
Marketplace Simulations Blog
Case studies, teaching tools, and classroom inspiration.
- How to Find the Best Business Strategy Game for Your ClassWhen choosing a business strategy game, it’s important to consider time, class size, learning level, and Assurance of Level requirements. Learn how these key considerations can help you pick the perfect simulation.
- 3 Ways to Enhance Your Class’s Business SimulationBring your business simulation to life with personal branding, team coaching, and investor presentations. These activities help create a richer learning experience that boosts student engagement and bridges theory with real-world practice.
- Using Marketplace Simulations as a Launchpad for Sustainability ProjectsUse your marketing simulation as a launchpad for sustainability projects that connect branding, consumer behavior, and purpose. Help students explore ESG principles while developing campaigns that reflect real-world values and strategic impact.
- Handling Students Who Don’t Carry Their WeightTired of group project complaints in your business simulation? Learn practical strategies to hold students accountable, reduce team tension, and promote equitable participation—without micromanaging or compromising learning outcomes.
- Designing the Top-Rated Business Class at University of TorontoDiscover how one professor transformed his business course by replacing passive case studies with an active business simulation. The change gave students room to fail, reflect, and grow—leading to deeper learning and stronger engagement.
- How to Prevent and Identify SlackingWorried about freeloaders in your business simulation teams? Learn how to spot slacking early, set clear expectations, and use built-in tools to hold students accountable—without turning teamwork into a source of stress.
- No More Boring Classes: Exercises for Operations Management ClassesLooking for hands-on exercises for your operations management course? Explore active learning ideas like business simulations, forecasting games, and interactive supply chain activities that help students apply core concepts in real time.
- Registration Open for Latin American Entrepreneurship TournamentCalling all future entrepreneurs in Latin America! Registration is now open for a regional tournament where students run virtual companies, compete in teams, and put their business instincts to the test in a fast-paced simulation showdown.
- Aligning Students’ Actions and Values Through the Conscious Capitalism SimulationMany students care deeply about ethics and sustainability—but do their business decisions reflect those values? Learn how a business simulation can reveal disconnects, spark reflection, and help bridge the gap between belief and behavior.
- Case Study: Business Simulations Give Engineering Students a New PerspectiveEngineering students often master the technical side—but what about the business impact of their work? This case study shows how a professor used simulation to build strategic awareness, cross-functional insight, and real-world readiness.
- Conscious Capitalism ‘Gets It Done’ at University of TorontoCan a business simulation help MBA students lead with both profit and purpose? At the University of Toronto, the Conscious Capitalism simulation gave future business leaders a chance to apply strategy and values in a high-stakes, real-world setting.
- Challenging MBAs with the Conscious Capitalism Business SimulationWhat happens when MBA students take on a values-driven business challenge? In this reflection, one student shares how the Conscious Capitalism simulation tested his leadership, challenged his priorities, and brought purpose-driven strategy to life.
- Marketplace Simulations Updates: Winter 2024Marketplace just rolled out new levels, new Microsimulation bundles, and a cleaner student experience—plus updates to languages, game data, and the instructor dashboard. Explore what’s new in the Winter 2024 release.
- Microsimulations Win Gold in Serious Play AwardsMarketplace Microsimulations just won Gold at the Serious Play Awards—recognizing their power to teach real-world business skills in short, focused bursts. See why these bite-sized simulations are earning big praise from educators and experts alike.
- Marketplace Microsimulations in Your Flipped ClassroomFlipped classrooms create more space for engagement, practice, and feedback. Marketplace Microsimulations support that model by helping students arrive prepared—so you can focus class time on applying concepts and building critical thinking skills.
- What Students Crave: 20 Years with Marketplace SimulationsFor Ryno Senior, great teaching meant more than delivering content—it meant lighting a fire. After years of trial and error, he found that Marketplace Simulations gave his students the ownership and energy he’d been searching for.
- Marketplace Simulations Updates: Summer 2023Marketplace Simulations just got better—with new simulations, a new play site domain, smoother student software, and expanded language support. Check out what’s new in the Summer 2023 update.
