1. Review Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 in your textbook. Next, consider.docx

1. Review Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 in your textbook. Next,
consider the following questions:
· What are the three phases of the labor relations process, and
what are the basic assumptions in this process in the United
States?
· Why might a worker want to be represented by a labor union,
or not want to be represented by a labor union?
· How can we apply lessons from the history of labor unions to
evaluate the strength of labor unions in the modern workplace?
Write an essay that addresses these topics in detail. You should
not be writing a question and an answer; rather, write an essay
that describes your understanding of these subjects, with the
questions above as prompts to help steer your thoughts. The
result should be a post that stands on its own as an academic
paper, not a Q&A from a classroom assignment. (This will be
helpful to you as you work on your Final Paper later in the
course, so doing good work now will save you time later on.)
Use in-text citations to show where you are applying or
discussing content from your textbook. In addition, be sure to
cite where you are applying or discussing content from external
research that you decide to use, if any. (External sources are not
required, but are likely to help your grade.) End your post with
a References list that gives the full details about the sources. In-
text citations and References should be formatted according to
APA standards.
Share your initial post in this Discussion board by Thursday
evening. Give substantive responses to at least two classmates'
initial posts by Sunday evening. "Substantive" responses are not
"Great post!" or "I like that you..." or "I agree..." type of
reactions, but rather, thorough responses that include new
connections to research, detailed examples from your own
workplace experience, etc. Your classmates should always be
learning something new from your responses.
__________

Discussions will use the following Grading Rubric:
· 25% Initial Post Comprehension: Develops an initial post with
clear point of view, using rich and significant detail to
demonstrate mastery of the learning topic.
· 15% Initial Post Application: Utilizes course materials and/or
independent research to support your points.
· 10% Initial Post Timeliness: Submits initial post by midnight
on Thursday evening during the assigned week.
· 25% Follow-Up Substantive Comments: Provides substantive
responses to at least two classmates' threads, adding new
insights, research, and/or examples to further classmates'
learning.
· 15% Writing: Writes posts and responses that are easily
understood, clear and well organized, and with appropriate
grammar and spelling.
· 10% Citations and References: Uses proper APA-style citation
methods when referring to other sources, including assigned
content.
Labor relations is imperative in business as it refers to the
system in which employers, workers and their representatives
and, directly or indirectly, the government interact to set the
ground rules for the governance of work relationships (ILO
2011). It is essentially the relationship betwixt an employee and
the employer.
The labor relations procedure comprises of three fundamental
basic phases:
1. Recognition of the legitimate rights and responsibilities of
union and management representatives
Representatives have a lawful rights to frame and join an
association, otherwise known as a union, or to abstain from
doing as such. Work laws additionally presents the rights and
obligations of the board and association authorities to keep
pertinent laws and work in understanding contractual terms.
“From a union’s perspective, phase 1 may be the most important
phase because without gaining legal recognition as the

exclusive bargaining representative of a group of employees in
phase 1, the process does not proceed to phases 2 and 3”
(Frumer 2019).
2. Negotiation of the labor agreement, including appropriate
strategies, tactics, and impasse resolution techniques.
Contract arrangement includes union and the executives agents
mutually deciding work policies administering the gatherings'
privileges and duties influencing wages, hours, or different
terms and states of business . The results of such exchanges
importantly affect an association's work costs, the board's
privileges, and secured representatives' way of life. Most
debates are settled deliberately by union and the executives
mediators during the haggling/negotiation procedure.
3. Administration of the negotiated labor agreement—the
interpretation and application of labor contract terms on a daily
basis.
When contract terms have been settled in stage 2, there is a
need to apply those terms each day during the expressed term or
length of the work understanding. The agreement
implementation period of the work relations procedure is
commonly cultivated through every day union and the board
connections and, when essential, the utilization of a complaint
discretion system to determine rights questions.. Settling rights
questions represents the most time and vitality spent by
association and the executives authorities in the work relations
procedure and more often than not includes a bigger number of
these authorities than the previous stages/phases.
An employee may opt to join a union force opposed to no
representation, in doing so all of the employee work related
information goes through the agency, such as wages, benefits,
working conditions and complaints. One key difference between
the union workforce and the nonunion workforce is how pay
rates are handled. Union workers' wages are established through
negotiation between union representatives and your company's
negotiation team. A negative aspect of joining a union is that
even if one’s Director wants to provide a raise they are unable

to do so because that a decision of the union. Nonunion workers
usually don't have the luxury of negotiating the terms of a
retirement plan, such as a 401(k) and there is generally a
discussion about the salary or wage rate, and in some cases, the
candidate you select might want to negotiate the offer.
We apply lessons from the history of labor unions to evaluate
the strength of labor unions in the modern workplace
consistently. Introducing a limited workday (8 hours), numerous
supported safety regulations, getting off on national holiday’s,
paid vacation/well days and, best of all, no work on weekends.
The impact labor unions have had on the workplace and
workforce is astounding truly. My personal favorite is the
efforts to halt child labor and provide employee benefits.
References
Renz and Associates. (2016). The Labor Relations Process
Chapter 1&2. Cengage.
ILO. (2011). Labor Relations and Human Resources
Management. Retrieved on August 28, 2019 From:
http://www.iloencyclopaedia.org/part-iii-48230/labor-relations-
and-human-resource-management
· What are the primary legal requirements in modern labor
relations, and what steps can management take to comply with
these laws?
· What does each side in the labor-management relationship
want to achieve?

APA standards.
Share your initial post in this Discussion board by Thursday
evening. Give substantive responses to at least two classmates'
initial posts by Sunday evening. "Substantive" responses are not
"Great post!" or "I like that you..." or "I agree..." type of
reactions, but rather, thorough responses that include new
connections to research, detailed examples from your own
workplace experience, etc. Your classmates should always be
learning something new from your responses.
Labor relations grew popular the early 1900’s and encouraged
Federal labor relations laws to rise. The objective was primarily
to guard all employee and employer rights, dismiss
discriminatory actions, a just and fair workplace/compensation,
in addition to collective bargaining. Law’s concerning said
practices vary from state to state or Federal. As a the owner of a
business, one must understand at minimum the most basic labor
laws. “Congress enacted the National Labor Relations Act
("NLRA") in 1935 to protect the rights of employees and
employers, to encourage collective bargaining, and to curtail
certain private sector labor and management practices, which
can harm the general welfare of workers, businesses and the
U.S. economy” (NLRB 2019).
Work laws in the United States for the most part shield
representatives from unlawful segregation. This implies

