Since 1991, participants of the business simulation TOPSIM – General Management have been leading their own company to success in the printer and copier industry. The classic business simulation has been continuously developed over the years and adapted to the current market situation.
Today TOPSIM – General Management is our most played management simulation and we took this as an opportunity to take a closer look at the product and its history.
The development of TOPSIM – General Management
TOPSIM – General Management was introduced in 1991 by UNICON as the first computer based business simulation. In 1996 the first Windows version of the business simulation was available and two years later the first online version.
In 2007 already the 12th version of TOPSIM – General Management was available to users. The business simulation has been available in the TOPSIM – Cloud since 2016 and has received many innovations in that year: The Pro Scenario and the Standard Scenario were introduced. A new singleplayer and multiplayer mode has also been added and includes an 8 period multiplayer scenario since the beginning of this 2017.
The three TOPSIM – General Management scenarios
Currently three scenarios of TOPSIM – General Management are available: the Standard and Pro Scenario, and TOPSIM – Production & Services. The Standard and Pro versions simulate a medium-sized company in the printer and copier industry. The participants make strategic and operative decisions in various company areas such as purchasing, production, personnel, financing, marketing and sales. In the TOPSIM – Production & Services scenario, participants manage a company that is active in two different business areas: elevator production and service in the form of maintenance contracts. Through the simulation, they learn to deal with conflicting goals and interactions between the two business areas of production and service and to plan strategically for the long term.
What all three scenarios have in common is that the participants are provided with detailed reports at the beginning of each simulation period. Business decisions are made on this basis. The participants are confronted with complex cause-and-effect relationships within their own company as well as with competing companies on the market. In order to lead their company to success, decision makers need an understanding of internal connections and interactions between the various internal and external factors. They learn to deal with large amounts of information in a structured way and to make decisions under uncertainty and time pressure.
We are looking forward to further exciting years with TOPSIM – General Management and hope to be able to support numerous courses and trainings with management simulations in the future.
Would you like more information about TOPSIM – General Management or about our business simulation portfolio? Contact us at [email protected]!