- A Professor’s Mission to Bring Conscious Capitalism to KenyaHow do you get a nation to adopt sustainable business education? Kenyan professor Dr. Teresia Kyalo has been asking this question for six years. This week, she’s flying to New York City to find answers at the PRME Global Forum.
- Tom Elmer: How Business Simulations Give Students a Taste of RealityTextbooks tell students what business is like—simulations let them live it. Professor Tom Elmer shares how experiential learning helps students make tough calls, navigate uncertainty, and build real-world decision-making skills.
- Time for Educators to Take the Lead on Societal ImpactSociety needs more from business leaders—and it starts in the classroom. Learn how business educators can shift the focus from shareholder value to long-term impact, and why students are ready for a new kind of leadership training.
- Simulations Spark Engagement and Real LearningLectures tell students what matters—simulations make them figure it out. This piece explores how business simulations drive real engagement, pushing students to connect concepts, take ownership, and learn by doing.
- Keeping Student Data Safe with TrustEd Apps CertificationProfessors shouldn’t have to worry about data privacy. Marketplace Simulations is now a Trusted Apps-certified platform—meeting rigorous security standards so you can confidently bring experiential learning into your classroom.
- Marketplace Simulations Wins Silver at International Serious Play AwardsMarketplace Simulations has received international acclaim for its efforts to develop more conscientious, purpose-driven business leaders. The company’s Conscious Capitalism – Bikes simulation won a silver medal at the 2022 International Serious Play Awards. In the one-of-a-kind simulation, students work in teams to build competing carbon fiber bicycle companies. Together, they manage marketing efforts, production…
- Marketplace Product UpdatesWe at Marketplace Simulations have been working hard to roll out some major product enhancements to make your teaching experience even better! Check out what we’ve got in store for you! High Level Games We have released our two most advanced simulations in the bikes edition, and more are on the way! Find out more…
- How a Brazilian Marketplace distributor is using creativity and innovation to adapt in a changing worldDr. Claudio Manassero is the Founder and CEO of TecTrain, a Brazilian-based training company that uses tech to improve business learning. He is also a distributor of Marketplace Simulations in Brazil. Before the Covid-19 crisis, Claudio had started a new venture integrating Marketplace’s “Introduction to Marketing” simulation into a fully, stand-alone, online business class. It was…
- Five Quick Tips for Amping Up Online Student Engagement with Marketplace Simulations“Tell me and I will forget, show me and I may remember; involve me and I will understand.” -Benjamin Franklin One of the most important, but difficult, aspects of teaching is finding ways to truly engage students in the learning experience. This challenge can be even harder to tackle in an online classroom, where your students’ attention…
- Marketplace Around the World: UASLP CompetitionMarketplace Simulations is proud to feature another distinguished partnership with the Mexican business education community. Hosted by the Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosí School of Economics (UASLP) though their Financial and Stock Market Laboratory, over 80 teams and 300 participants are competing in a two-month-long business competition used Marketplace’s Introduction to Business and Strategy…
- The Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom: Part 6 – 6 Steps to a Semester of Flipped ClassesMost flipped courses in a university setting organize themselves around a single project, like an inter-class business competition or a long-term science experiment. For the course to work, students need to be able to apply what they’ve learned after just a few weeks of lectures. You can create a non-project course where all or most…
- The Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom: Part 5 – How to Flip Your Classroom for a DayYou’ve tried integrating a few active learning exercises into your lectures and you know what works. Taking the next step and flipping your classroom for a day isn’t that complicated. Simply designating a day in your syllabus for an in-class competition or a field trip can bring an element of experiential learning to your course.…
- Marketplace Around the World: Conscious Capitalism in Mexico“Free enterprise capitalism is the most powerful system for social cooperation and human progress ever conceived. It is one of the most compelling ideas we humans have ever had. But we can aspire to even more.” These words from the Conscious Capitalism Credo have been framing the ongoing dialogue that business leaders around the world…