organizations can't segregate in procuring practices,
advancements or terminating of representatives. Organizations
additionally can't segregate dependent on race, ethnicity, sex,
religion or country of starting point. These are called ensured
classes. A few states additionally protect against segregation
dependent on religion, sexual direction and gender
identification. Employers must respect and accommodate
employers religious belief, an example would be such as having
a Muslim employee, they would be allowed to take their holiday
days off or take a paid break for prayer according to the Title
VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, “as amended by the Civil
Rights Act of 1991 prohibits any form of employment
discrimination by companies, labor unions, and employment
agencies on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national
origin. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is a
federal administrative agency created to enforce the statute
through investigating complaints, attempts at conciliation, and
law suits filed on behalf of the complainant” (Renz and
Associates, 2016, pp.3-7j). Owners of businesses are prohibited
retaliate against employees that complain or files a complaint
with regards to discriminatory actions.
The Bankruptcy Act of 1984 incorporates models for the
dismissal of collective bargaining agreement by organizations
trying to modify terms of a present work understanding. It
expects organizations to give pertinent data to associations and
participate in compliance with common decency endeavors to
arrive at an understanding, which could maintain a strategic
distance from the need to bow out of all financial obligations.
In situations where no understanding can be come to, the
demonstration indicates the prerequisites for ending or adjusting
arrangements of a current work understanding.
Compensation is a grand portion of labor relations, as it is
obviously the reason why we all work. The Fair Labor
Standards Act, “is a federal law which establishes minimum
wage, overtime pay eligibility, record keeping, and child labor
standards affecting full-time and part-time workers in the

private sector and in federal, state, and local governments”
(Office of Financial Management 2019). All employees are
mandatorily protected by the FLSA for say, overtime. Overtime
must be paid to protect employers from overworking employers
without fair pay. If an employee works over the applicable 40
hours a week they are entitled to receive overtime pay at one
and one half times a workers regular rate.
Management must be sure to be open and maintain clear
communication with their employees, making sure that all
employees understand their rights. Open communication in the
workplace gravely reduced tensions amongst employees by
eliminating stress from confusion. Give an approach to workers
to express complaints and to determine a contention. They need
an approach to convey what needs be straightforwardly and
unafraid of reprisal. That doesn't imply that workers ought to
have the option to grumble to the entire office, however there
ought to be an individual or a procedure where a representative
can fuss.
Representatives ought to likewise have the option to pose
inquiries and explain thoughts. In additional step for
management to to comply with labor relations laws would
include creating objectives for employees, objectives that aren’t
simple but completely achievable. Then rewarding those
employees that accomplish their goals by creating incentives
such as a holiday party or a bonus.
Labor management relations alludes to collaborations amongst
workers, as spoken to by labor unions, and their employers.
Labor unions are associations of representatives specifically
businesses, organizations, or gatherings of ventures or
organizations, who combine so as to advance laborers'
individual advantages. Primarily, management aims to
strategically increase productivity.
References
NLRB. (2019). National Labor Relations Act. National Labor
Relations Board. Retrieved on September 5, 2019 From:
https://www.nlrb.gov/how-we-work/national-labor-relations-act

Office of Financial Management. (2019). The Fair Labor
Standards Act. Retrieved on September 5, 2019 From:
https://ofm.wa.gov
Renz and Associates. (2016). The Labor Relations Process.
Chapters 3 and 4. Cengage.
· Why do labor unions form?
· What are the main steps in the process of becoming
represented by a labor union? What are likely motivations and
actions by workers, unions, and management during the
organizing process?
· What behaviors or actions should labor unions avoid during
the organizing process? What behaviors or actions should
management avoid during the organizing process?
· Once a labor union has been elected to represent employers for
collective bargaining, what is the process for developing a
collective bargaining agreement?

APA standards.
A labor union or worker's organization is an association of
laborers devoted to securing individuals' interests and
improving wages, hours and working conditions for
all. Regardless of what you accomplish professionally, there's
an association, labor union, with individuals who do something
identical or similar. Unions are not present in every
organization; in many instances, employees have chosen to
remain nonunion (Renz and Associates, 2016, pp.5-1).
There are various reasons as to why a worker may contemplate
joining a union. Primarily, individuals whom feel as though
their work rights/opinions aren’t respected. Workers feel
empowered to form a union in order to provide them a voice. To
feel secure under the blanket that a union provides. All changes
that regard the union employee must go through the union, this
can be a positive or negative. For example, Ford wanted to give
a new truck to an employee as a bonus; However, the company
wouldn’t be allowed to without the approval of the union.
If a laborer feels disrespected or specifically targeted at work
and wants to potentially form a union, the main step in the
process would be speaking to a select few co-workers with
regards to their occupational concerns. As soon as there are a
decent amount of workers grouped one may begin assembling
their committee. The committee must comprise of different
offices, occupations, sexes, and ethnicities so you can have
reasonable portrayal. These panel individuals should then be
taught on the current issues and appropriate union organizing
approaches and standards. For the present, they’ll need to keep
all dialogs and gatherings private, despite the fact that they
should know your privileges. The National Labor Relations
Board protects workers from being penalized or terminated for
forming a union or participating in union-like activities (NLRB
2019).
Likely motivations and actions by workers and unions during
the organizing process would be workers advertising union
material. Most likely, marketing unionizing by handing out

buttons, pamphlets or shirts. According to the NLRB, in order
to be eligible for a union election at minimum thirty percent of
employees must be supportive. While management’s likely
actions during the organizing process would be gearing up and
preparing legally and respectfully for the inclusion of the union
as they are by law obliged to cooperate with the demands of the
union. The primary behaviors or actions labor unions should
avoid during the organizing process would be to keep the union
talk under the wrap, as a respect tactic toward one’s
organization and to provide a good report for the prospective
union. Once the negotiating process begins, the election has
been won and it is time to discuss business, bargain and build a
solid base of demands/improvements for the union.
Collective bargaining is essentially a negotiation process
betwixt corporations and labor unions. Once a labor union has
been elected to represent employers for collective bargaining,
the process for developing a collective bargaining agreement is
simple. The corporation and the union meet to converse and
come to a final contract solution for improvements that’ll
provide reliable, decent compensation and proper working
arrangements.
References
NLRB. (2019). Unions. National Labor Relations Board.
Retrieved on September 11, 2019 From:
https://www.nlrb.gov/rights-we-protect/whats-law/unions
Renz and Associates. (2016). The Labor Relations Process.
Chapters 5 and 6. Retrieved September 11, 2019 From: Cenage.
· What are the objectives of labor and management regarding
wages, benefits, and other economic issues? What does each
side want to achieve?
· What other administrative issues are common in labor
agreements, such as job types, training, and workplace safety?

