Vic uni students take part in executive simulation competition

Victorian university students have taken part in a competition simulating the experience of being an executive in a global company, with industry experts on hand to mentor them.

The day-long competition, hosted by Victoria University (VU) at its Flinders Street Campus, involved students from VU, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), Swinburne, Deakin and Monash universities who each had a LinFox industry expert to coach them.

Using SAP Enterprise Resource Planning software, teams fought to win the biggest market share by buying raw materials, managing budgets, developing production and distribution schedules, and selling products.

They were also required to respond to changing variables such as an increase in grain prices or a decrease in the foreign exchange rate, with every 25 minutes in real life simulating 30 days.

LinFox founder, Lindsay Fox, opened the event with a question and answer session with students, emphasising the need for logistics and supply chain management to take a hands-on approach and to remember the pragmatic aspects of operations.

He also addressed key issues facing the industry including the impact of carbon tax, legislation, green supply chain management and efficiency.

VU’s SAP academic program director and event organiser, Paul Hawking, said the game is played by universities around the world to give students the experience of managing the details of a real company, both emotionally and intellectually.

“This game focuses on how things work together and allows participants to immediately see the effects of their decision-making,” he said in a statement. “Just as in real life, they pay for poor decisions or those not made in time.”

RMIT took out first place with Deakin and VU coming in second and third respectively.

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