- The Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom: Part 4 – Short Active Learning Exercises that Make Lecture More EffectiveWe’re back with more installments of The Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom, our deep dive into practical ideas and strategies to transform your classroom. If you need to catch up, read Part 1, Part 2, or Part 3. Now, let’s move on to Part 4: Short Active Learning Exercises that Make Lecture…
- Marketplace Around the World: MexicoAlthough based out of Tennessee, Marketplace Simulations is providing world-class business education for students and participants in over 750 universities worldwide, in 9 different languages. Marketplace is proud to support our partners in Mexico for two upcoming events: Bienvenidos Monterrey 2019, del 27 al 30 de Mayo Hosted by the University of Monterrey, the XIX…
- The Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom: Part 3 – When to Use Active LearningActive learning is a proven technique for gaining your students’ attention and increasing their information retention, one with more than 30 years of evidence backing it up. Just as with any teaching technique, its efficacy depends on your students, the particular parameters of your course, and how you approach employing it. Incorporating active learning works…
- The Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom: Part 2 – The Evidence for Active LearningThe Evidence for Active Learning In our first blog post of the Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom series, we covered what active learning is. It’s more than just an education trend. In fact, more than 30 years of evidence supports active learning as a more effective teaching technique than lectures. Bonwell…
- The Ultimate Guide to Active Learning in the College Classroom: Part 1Keeping your students engaged with active learning might seem like a daunting task, one where the benefit may not seem worth the extra effort, but ultimately, is a tactic that many professors know will benefit their students in the long run. The good news – you can build active learning exercises, such as the flipped…
- Marketplace Simulations Empowers the Next Generation of Entrepreneurs in Trinidad and TobagoMarketplace Simulations has partnered with National Secondary School Entrepreneurship Competition (NSSEC) for their 2018 simulation competition in Trinidad and Tobago. In all, 575 students and 70 teachers participated in the competition. Competition Information In Trinidad and Tobago, the students competed against each other using Marketplace’s entrepreneurship simulation, Introduction to Business and Strategy. The competition was…
- Give Your Students the Gift of Active LearningThe Latest News, Updates, & Article – Holiday Newsletter – Conscious Capitalism® Bikes – Now Available! – Conscious Capitalism Rules the Day in India at AIMS’s Management Education Convention – Upgrade to the Bike Edition Starting Spring 2019 – Conscious Capitalism is the Next Step Towards a Greater Planet – Harvard Business Publishing Education and…
- Conscious Capitalism Rules the Day in India at AIMS’s 30th Annual Management Education ConventionThe results are in for the first Conscious Capitalism Competition sponsored by the Association of Indian Management Schools (AIMS) at their 30th Annual Management Education Convention. The competition was in collaboration with the Academy of Indian Marketing and NJOY Learning Processes and featured the Conscious Capitalism simulator by Marketplace Simulations. What is Conscious Capitalism? The Conscious Capitalism…
- Simulation Support When You Need It – The Marketplace DifferenceYou know what they say: behind every happy customer, there’s a dedicated Product Specialist. Okay, so maybe “they” don’t say those exact words, but we do. At Marketplace Simulations, we have an incredible support team that works tirelessly to provide hands-on help for our business simulation instructors and students. Our Product Specialists have decades of…
- Harvard Business Publishing Education and Marketplace Simulations Form Partnership to Expand Simulation Learning to the Higher Education Marketing ClassroomKnoxville, TN – Marketplace Simulations is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with Harvard Business Publishing (HBP). HBP will distribute three levels of marketing simulations beginning fall semester 2018. Now available to educators and students through Harvard Business Publishing are: The Introduction to Marketing and Strategic Marketing simulations will be available in two formats —…
- Ready, Set, Coach! Marketplace Simulations Hosts International Faculty at Training Seminar on the Pedagogy of Simulation LearningKnoxville, Tenn. – Marketplace Simulations held their bi-annual Train-the-Trainer Workshop on September 24-26, 2018 at the Dancing Bear Lodge and Appalachian Bistro. Higher education faculty and trainers from around the world converged on Townsend, TN to take part in the two-and-a-half-day seminar. The interactive program provided educators with guidance toward achieving their pedagogical goals, not…