APA standards.
Workforce is considered as the building block of the
organization and effective workforce is a blessing. Labour
carries core objectives regarding wages and benefits from the
organization. They need timely wages along with yearly
benefits from the organization as a reward of their effective and
efficient work for the organization in the whole year. As far as
wages are concerned, if they have detained by the organization
for any reason then labour is one of strong anti-force who can
destroy an organization in hours by making labour union.
Labour union mostly found in those organization where labour
has not received its full timely wages and benefits after a year
(Quain, 2018). To avoid this, organization must take care of this
asset in order to enhance overall performance. Likewise,
management has great concern regarding wages and benefits
because they have to do this in order to let them do their job
effectively and efficiently, it plays a role of encouragement of
the labour force. These benefits and wages should be favourable
and sometime high in order to attract and retain the best talent
of the organization. An effective tool to make them satisfied.

Furthermore, there are certain labour agreements need to be
fulfilled i.e. Job types, overtime work, safety etc. are necessary
elements need to be provided to the labour force in order to let
them work productively. For instance, overtime work notice
must be given before two or three days so that they can make
space for overtime work. This overtime must be considered at
high priority and need to be paid at the end of month. It can
make them satisfied and encourage them work effectively and
efficiently. Secondly, workplace safety is highly important in
labour agreements because most of them associated to
production department where safety must be at high pace so that
they can work comfortably. If workplace does not provided to
the labour force then they can make anti-organization force
which has been discussed above because it is their right and
must be given to them otherwise it would be a great
administrative issue (Oster, 2018). Workload must not be
imposed on labour force more than their tasks, if it is so, then
they would not be able to work effectively and make more
mistakes while doing work due to workload pressure. Overall, it
can be the reason of great loss for the organization. In order to
enhance performance, administrative issues must be solved
accordingly.
References
Holley Jr., W. H., Ross, W. H., & Wolters, R. S. (2017). The
Labor Relations Process(11th ed.). Boston, MA, US: Cengage
Learning.
Oster, K. V. (2018). Strategic Workplace Issues. Career Advice.
Quain, S. (2018). Problems facing by labour force for
administrative issues. How to run a business.
· How are disputes handled when either labor or management
believes that the other side is not negotiating in good faith, or
when the two sides are otherwise unable to come to an

agreement on mandatory bargaining topics?
· How are disputes handled when either labor or management
believes that the other side is not following the terms of the
collective bargaining agreement? How and why is this scenario
different from disputes during the negotiation process?
The labor and management are generally the two most extreme
directives when it comes to agreeing and casting the same
opinion on an issue. Nevertheless, even though the labor force
works below the management, there are instances when the
labor force is more powerful than the management and the upper
authorities. This is the case when the labor unions are strong
enough to advocate for their demands and rights.
Over the years, the power of the unions is rising in the
developed nations, because of increased pressure on the
employers to provide adequate working conditions to the
employees, an increase in the incidence of reported harassment
cases, and unethical terms that the employees have to agree on,
with their employers. Therefore, it is considered customary for
the management, employer and the employees i.e. the workers
and labor, to be in negotiable positions. Where the employees
can voice their demands, the employers can figure out ways to
cover rationale demands, and agreements to be reached. The
solution is applied in the form of collective bargaining as a
concept that helps the employers and the employees to reach
agreements and discuss policies regarding working conditions,
wages and other environmental issues that need to be addressed
at workplaces (courses.lumenlearning.com, 2019).

“Most union–management interest disputes are resolved
voluntarily by the parties themselves without the need for
assistance from an outside, third-party neutral” (Holley, W. H.,
Ross, W. H., & Wolters, R. S. 2017).Under the negotiation
states, it is although not very common, but sometimes the two
parties seem to collide on their opinions to the extent that they
do not come to terms with agreeing on one notion, even after
collective bargaining is put to use. These issues tend to be of
more severe natures, dictates public interest and demands that
the decision be made by trustworthy sources. In these cases,
professional help, is acquired in the form of an arbitrator
(wipo.int, 2019). An arbitrator is a specialist judge who listens
to the issues, verdicts and opinions of both the parties, decides
on the more logical side and then decides on whether the
solutions should be applicable or not. The arbitrators are
considered the last resort to disagreements that are not being
handled by the employer and the employee. Therefore, the
decision of the arbitrator is to be accepted and followed.
References
Courses.lumenlearning.com. (2019). The Process of Collective
Bargaining. Retrieved from
courses.lumenlearning.com: https://courses.lumenlearning.com/
baycollege-introbusiness/chapter/collective-bargaining/ (Links
to an external site.)
Holley, W. H., Ross, W. H., & Wolters, R. S. (2017). The labor
relations process (11th ed.) Boston: Cengage Learning.
Wipo.int. (2019). What is Arbitration? Retrieved from wipo.int:
https://www.wipo.int/amc/en/arbitration/what-is-arb.html
· What is the purpose of arbitration once a collective bargaining
agreement has been implemented? How does it work?
· How should managers use the employee discipline process to

support organizational goals, without running afoul of the labor
agreement?
course, so doing good work now will save you time later on
Employees are building block of the organization, it is the
responsibility of the organization in order to retain them, serve
them with incentives along with fulfilling of rights effectively
and efficiently. There are number of procedures in order to
settlement of disputes productively. Arbitration plays a
significant role in order to settlement of dispute between
employer and group of employees. Once collective bargaining is
done, arbitration plays its role with the help of one or two-
person who help in order to solve the dispute successfully. After
collective bargaining, there are certain issues that remain there,
to settle them organization appoints neutral persons with the
consent of employee union in order to settle disputes or certain
issues which needs to be clarified after collective bargaining
has done successfully (MacDonald, 2018). Both processes need
to be completed properly because in order to retain employees,
it is necessary for the organization to fulfil their demands fully
or choose a suitable of negotiation between organization and
group of employees in which arbitration has an important role
to be played.
Secondly, managers are considered as the captain of the ship.
They handle these kinds of situations effectively and efficiently
so that desired goals and objectives would be achieved
appropriately. Progressive discipline is basically applied by the
managers in order to identify certain issues relating to job-
performance which is not up to the standard or required status.

Managers handle this situation by applying progressive
discipline process to guide employees that they must identify
their weaknesses and in order to overcome their problems
effectively along with job satisfaction expectations.
Experienced managers often arrange training for those
employees who are not showing performance
properly (Mayhew, 2016). It is mandatory for them to attend
training in order to identify their weaknesses, match the issues
that where are they lacking, why their progress had been
questioned? And many more. By having these kind of trainings,
employees get to know what are the weaknesses and gain
knowledge about the certain tasks which would be performed
more accurately as compared to previous tries. An effective and
efficient methods to retain them for longer period because they
are real asset for the organization.
References
MacDonald, Lynne. (2018). What are the benefits of
arbitration? Managing Employees.
Mayhew, Ruth (2016). How a progressive Discipline progress
can be used? Human Resources.
· In what ways are public sector (government) unions similar to
private sector (corporate) unions? In what ways are they
different?
· How does the 2018 Supreme Court ruling in the Janus v.
AFSCME case potentially change the landscape for public
sector unions?
· How does the labor relations process work differently when
multinational corporations are involved? What is transnational
bargaining, and why is it important in this context?
· How do labor unions operate differently in other industrialized
nations? (You do not need an exhaustive list here; just share
some observations about what struck you as interesting.)

