business and training experience means that we understand there is a need to ensure a close match between development objectives, the target audience and the simulation.

	Although many simulations are available off-the-shelf and in several versions that range in complexity and scope we recognise that you may have special issues facing your staff or wish to emphasise certain competencies. So, we recognise that there may be a need for customisation.
	Our design approach means that simulations may be customised easily, quickly and inexpensively. For example, changing terminology will take a day or less and customising the decisions made and the reports produced a little longer. Even major customisation may take no more than two weeks.
	Because customisation is easy, quick and low cost, it is attractive to tailor the simulation to your exacting needs.

Delivered by your Own Staff

Forty percent of our simulations are designed for to be run by client staff. Because of their newness or complexity, the remainder are designed to be run by our staff. But, we are progressively extending the range of self-run simulations. And, the simulations that your staff can run include all our most popular, short duration simulations. So, in terms of student numbers, over 90% of our simulations can be run by you.

	The ability for your staff to deliver simulations means that you avoid large consultancy fees.
	The quality of the offering is higher as your staff have in-depth knowledge of your organisation and the issues and so can help the transfer between the simulation and the learners' jobs.
	Ease of use is necessary for delivery by your own staff and means that they learn about the simulation rapidly. (And, we can support this further by providing a Train the Trainer course that covers how to use the software, in-depth knowledge of the simulation and how to train using simulation.)

Basic Hardware

Our simulations do not need special hardware - just a basic entry level PC and printer running any version of Windows from Windows 98 through Windows XP. And, about half our simulations only require a single computer and printer. (The others require a computer and printer for each team of four or five learners.)

	Because the computer needs are basic it is likely that you already have suitable hardware and so do not have to budget to purchase additional hardware - in fact we have several training consultants who are still using our simulations on Windows 98 computers.
	Also, because the hardware and operating systems are standard, your staff will find the simulation easy to use. (For example, one of our simulations is run regularly with the learners' decisions being processed by fifteen year old children. Although, perhaps a better example is that one regular user of our software is in his late eighties!)

Print your own manuals and forms

You pay for the right to use a simulation on a course and not for the manuals and forms. We provide these manuals and forms electronically so that you can print them yourself. And, provided you respect our copyright, you can customise them to match your house style.

	As we allow you to print your own manuals, you do not pay bloated fees for manuals.
	Also, you can customise these documents to integrate the simulation into your course and, if appropriate, provide additional materials linking to other parts of the course and the issues facing your company.

Training Experience

Over the years we have run simulations thousands of times with tens of thousands of business people around the world. Jeremy Hall's experience includes having a Honeywell training department reporting to him and teaching at Ashridge Management College. Thus we know what it is like to be up to your ankles in alligators and have incorporated this knowledge in to our designs.

	Company training experience coupled with a business career in the US with GE and the UK with Honeywell means that we have a deep understanding of company training needs.
	Our training experience is incorporated into our simulations. Additionally our experience designing and running courses means that we can advise you on your own course design.
	Also, as a long time user of computer simulations on management courses, we know how important ease of use is and have designed this in so you will not have to spend an unreasonable amount of time learning how to use the simulation or worrying that you might use it wrongly.

Tutor Support System

As appropriate, our simulations provide a comprehensive Tutor Support System that provides the trainer with the information needed to help manage the learning process. Information that includes on-line help, reports that reconcile accounting and operational calculations, reports that analyse and compare teams, reports that identify individual team strengths and weaknesses.

	Our Tutor Support System shortens the time taken for a trainer to become familiar with the simulation.
	One major aspect of our Tutor Support System is the way in which it helps the trainer manage the learning process by identifying problems and opportunities for learning and allows the trainer to provide appropriate feedback.
	Besides, helping manage learning, the Tutor Support System helps the trainer answer questions and administer the simulation.

Practical Advice

Because we have been there, done that, got the tee-shirt (and ulcer) in the classroom, we can offer practical advise on choosing and preparing to use the simulation. And, if possible, providing telephone support during its use. Additionally, our book Simulation: Virtual Business Experience: Using and choosing computerised business simulations and experiential exercises for management development is available.

	Because we have designed and run complete management development courses and have worked in industry, we can not only advise you about the best simulation for your needs but also advise of time-table issues etc.
	Because our advice supports your choice and use, you can be assured that your and your learners time is not wasted.
	And, we can advise of possible problems and so ensure learning quality.
	Finally, whenever possible we try to be available on the phone when you run the simulation for the first time.

Fail safe designs

Besides a rigourous design process and extensive testing, our simulations are extensively tested on courses. On decision entry, our simulations check for unreasonable and unusual decisions and reject or warn of these as appropriate. And, even if a wrong decision has been entered it is easy and quick to re-run.