- 9 Reasons to Incorporate Simulation Learning into your Class this SemesterHave you thought about using simulations? Maybe you’ve seen your colleagues incorporate simulation edtech tools into their classrooms successfully. Maybe you’ve read about them online. Maybe you have so much on your plate at the start of the semester, you can’t even imagine making a big change. We’ve heard from our instructors that using simulations…
- Improvements to the Marketplace Instructor SiteIn the upcoming months, we will be gradually updating the instructor site. This is a part of our continuous effort to make the tools we provide more efficient, intuitive, and easier to use. The first set of improvements will focus on the site’s navigation. We listened to your feedback and have streamlined the navigation to…
- Around the World with Marketplace SimulationsBy the end of 2017, 4.1 billion people had access to the internet. This technology has made the world more connected than ever, allowing ideas and information to pass freely between different countries and cultures. Globalization has had a radical impact on education. As teachers search for effective and innovative methods and tools, they now…
- Marketplace Simulations to Collaborate with the AIMS Annual Management Education Convention in Hosting Conscious Capitalism® Student CompetitionKnoxville, TN – The Association of Indian Management Schools (AIMS) will host the 30th AIMS Annual Management Education Convention in collaboration with the Academy of Indian Marketing (AIM) and NJOY Learning Processes Pvt. Ltd. The convention features a simulation competition for 2nd year MBA/PGDM students of AIM and AIMS member institutions. The competition consists of…
- 6 Reasons to Incorporate a Marketplace Microsimulation into Your CourseAre you searching for a new program that supplements your existing course material in a fun and interactive way? Instead of competing with technology, Marketplace Microsimulations allow you to embrace it and engage your students. Here are six reasons why incorporating a microsim is a great way to engage students in an experiential classroom. 1.…
- Providing a Level Playing Field for All: Part 3 of 3Marketplace Simulations is committed to doing its part to ensure accessibility and equality for all students. The fact that this promotes good usability design in general is just the icing on the cake. Student Accessibility Improvements Game features are fully usable with only a computer keyboard. This especially benefits students who use screen reader software…
- Hope Springs Eternal with Simulation LearningDiscover the latest news, updates, and articles with the Marketplace Simulations seasonal newsletter. Learn about the release of our newest serious business games. Understand the pedagogy behind simulation learning and how it can impact your course. Read news and articles that influence higher education today. Click to Read More
- 6 Tough Lessons for Entrepreneurs That Can Be Learned from SimulationsNew entrepreneurs encounter some of the toughest lessons in the business world. Failing early and often helps expedite the learning curve, but many entrepreneurs struggle to recover from such setbacks. Here are six hard lessons that your students can and should learn in the safety of a business simulation game and not in the real…
- A Professor’s Perspective – Meet Dr. Rajnandan “Raj” PatnaikAt Marketplace Simulations, we love receiving feedback from our customers and learning more about each of their individual experiences with our simulations. Each instructor practices a unique teaching methodology when incorporating a simulation into their course. Hearing from them firsthand provides us a better idea of how we can continue to improve the user experience…
- Providing a Level Playing Field for All: Part 2 of 3The new standards in accessibility call on everyone from website coders, to content creators, to administrators to make their courses useable for as many students as possible. These design guidelines were thought out very carefully, and, interestingly enough, they standardize, organize, and actually improve the technology experience for many people who didn’t realize there was…
- A Student’s Perspective – What’s It Like Taking a Class with a Business Simulation?In a previous post, 5 Teaching Methods to Maximize the Learning Potential of Business Simulations, we outlined how to structure an entire class around a business simulation to maximize students’ learning and real-world experience. The five teaching methodologies listed in this previous post from February, are big changes from what you’d expect to see in…
- Providing a Level Playing Field for All: Part 1 of 3Great teachers share the conviction that knowledge is not the end result, but a force to inspire and empower. A single lesson can transform a student’s worldview – a semester can shape a future. As an educator, every student comes to you with potential to unlock. Even though the specifics change, some principles remain constant:…