The employees of a company are considered the most important
asset of its organizations as they impend and work towards
productivity. The concept of labor unions for the workers are
relatively different in both the public and the private sectors.
There might not be a very evident difference between the unions
existing in both the sectors, but the spectators believe that the
major difference is in the working of these unions (Ring, 2012).
Where the statistics for labor unions in private organizations
have fallen with every decade, the governmental sector labor
unions have grown. This is primarily because private
organizations have shifted their manufacturing processes to
more capital intensive units, which requires lesser labor. While
the governmental organizations, many of them, still follow the
traditional practices in the factories, therefore employing a
large number of factory workers that form unions. According to
the ruling of the case against AFSCME, the court ruled in a 5-4
decision of the applicant that the fees of the sector unions for
the non-members of the unions is an act that directly violates
the First Amendment. This limits the strength that the labor
unions may or may not have over other workers (JANUS v.
AMERICAN FEDERATION OF STATE, COUNTY, AND
MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES, COUNCIL , 2017).
On the other hand, the issues have seen to be quite minimal in
the scenarios where multinational corporations are involved.
The sole aim of multinational corporations is to reduce their
costs of production by hiring labor that is cheap in other
nations. Because of increased unemployment, the supply of
labor is often more than it is anticipated and this weakens the
union systems (epsu.org, 2019). However, the potential
difference is that the unions in these scenarios are stronger and
more open to communication. The more likely concern is in the
form of transnational bargaining and collective bargaining
agreements where unions demand health and better safety needs.
References

epsu.org. (2019). Transnational bargaining. Retrieved from
epsu.org: https://www.epsu.org/article/transnational-bargaining-
0
JANUS v. AMERICAN FEDERATION OF STATE, COUNTY,
AND MUNICIPAL EMPLOYEES, COUNCIL , No. 16–1466.
(SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES 10 2017).
Ring, E. (2012, 2 20). The Ideology of Public Sector Unions vs.
Private Sector Unions. Retrieved from
californiapolicycenter.org:
https://californiapolicycenter.org/the-ideology-of-public-sector-
unions-vs-private-sector-unions/
Improving Decision Making Skills
through Business Simulation Gaming and Expert Systems
Alexander Fuchsberger
University of Nebraska, Omaha
[email protected]
Abstract
Business simulations as experimental learning tools
are common, but they usually train specific
predetermined aspects. Research on artificial
intelligence among business simulations is rare, and
therefore, featured in this paper. The purpose of this
research is to explore the use of business simulations
games as an experimental learning tool through a
contemporary, web-based application featuring
artificial intelligence and mobile support. An expert
system guides and advises the players, while they
manage their virtual business in a competitive market

against other participants. The core element is the
design process of an artifact, based on the Design
Science methodology. The training and learning
effects on the participants are observed via the
artifact itself in a series of experiments and an
additional survey. Twenty-six students in Austria
were chosen as the sample group to reveal and
measure the improvements in decision making,
experimental learning capabilities and the biasing
ability of the artificial intelligence.
1. Introduction
Today the decision-making process within
organizations is increasingly complex. All decision
makers in businesses require basic understanding of
organizational structure and how business elements
influence each other. In universities effective work is
done by providing students with the necessary
knowledge about business concepts like production
optimization, marketing, strategies, human resource
management, and so on. But the theoretical
knowledge is rarely put to practice. Avramenko [1]
finds that the educational process in business schools
fails to equip students with employability skills.
Business simulation games encourage teamwork
and decision-making, in a risk-free environment [2].
Players develop a holistic view of the business, they
learn that sometimes alternatives have to be
considered and that losses in an early stage might
lead to higher profit in a later stage. Business games
and simulations became popular over the last 20
years; and they differ in complexity, focus, settings

or intentions. They are web or application-based and
can include random elements.
This research aims to design such a business
simulation, which allows multiple players to train
their management skills in a competitive
environment. No perfect utilization can be reached
only by the player’s actions; other players are
influencing the participant’s outcome as well.
Another core element of this research was to
provide a setting where an expert system can take a
substantial and useful part in such a simulation game.
The idea was to develop a virtual “mentor”, which
acts as an advisor and biases the human player in his
or her decisions. Therefore, the primary research
objectives are:
How can a business simulation game be constructed,
in which…
� ...human players can improve their strategic
management skills through decision-making in
a competitive environment.
� ...an intelligent agent (IA) acts as an advisor to
improve the learning effectiveness of the
players’ skill improvement.
A goal was to prove that participants can improve
decision-making through interacting with a business
simulation with other human participants
(competitors). In order to achieve these objectives, a
scope and balance for the business model had to be
found. The simulation must feature enough

complexity to completely cover all major elements of
a manufacturing company but can’t be too complex,
otherwise the learning effect can no longer be
measured effectively.
A manufacturing company was chosen as
business environment because the basic value
proposition is more straightforward than for example,
the business process of a service provider. In its very
basic form, the value creation process of a
manufacturing company is to purchase resources,
produce goods and then sell them.
It was also essential to study the effects of
integrating an intelligent agent that would act as an
advisor to the participants.
2016 49th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences
1530-1605/16 $31.00 © 2016 IEEE
DOI 10.1109/HICSS.2016.107
827
To what extend can an artificial advisor bias the
decision making of the participants?
As a part of the Design Science methodology, an
artifact is created through which knowledge is
generated based on the Information Systems
Research Framework described by Henver et.al.