	This means that learning is ensured and teams do not waste time because of program bugs or because it is time consuming or impossible to recover from incorrect entries.
	Decision checking and the recovery process simplifies and enhances the use of the simulation.

Corporate Modelling Background

Our involvement in simulations for managerial learning came from developing corporate and financial models for planning and budgeting in the UK and the USA. Included in this was the launch of the first interactive corporate modelling package in the UK and seminal work with GE in the USA.

	Our corporate experience involved developing and consulting during the creation of a wide range of financial, operational and marketing models for budgeting and planning across a wide spectrum of industries. And so we understand the issues and financial, operational and marketing structures of a wide variety of industries.
	Not only does our corporate modelling background ensure the quality and validity of our models but also means that we understand the difference between simulation models for budgeting and planning and simulation models used for managerial learning. This means that our designs reflect training process needs and rather than budgeting and planning needs.

Design Experience

Over the last thirty-five years Jeremy Hall has developed some sixty simulations for use in company training. And, this means that he is probably the world's most experienced business simulation designer.

	Except for one simulation, all our designs were for company training use for a wide range of companies in the UK, Europe and around the world.
	Not only has this design experience produced a comprehensive range of off-the-shelf simulations, but means that we are expert at developing new simulations quickly and inexpensively. And, over the years, we have built up a library of simulation models that can be used in any new simulation.
	Besides reducing development time, our design experience means that our simulation quality is ensured. This is illustrated that simulations developed in the 1970s and 1980s are still able to deliver quality learning.
	Our design experience coupled with our training experience means that we have refined and honed the user friendliness of our simulations.

Innovative Architecture

During the 1990s, following award winning research into simulation design needs, we developed an architecture that incorporates best practice. And then implemented the architecture in software. This software in the form of a series of shells (or platforms) that provide the standard functionality. With this approach, all that is necessary to develop a new simulation is to design the simulation model and its associated data.

	As these pre-existing simulation shells account for 85% to 95% of the software, the development time (and cost) of a new simulation is reduced by 50% to 80%.
	Our architecture incorporates leading edge best practice. And, in 2002 our innovative architecture won a major UK innovation award. And in 2003, the learning incorporated in this work was recognised by a UK National Training Award.
	Our architecture incorporates extensive user support including hypertext help, advice and explanations.

Breadth and Depth of Designs

As illustrated by our comprehensive range, we have a huge breadth of design experience in terms of content and manner of use (from course use through conferences and promotional contests to assessment centres). Also, in terms of breadth we have designed simulations for a wide variety of businesses (from casinos, through industrial companies to not-for-profit organisations.) And, in terms of depth, we have designed simulations for all levels of management.

	This breadth and depth means that we have worked with an exceptionally wide range of organisations and trainers and so have in-depth understanding of company training needs.
	This breadth and depth means that is likely that we will have a simulation already and you do not have to go to the expense of having a new simulation developed for you. But, where you need something special, our experience and range means that we can save time and cost by using our shells and pre-existing models or by customising an existing simulation.
	Further the breadth and depth means that we have exceptional knowledge of different training needs and situations and this ensures good quality learning.

Award Winning Research

Coupled with our training and design expertise we have an ongoing research program. This research earned Jeremy Hall the prestigious Winston Churchill Fellowship in 1995 and in 2003 the UK's leading National Training Award.

	Unlike most academic research into business simulations for managerial learning, our research is directed towards how simulations are used for company training (rather than use on university programmes).
	Also, we concentrate on researching simulation use and learning processes and how the knowledge obtained can be incorporated into our designs. Thus our research is concerned with improving the quality of learning delivery and simulation design.

Simulation Use Research

The 1995 research (that was awarded the prestigious Winston Churchill Fellowship) extended our study of simulation use for company training from Europe and the UK to the USA.

	Unlike most other research into simulation use, this research was totally about the use of simulations for company training and adult learning.
	This research allows us to suggest ways that you might make more efficient and effective use of training time.
	Additionally, it explored how organisations used simulation to enhance learning quality - the hows, wheres and whys of business simulation use in managerial learning.
	Further, this and our learning process research explores the practicalities of simulation use.

Learning Process Research

In parallel to simulation use research and recognising the important of the learning process to adult learners, we research the systems dynamics of the learning process.

	This learning process research has been in the context of adult managerial learning and so is directly applicable to company training.
	It has lead us to a design approach and architecture that enables us to pack more learning into a given time through ramping the complexity of the simulation.
	Our learning process research has allowed us to extend and improve learning management and feedback.
	An end point of this research is usability.

Most recent update: 07/09/08
Hall Marketing, Studio 11, Colman's Wharf, 45 Morris Road, London E14 6PA, ENGLAND
Phone & Fax +44 (0)20 7537 2982 E-mail jeremyhall@simulations.co.uk