- Teaching Conscious Capitalism to the Next Generation of EntrepreneursJohn Mackey, co-founder and CEO of Whole Foods, wrote in 2013 that the future of business lay in Conscious Capitalism. No one would blame you if you didn’t change your curriculum right away based on his book with Raj Sisodia. It’s a teacher’s job to prepare students for the future, but five years ago it…
- 5 Teaching Methods to Maximize the Learning Potential of Business SimulationsAre you hoping to incorporate a business simulation into your course this semester, but struggling to build a pedagogy around it? Here are five proven methodologies to make the most of business simulations and reinforce your learning objectives. 1) Become a business coach Business simulations provide a unique opportunity to develop students’ critical-thinking skills. But…
- Marketplace Simulations Accessibility Improvements – Q&A with Darrell BowlesAt Marketplace Simulations, we recognize the importance of accessibility in educational materials, and strive to ensure a pleasant experience for all of our users, including the disabled community. We sat down with Mr. Darrell Bowles, Assistive Technology Trainer for the Office of Disability Services at Pellissippi State Community College, to discuss accessibility in higher education.…
- Create a Stronger Pedagogical Foundation by Leveraging EdTech in Higher EdIs it just me or does it seem like the world of EdTech (Educational Technology) has suddenly exploded with an endless amount of options? As primary education (K-12) schools have embraced change, EdTech continues to take the world by storm with higher education seemingly flailing in its attempt to play catch-up. With the EdTech market…
- Introducing Microsimulations- A New Tool to Engage Students in the ClassroomThe challenge with how to engage students in the classroom is a rite of passage in higher education. Studies show that students who participate in the learning process are more focused, retain more knowledge, and are better equipped to tackle higher-level problems requiring critical thinking. Retaining students’ attention against the distractions offered by laptops and…
- Continuing Our Commitment to Student AccessibilityAll students can easily, equally, and independently engage with our simulations Civil rights laws have been recently updated. The law now specifically defines what it means for information and communication technology to be accessible to all. Marketplace® Simulations comply with these updated accessibility standards as outlined in the January 2017 refresh of Section 508. We…
- Practice Makes Perfect – Experiential Learning Might Be the SolutionHigher education tends to place a large focus on teaching students how to succeed, both inside and outside of the classroom. Addressing failure, however, is equally as important, and it is essential for students to recognize the value of learning from their mistakes. Starting as early as kindergarten and pre-school, students are taught that practice…
- Setting Students Up for Entrepreneurial Success with Marketplace SimulationsLast May, entrepreneurs Christian and David Stone attended one of our simulation training workshops for Marketplace® Simulations. Today, the Stone brothers are hosting a simulation-based entrepreneurial competition in conjunction with the National Secondary School Entrepreneurship Competition (NSSEC) to bring out the spirit of entrepreneurship to students in Trinidad and Tobago. Read the full story on Loop.
- Internet Marketing Micro Lessons – EdTech ToolsDid you know that only a select number of business schools actually have a digital marketing course in their marketing degree curriculum? To quote Albert Costill from SEJ, “According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the amount of market research analysts and marketing specialists is expected to increase 32% from 2012-2022 – which is faster than…
- Microsimulations for Business EducationNew training tool for your classroom: Microsimulations for Business Education What are the Microsimulations? Microsimulations are optional skill-and-drill exercises that students can use within a Marketplace® Live Simulation. Each exercise takes between 10 to 25 minutes to complete. What is the purpose of the Microsimulations? Over the years, our simulations have been able to provide…
- Enhancements – Coaching Assistant ToolCoaching Assistant Tool What is it? The Coaching Assistant Tool guides instructors to key coaching points for each team in one dashboard. The Coaching Assistant generates specific coaching points for each team based on their current quarter decision. It also acts as a debriefing dashboard for discussing the previous quarters’ results. How does it work? Instructors have the…
- Marketplace Live Peer Evaluation ToolUsed as a team-based exercise, Marketplace Live simulations can help you create a collaborative learning environment that encourages teamwork and helps students develop interpersonal skills. The Peer Evaluation tool is used to determine how well these behaviors are evident during the exercise. This tool can be run at any time. As an example: Running the…