Identifying the environment of this artifact is
necessary; otherwise, it might lead to an
inappropriate design and undesirable side-effects [3].
2. Literature Review
Simulation gaming has been used as a tool by
researchers and industry for more than 50 years.
Many simulations for educational purposes are
without doubt accepted as useful learning tools;
however, qualitative simulation games are hardly
developed with a specific scientific purpose. Design
Science provides an ideal supplement to align such
simulations to the scientific community.
2.1. Design Science Methodology
To study and analyze behavioral decision making
in a business environment Design Science has proven
the most appropriate approach for this research. It can
be described as a problem-solving paradigms which
seeks to create an innovative construct in order to
generate knowledge about a phenomenon [3].
While research is an activity that contributes to
the understanding of a phenomenon, in Design
Science the phenomenon can be created artificially,
and need not occur naturally [4]. In Design Science,
the reality is replaced with an artificial construct that
contributes to answer the research problem. This is
especially useful, when the reality is not suitable or
too costly to be studied directly.
Using this approach allows for a second

significant advantage: part of this research is to learn
about human perception of an intelligent agent. This
agent is already an artificial construct and can
therefore be directly integrated into the artifact. To
ensure Design Science is science and not only design,
it is necessary to prioritize the production of useful
knowledge ahead of the production of the artifact.
Based on the Information Systems Research
Framework by Henver et.al. the business
environment is served by IS research through
developed instruments. In order to add value to the
knowledge base of the scientific community the
designed artifact(s) has to be justified and evaluated
[3].
In this case, the organizational strategies are the
area of interest in the business environment and they
are highly influenced by external factors. Market,
suppliers, legal regulations and competence
availability all affect a business and are constantly
interacting across the borders of the business. The
question becomes which business environment
components are effectively relevant for improving the
learning process when considering a holistic view of
such a manufacturing business model, and how such
a learning process can become effective through a
scientific artifact like a business simulation.
Creating this artifact also has an impact on
Information Technology. Modern web tools
fortunately provide an ideal framework to create an
artifact like that required for this research. Graff
states that computerized hypertext provides an
explicit structure to the material being learned, which
is advantageous to learners and encourages them to

engage and move around [5]. Using web technologies
also allows use of extensive, open-source
frameworks, bringing functionality like dynamic
charts, sortable tables, animations, form elements and
more. To ensure a contemporary instantiation, the
simulation has to fully support the majority of
modern smartphones.
Researchers in Design Science have to be careful
to support their research goals through an unbiased
design of the artifact. Lainema described this problem
as a challenge of providing acceptable scientific
research to the academic community rather than just
presenting own opinions [2]. It can be difficult for a
simulation designer to distinguish between failure
and success due to the fact that no one designs a
simulation to fail [6].
2.2. Approaches to Simulation Gaming
Thavikulwat defined a simulation as an exercise
of real activities in an artificial environment and a
game as an experience, featuring competition and
rules [6]. The most discussed topics in business
simulation education and learning in recent years are
[7]:
� Experience accumulation
� Strategy aspects
� Decision-making experience accumulation
� Learning outcomes
� Teamwork experience
Simulations follow different patterns, and they
can be classified according to their characteristics.
Thavikulwat classified simulations using computers

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based on who takes control and how interaction takes
place [6].
Basically, two different types of simulations can
be distinguished: continuous and discrete simulations
[8]. The gaming industry has a more straightforward
terminology: real-time and round-based games.
Specifically, concerning the learning aspect,
much research has been performed. Simulation-based
training is inherently more engaging than other
training methods. Knowledge can be gathered more
quickly and efficiently, and simulations are simpler
to operate but provide a more complex, realistic and
manageable learning environment [9].
Besides all positive advantages, simulation
research is often criticized for measuring the affective
and not the cognitive learning, resulting in challenged
legitimacy and a lack of firm conclusions [10].
Business games are often accidently considered
the same as management games. It is assumed that
this equation is only true when the game actually
features the management of e.g. a firm, organization,
portfolio, teamwork or other factors in the business
area [11]. Therefore, business games are games with
a business environment leading to the training of
players in business skills or the evaluation of players’
performances.

The first known use of games for educational
purposes dates back to about 3000 BC in China [2,
7]. The acknowledged beginning of business games
in the modern sense started in Europe with Mary
Birshstein in 1932, who had the idea of adapting the
concept of war games to the modern business
environment [7].
The artifact in this study builds on a competitive,
interactive, deterministic total enterprise mechanism,
in which manufacturing acts as the theme. It is played
by individuals against each other, supported through
the computer. The simulated time frame is split in
turns or ‘periods’.
Business games have established a reputation as
serious alternative methods for teaching managerial
skills. Global organizations are the industry drivers
and act as meeting points for researchers and
practitioners [10]. Despite proof that simulations are
valid teaching instruments, researchers agree that the
full potential of business simulation games is not yet
revealed [9, 12, 13].
2.3. Expert Systems and Artificial Intelligence
in Simulation Gaming
Artificial Intelligence (AI) can be described as a
broad interdisciplinary field, which may cover
elements from computing disciplines to mathematics,
linguistics, economics, neuroscience and many others
[14]. It is sometimes difficult to decide what really
belongs under the domain. While AI is far more
capable in information processing than a human

being (as long as the information can be transformed
into digital language), it lacks the ability to ‘think’
creatively or critically.
An expert system is computer logic, designed to
gather knowledge and make decisions comparable to
a human expert. Mostly artificial intelligence is used
for processing data into useful knowledge.
AI adaptations in computer games are as old as
computer games themselves. “Nimatron,” a machine
capable of playing the game “Nim,” was one of the
first computerized games, developed in 1940 [15].
Until the 70s, AI could only be found in
computerized two-player games like checkers or
chess [16]. Later in the 70s, arcade games popped up,
featuring single-player gaming against computer-
controlled enemies [17]. In the 90s AI was assigned
with complex tasks like dealing with incomplete
information, path-finding or real-time decision
making and economic planning [18].
Intelligent agents (IA) mark the class of AIs that
are often used in simulation gaming and are therefore
of special interest for this research. Tecuci developed
a comprehensive definition of an intelligent agent
[14]: “an agent is a knowledge-based system that
perceives its environment […] and acts upon that
environment to realize a set of goals or tasks for
which it has been designed.”
Summers adds, that an IA is defined by its ability
to determine its own behavior [21]. Artificial agents
can be complex, combining multiple different
decision-making models. The model of a knowledge-
based agent shows how the agent acts with the

environment, as can be seen in Figure 1:
Figure 1. Main modules of a knowledge-based
agent / expert system [14]
Modern intelligent agents are capable of learning
from the players’ behavior and switch their tactics
accordingly. Also phenomena from reality are
transferred into computer games. StarCraft 2 oriented
their unit movement after the flow of water in a
stream; if there is an obstacle in the path, the water
829
flows with reduced speed around the obstacle,
considering the available space through the
environment and other water particles.
Simulations have been the testing environment for
many AI applications like neural networks or crowd
simulation [19, 20]. AI in educational business
simulations has mostly taken coaching roles so far,
and there is a trend towards the integration of AI as
decision-support and expert systems [21].
Based on a set of input variables, a knowledge
base and a processing algorithm(s) output is
generated. Knowledge-based agents may additionally
support complex modules like a learning or problem
solving engine.
Artificial intelligence continues to be an emerging
domain in computer science. Given the capabilities of
AI and intelligent agents, much progress in

