Descriptif

This simulation will be based on the global IT services sector. Participants will design an economic model to simulate the top 5 players’ key strategic decisions.

The simulation will cover a period of about 6 years of real time. Key actors like Accenture, Capgemini, TCS, CGI, Atos, and Cognizant will be modelized.

Aim of the course:

This strategic business simulation exercise is intended for a group of 6 or more students. In this simulation, several teams each represent a major player in the sector over a period of a few years.

This course has three objectives.

In addition to the assimilation of a specific sectorial culture, it is first of all necessary to acquire the basis of strategical issues and to bring out its essential criteria.

Then, after highlighting the main springs, allow students to learn how to model a simulation of a given industry sector.

Finally, the "makers - students” should be able to share this simulation with other students over a much shorter period, in order to enable them to understand the strategic mechanisms of the sector.

Course Outline:

• • The course will take place from January to March. The restitution session with other students could take place in late May or early June.

• • This challenging project requires motivation and intellectual curiosity from the students who will have to process and assimilate dense information, be an actor in the development of the simulation model, and finally intervene with other students. A working average of 3 hours per week is envisaged.

• • The simulated sector is global IT services with players such as Accenture, CGI, CapGemini (where the key speaker and coordinator is Strategy and Acquisition Director), Atos, NTT data, TCS, Infosys and Cognizant. This sector is truly global, technological and well documented with public and accessible information.

• • A two-hour session of project framing and orientation will be scheduled every two weeks (max. 20 hours in total, without the final restitution session).

• • Initial documentation (public financial and operational data, annual reports, analyst reports and articles) will be provided to students but they will also have to do research on their own.

• • Students participating in this project will be marked at the end of the course.

Summary of teaching objectives:

• • Acquiring a sectorial strategic culture on the IT services sector (who are the major players, how are they positioned, what is their predictable trajectory, their strategic options?)

• • Build a simulation model. Find the right level of detail and know how to simplify to understand. Identify the key parameters; understand their evolution according to the different strategic options of the general management.

• • Build a simulation that can be used by third parties. Easy to use, straightforward interface.

• • Apply game theory to this simulation system.

• • Test the model and draw strategic conclusions for all stakeholders.

• Involve other students by training them in the basics of simulation. Evaluate the bias of non-constructor users.