The beer game: from a simple upgrade to a global ambition
Logbook entry nº1 — July 28th, 2020
Why we started
We started in February ideating of the Beer Distribution Game to teach blockchain to students. A few hours of ideating, developing, (play-)testing and presenting down the road, we (Chris & I) went a lot further and crazier than initially expected.
Our base of inspiration is the Beer Distribution Game. Created in 1960 by Jay Wright Forrester at the MIT Sloan School of Management, this game intended initially to experience typical coordination problems of a supply chain process. (check wiki for more detailed info).
It didn’t take us long to realise how great this game was showing complex dynamics in a playful way, with some simple learning outcomes and takeaways for participants of all backgrounds
On top of this all, we know from experience that applying new technologies is often too theoretical and tends to go in the direction of “how does the tech work?” rather than “what does it do for you?”. Trying to make a new concept practical and accessible is thus one of the most challenging step of all in innovation.
This is why we wanted to make a simulation that deals with actual problems from actual industries in order to look at it from their point of view. And if this way to tackle the challenge works, we will all be able to see the actual impact blockchain could have on problems our supply chain world faces currently.
Where we arrived
We initially worked on a tabletop version, very much like the original one but with some tweaks to give participants the feeling of what it could mean to actually use blockchain technology in a supply chain process.
And then, like for many around us, our plans shifted because of the biggest pandemic in a century: We had to go online.
So from a bunch of coloured papers, we went on Excel, none of us being skilled enough in programming. The goal was simple: create an online version of the game with the tweaks we had in mind for the physical version. We did it, presented it to several potentially interested persons, and they loved it!
Practically speaking, we now have:
- An excel version of the Beer Distribution Game
- A re-worked version of the game flow
- A base of communication material to present the game
Where we are going
So why am I sharing all this fun stuff to you? Because, as said earlier, we were given a chance to convert this great potential of an educative game into an actual workshop that will be used by universities and professionals.
So things are getting very serious.
We therefore have a plan to have the game working by the end of August, integrated in a workshop with a comprehensive learning journey made of clear learning outcomes. Learning outcomes on which we are actually working those days. And while those learning outcomes aren’t finalized yet, we do have the one main keyword we will build the first version of the game on:
Sharing information
A new vision of sharing
With this game, we want to explore new ways of sharing key elements of our supply chain. With for now 4 key terms to explore, we want to explore how to share information, finance, risks & responsibilities.
We believe the Beer Distribution Game to be a wonderful base to ideate around how we could share those key aspects with in mind the dream that we could radically shift the way things are done nowadays in the world of supply chain.
So this is it for now. We will keep you updated very soon, and if the meantime you have ideas, suggestions or comments, don’t hesitate to reach out in the comments!