simulation-based gaming and learning is expected.
Contemporarily, AI research benefits from
advancements coming from the highly profitable
gaming industry [7].
3. The Artifact – Architecture and Design
According to the guidelines for design science in
IS research [3], the artifact has to be innovative and
purposeful. The web-based business simulation
suggested in this research has allow students to
improve their decision-making skills in an intuitive
way. To demonstrate the utility, quality and efficacy
of the simulation, methods have to be implemented to
allow for a serious evaluation. This is done by
measuring the effective improvements of participants
(feedback through simulation) and their perceived
improvements (feedback through participants).
The Business Simulation for this research is
designed for desktop and mobile browsers and
provides a simple interface to give participants
control over various aspects of their business (Figure
2). A simulation game consists of four participants
competing in a closed market. The ultimate goal is to
finish with the highest accumulated revenue over the
period of ten timed rounds in which participants can
decide on eight different corporate strategies.
Figure 2. The Business Simulation in Action
The simulation provides the participants with a lot
of information on their and the competitors’

businesses, mostly derived from charts and tables.
Besides that, the artificial intelligence tries to provide
feedback on advantages and disadvantages of
recognized strategies. In each round (period), the
same decisions are available, but an ideal strategy is
impossible to predict or achieve since the users have
to deal with incomplete information, and the
competitors’ actions for the current turn can’t be
predicted. After the simulation, an extensive analysis
is provided, showing all the decisions made along
with additional charts and tables.
3.1. Decision-Making
Decision-making in the Business Simulation is
designed with the goal to increase usability to a
maximum through a simple, intuitive interface.
Learning should happen by understanding the
impacts of decisions on the business, not through
dealing with numbers and complex mechanisms.
Typical organizational strategies build the core of the
simulation and they usually feature two extremes
which are mutually exclusive. For example managers
can focus entirely on product A or B or they have to
split available resources among them. Through a
slider, users can declare if they fully support strategy
A, strategy B or if they are indifferent. Figure 3
shows the mechanism of such a slider:
Figure 3. Decision-making Through Sliders
Every slider has five stages (increments), and
there are a total of seven such strategic decisions that

have to be made. The simulation is designed to allow
advantages and disadvantages for each position on
the spectrum. It is possible that a specific decision is
favorable at an early stage in the game, but the
opposite strategy is beneficial at a later stage.
Additionally, players can toggle on/off a competitor
analysis as the eighth decision. The artifact was
designed to provide a holistic set of realistic
decisions, and every decision features advantages and
disadvantages. A major challenge in designing the
artifact was balancing out the strategies, to give each
strategy validity at some point, and to give them
830
serious consideration in specific situations. Once a
decision is altered, it is immediately updated in the
database. Since the simulation is purely discrete and
there are no random elements, only the decisions
have to be stored in the database. Calculations on
outcomes like revenue can be done on demand,
which simplifies the data structure and increases the
performance of the app.
3.2. Timing and Tutorials
The business simulation is time controlled. Users
who are done with their decisions before the time has
run out have the opportunity to end their turn
prematurely. If all four participants finish early, the
simulation immediately processes to the next round.
Each of the ten rounds is limited to two minutes,

after which the game processes to the next round
automatically. The first round makes an exception,
for which the time limit is five minutes to allow new
players more time to get familiar with the simulation
elements. This feature has been aligned with the
tutorial, which is only displayed in the first round.
Instead of the charts, which wouldn’t be of much use
in the first round anyway, the players experience
tutorial-like text information. This information aims
to explain what can be done in each section and what
is important.
3.3. Artificial Intelligence (“Eddie”)
The AI is implemented as an expert system using
deductive rules to observe the market and decisions
of the player as well as critical variables resulting
from decisions in previous rounds. It is integrated as
an ‘advisor’ and it has a face and a name (“Eddie”).
Figure 4. Charts, Tables and Decision Feedback
As knowledge base all variables associated to the
player decisions from the current and last round are
taken in consideration. This includes:
� Player Decisions
� directly calculated outcomes (e.g. costs of
employees based on amount, salary and amount
of extra hours)
� Indirectly calculated / implied outcomes (e.g. a

resulting market share cumulated over all
previous rounds)
The most appropriate feedback is determined
when the engine is loading all the game variables at
the beginning of a new round. An inference engine
then generates the outcome in form of subjective
feedback to the player. The feedback is a brief verbal
statement, either a warning, suggestion or
information on current issues the player might look
into. The engine compares and evaluates the
relevance of a total of 30 different options. During
several pre-experiments these 30 feedbacks were
identified as most fitting and helpful based on
strategic mistakes the players made. The inference
engine works by determining and assigning a priority
value for the relevant feedback statements
independently from other statements. High priority
results are then compared by including the relevant
conditions and variables from the other high-priority
statements with a reduced impact and a new priority
value is generated. The statement which has the
highest priority by the end of this second step wins,
and is displayed to the player. This feedback is
selected by best-fit to the current situation, and it is
ensured that Eddie never gives the same advice twice
in the simulation, should this mathematically happen,
Eddie suggests the next best (not already displayed)
feedback. He appears to have a personality and may
be described as provocative, bold, funny or pushing.
His behavior and capability to bias participants is one
of the primary research areas in this study.
Feedback Examples (11 out of 30):
� Pushing up your marketing expenses at the end

of the product life cycle is lost money!
� Rapid expansion in the beginning might result
in huge personal costs and overproduction!
� Focusing on one product is dangerous. Only do
it, when you see potential in this market!
� Your moral is dangerously low. The
productivity in your firm is suffering!
� You are producing more than you are selling.
Try do reduce production to save costs!
� If you don't start expending soon, you will get
behind!
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� We are losing grip on the market. We need
more sales!
� Only risk extra hours, if you need them and you
can pay for them!
� We can't compete with the prices of your
competitors. Why not trying out some product
development?
� Your quality is already amazing. Maybe it is
time to increase the production and lower costs!
� You have a good moral! It might be save to ask

for a little more of your employees.
3.4. Screens / Pages
The simulation is split into five tabs, each
focusing on one department of the business. A lobby
(before the game starts), a final score page (when the
game ends), and a brief description of the
implementation of the survey are also included to
give a holistic view.
3.4.1. Lobby. The lobby serves as a starting point to
direct the participants into the simulation. On this
first page instructions and a chat are accessible.
Header and Footer provide compact information:
� Language Switch (German and English)
� Timer
� Actual Round / Total Rounds
� Navigation Tabs
3.4.2. Progress / AI. This initial screen displays a
selection of charts that shows, the actual progress in
terms of revenue, turnover and cost. A simplified
balance sheet is available, and it is also the place
where Eddie, the AI, can be found.
3.4.3. Production. On this screen, the player can
choose a production focus and the amount of product
development. The company produces two different
types of goods, products A and B. They have
different resource demands, production times and

