How can strategy, leadership, and financial knowledge be made tangible? Through real action!
Together with Head of Management & Entrepreneurship Study Programs Manfred Schieber and Katharina Ulm, Martina Zöbl organized the Global Strategy business simulation game for around 130 students in the 5th semester of the Bachelor’s program in Management & Entrepreneurship. For two weeks, everything revolved around strategic decisions, economic relationships and hands-on experience.
The event kicked off with a kick-off and a forensic presentation by Deloitte (Florian Ögg), who sensitized the students to topics such as balance sheet fraud and white-collar crime. Then it was straight into practice: two cohorts were divided into teams of four. In the roles of CEO, COO, CFO, or CTO, the students guided their companies through crises, strikes, customs duty increases, and delivery problems.
Whether it was excitement about orders, tactical price agreements, or risky speculation, the students experienced the highs and lows of business decisions firsthand. Some teams even had to be rescued and “restructured”—with Manfred Schieber playing the role of restructuring administrator.
Highlight: During the simulated financing meeting with Oberbank (Cornelia Hopf & Bastian Piribauer), the teams had to present their concepts in a convincing manner. Creativity was encouraged – from individually designed business cards to charming (but irregular) chocolate gifts for the bank advisor.
At the end, the students presented their results, learnings, and experiences to the entire group. The conclusion was clear:
“This was the most valuable module of the course so far!”
“We finally really understood the connections between P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow.”
In the end, everyone is a winner – with impressive learning gains and valuable insights into the reality of entrepreneurial activity.