selling prices. High product development increases
the quality of the product and, therefore, the price for
which it can be sold, but comes at the cost of a
reduced production capacity.
3.4.4. Marketing. In this section, the user is able to
influence the whole market. All players start with 10
shares (25% market share each). They can increase
their amount of shares between 0 and 4 per round,
depending on how much they invested into
advertisement and marketing. Additionally, to the
variable individual increase, the market also has a
natural lifecycle. The market demand increases with
the total amount of shares and the market share
defines how many products of this global demand
customers are ready to purchase from the players.
Should the player produce less than he or she can sell
on the market, the remaining demand can be
exploited by his or her competitors. The second
decision the player can make here is to undertake a
competitor analysis. This enabled additional
information on competitors on various charts for the
price of some variable costs.
3.4.5. Personnel. On this screen, players can handle
two strategies concerning human resources. They can
set a salary level and order extra hours to increase
productivity. Both decisions influence the morale
(effectiveness) of the workers. A high salary has the
disadvantage of causing additional personnel costs,
but is necessary if the morale drops low in the
company. The morale is a general indicator for the
productivity of each worker. Extra hours increased
the production capacity but decreased the morale and
caused additional costs.

3.4.6. Strategy. On this screen, players have the
opportunity to make strategic corporate decisions.
The first choice is between a rapid expansion over
improving the business. Expansion leads to more
employees, and therefore, to a higher production
capacity. Too rapid expansion results in unaffordable
personnel costs. Improving the business, on the other
hand, simulates improvements in internal processes
and reduces the time needed to produce products.
Users can also decide on a price or a quality
focus. A price strategy (cost leadership) leads to
discounts, making the purchase of resources more
affordable, while a quality focus improves the quality
of the products resulting in an alternative method to
increase selling prices.
4. Evaluation and Verification
Referring back to the research problem, the first
four issues were dealt with by developing an artifact
that is capable of training human players in decision-
making in a competitive environment. The artifact
was accessible from any device with internet access,
and German and English were implemented as
languages. An intelligent agent increased the learning
potential further by advising the player on important
decisions based on developments during the
simulation. These four issues were addressed by
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collecting feedback from participants in controlled
experiments performed in two stages.
In the first stage, two business intelligence
university courses with a total of 26 students, held at
the Management Center Innsbruck in Austria, served
as an environment for the experiments. The
simulation was first explained to the students who
then performed one game. The students were then led
to a survey that included qualitative and quantitative
feedback related to the simulation and AI. After the
first simulation and the survey, the students were then
randomly mixed and prepared for a second game.
The purpose was to see if the overall performance in
the second game increased through learning and
adaptation of the game mechanics. Also, potentially
interesting behavioral patterns were identified.
4.1 Survey
The survey served two main purposes: first,
players were asked about good strategies for the
early, middle and late game. The survey tested the
artifact against the issues identified in the research
problem. The responses were compared to the
observed behavioral changes between the first and
second round of experiments. This was done to verify
if the players had understood and adapted the
concepts of the business simulation. Table 1 shows
the number of participants who evaluated the chosen
strategy as strong during the early, mid or late game.
For example only one person felt that using a

strong quality-focus (5) over price-leadership was a
beneficial strategy in the early game. The market
research strategy is excluded from the Table since it
only had two states (on and off).
Table 1. Efficient* Game Strategies
Decision Strategy / # participants
Early Game (Round 1-3) 1 2 3 4 5
Product Development 1 3 3 11 8
Marketing 1 5 2 7 11
Salaries 7 11 5 2 1
Extra hours 10 6 5 5 0
S1: Improve / Expand 9 5 4 5 2
S2: Price / Quality 5 7 2 10 1
Midgame (Round 4-7) 1 2 3 4 5
Salaries 0 5 14 7 0
Endgame (Round 8-10) 1 2 3 4 5
Salaries 5 2 10 8 1
n=26; (*) participants evaluated with 4 or 5

Second, data about previous experiences and
knowledge of business management, along with
qualitative feedback related to aspects of the
simulation was collected. The last screen included
two questions about artificial intelligence to find out
about its place in business intelligence and
management. The survey asked the students for one
positive and three negative observations they made
during the experiments. The results were grouped and
counted based on similarity. Table 2 shows the
amount of individual feedback for the derived group:
Table 2. Qualitative Feedback on Simulation
Positive Feedback Count
Artificial Intelligence 3
Charts 3
Competition 6
Design & Structure 7
General / Idea 4
Learning effects 4
Total (26 expected) 27
Negative Feedback Count
Artificial Intelligence 1
Bugs in the Simulation 5
Calculations / Mechanics 4
Design & Structure 15
Explanations 13
Limited Time 7
Total (78 expected) 45
n=26; categories based on similarities in feedback
4.2 Simulation Decision Results

The survey and the simulation were both designed
to supplement each other. Since the survey asked the
students for the perceived best strategies in early, mid
and late game, the same aspect was analyzed from the
actual performance of the participants.
Decisions from the first and second round of
experiments were separated to find the behavioral
changes influenced by adaptive learning and the
impulse through the survey. Evaluating all the
decisions turned out to be challenging. The limited
833
number of options for each decision helped to reduce
complexity in the process. Clear changes in decision
behavior were identified, both between the different
stages in the simulation, as well as between the two
rounds of experiments. Table 3 shows these
behavioral changes in terms of absolute participants,
who have chosen the specific strategy:
Table 3. Simulation Data: Decision Strategies
Decision Experiments (First Round) Experiments (Second
Round)
Early Game (Round 1-3) 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5
Competitor Analysis* 5 64 6 60
Production Focus 10 22 15 21 1 13 12 28 5 8

Product Development 10 21 19 17 2 13 14 11 13 15
Marketing 4 17 22 17 9 10 6 8 19 23
Salaries 0 35 32 2 0 9 29 16 7 5
Extra hours 21 38 10 0 0 27 25 12 2 0
S1: Improve / Expand 10 24 19 13 3 15 17 15 13 6
S2: Price / Quality 4 13 16 25 11 6 22 11 13 14
Midgame (Round 4-7) 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5
Marketing 16 19 17 17 23 17 17 13 25 16
Salaries 1 34 38 15 4 8 33 34 11 2
Extra hours 32 30 27 3 0 29 32 18 6 3
S1: Improve / Expand 11 26 26 21 8 17 18 29 18 6
S2: Price / Quality 5 27 23 28 9 10 29 30 8 11
Endgame (Round 8-10) 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5
Marketing 25 23 7 2 12 19 16 12 15 4
Salaries 4 24 31 7 3 18 12 24 7 5
Extra hours 30 19 11 9 0 18 20 17 7 4
S1: Improve / Expand 14 18 16 13 8 19 11 10 9 17
S2: Price / Quality 12 19 16 18 4 22 19 11 6 8
This table represents how players decided (1...5) in each stage
of the game. The values are representing the
absolute amount of occurrences for each strategy chosen.
(*) Competitor analysis has only has two values, true (2) and
false (1)
The competitor analysis was a feature used
consistently by most players throughout all
simulations. The decisions for production focus were
more diversified. Producing Product A rather than B
was noticeable at all stages.

A clear learning effect can be observed in the
product development strategy. Players realized
correctly that this strategy improved the total
revenue, especially in the early and midgame, and
changed their behavior in the second simulation. The
marketing strategy showed an even superior learning
effect. While players focused on an average
marketing investment strategy during the first round
of experiments, they reduced their efforts in the late
game. An analysis of the salary showed that most
decisions concerning the salary were set statically.
Using Extra Hours is a feature designed to generally
have most effect in later stages of the game. This was
recognized by the players. The final two strategies
were more challenging to analyze. There was no
‘ideal’ way to handle these strategies. Players had
strong and very different opinions on the usefulness
of all strategies; the only thing they agreed on was
that taking no preference is a disadvantage.
Improving the business was considered a better
alternative in the early game rather than expanding it.
This changed in the midgame; in the endgame, the
results were equal to those in the early game.
A similar result was identified in the second
business strategy (Price / Quality). According to the
survey, players believed either in the success of a
price focus or a quality focus in the early game. In
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the midgame, people were more indifferent, resulting

in a ‘slight’ or no-preference strategy. Players were
more experimental again in the endgame, featuring
either a price strategy or a quality strategy.
Table 4 shows the relative change in % for a
specific strategy from the first to the second round of
experiments. For example, only 79 % of the original
players who had chosen a light quality strategy (4) in
the midgame had chosen it again in the second round.
However, these players are not necessarily the same.
Table 4. Relative Behavioral Changes in Decision-
making between the two Rounds of Simulations
Early Game 1 2 3 4 5
Competitor Analysis 2 -2
Production Focus 5 -14 21 -23 11
Product Development 5 -9 -11 -5 20
Marketing 9 -16 -20 4 22
Salaries 14 -7 -22 8 8
Extra hours 10 -17 4 3 0
Improve / Expand 8 -9 -5 1 5
Price / Quality 3 14 -7 -17 5
Midgame 1 2 3 4 5
Competitor Analysis -17 17
Production Focus 4 -6 12 -7 -3
Product Development -5 -7 -5 10 6
Marketing 2 -1 -4 10 -7
Salaries 8 1 -3 -4 -2
Extra hours -2 4 -9 4 3
Improve / Expand 7 -8 5 -2 -2
Price / Quality 6 4 9 -21 3
Endgame 1 2 3 4 5
Competitor Analysis -14 14
Production Focus 19 -11 -7 -4 3

Product Development 0 5 -18 -5 19
Marketing -7 -9 8 20 -11
Salaries 21 -17 -9 0 3
Extra hours -16 3 10 -2 6
Improve / Expand 8 -9 -8 -5 14
Price / Quality
16 1 -7 -17 6
The values represent the relative change in number
of occurrences per strategy in %
Evaluating the artifact as an instrument was done
by collecting and analyzing qualitative feedback of
the participants in the experiments. Eddie proved to
be valuable as an advisor and gained mostly positive
feedback as well. Four players mentioned Eddie or
the artificial intelligence as a positive aspect of the
simulation. Two players approved the intelligent and
useful help of Eddie after each round; one player
wished the advices to be more specific.
5. Conclusion
A major challenge in this research was to avoid
creating an outcome that automatically favors and
validates the research method. With that in mind, this
research tried to judge success and validity through
two different data sources. The success should be
measured on how the players experienced the artifact
based on their own judgment (survey) as well as how
they experienced it based on the decisions they
actually made.

The research clearly shows that students were
adapting strategies as intended by the simulation
design. In cases where those general statements were
valid (Marketing, Product Development, CA, Salary
and Extra Hours) the participants showed a clear
learning effect from the first to the second round of
experiments (Marketing, Product Development and
CA) or a partial learning effect (Salary and Extra
Hours). In strategies that were intended to be
situation-dependent, people acted very differently
and also claimed different strategies as “optional” in
the survey. Considering these clear results and the
aforementioned academic problems, the research
suggests that all points defined in the research
problem could be successfully dealt with, but the
final validation has to come from an outside observer.
It was also important to find out if players trusted
the expert system during the simulation and allowed
it to bias their decisions. The results clearly exhibited
a user bias, most decisions changed in the second
round of experiments according to the advice of
Eddie. Also the positive feedback on Eddie indicates
the acceptance of the intelligent agent among the
players. The participants stated their trust in a
potential artificial intelligence in various areas of
business management.
The students prioritized Market Analysis, Logistic
Optimization and Process Optimization as areas with
the highest potential to effectively use Artificial
Intelligence to support the outcome.
6. Limitations of the Study

A major challenge was balancing the game
variables such that each slider became valid, useful
and realistic. Intelligent Agent Eddie, although
accepted positively and successful in biasing the
players, had very limited capabilities behind the
scenes. Eddie was not able to learn from the
decisions humans made during the simulations, and
couldn’t advise based on considering more than just
the latest round. Since feedback was only shown once
835
per simulation, the most relevant feedback might
have been missed out on future rounds.
This research, and Design Science in general,
may lag behind theory-based research in gathering
specific useful findings; however, the findings
showed a clear learning effect among the participants
of the experiment and a positive acceptance of the
artifact and the artificial intelligence. It may also be
criticized for not studying the aspect of artificial
intelligence in enough deep. The expert system had
its valid place in the artifact, and the research tried to
identify its acceptance and biasing capabilities as an
advisor during the simulation. The focus in this
research, however, was not artificial intelligence, but
the design of the artifact itself.
7. Future Research
The researcher believes that this research is the

start of a far more comprehensive study involving
real AI and a remodeling of the artifact. The purpose
of the experiments was, besides providing data for
this research, to reveal the weaknesses and problems
of the artifact. A lot of feedback has been provided
by the participants, making a remodeling of the
artifact tangible and viable. In such an upgrade, the
following aspects could be addressed:
� Improved artificial intelligence
� Fixing of gaming mechanics and variables
� Broader and more diversified group of
participants
� Modifications and additions to the artifact
� Linking the feedback to related decisions for
more academic insights
Stepping away from this specific research and
back into the area of business simulation research,
academics anticipate a lot of new development over
the next years [21].
Academic research involving both artificial
intelligence and simulation gaming is still rare. This
study was created to delve into this niche and provide
a basis on which further research can be continued.
References
[1] Avramenko, A., "Enhancing students' employability
through business simulation", Education + Training, 54(5),
pp. 355-367, Emerald Group Publishing Limited 2012.
[2] Lainema, T., “Enhancing organizational business

process perception: Experiences from constructing and
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