Three years after its inception, today sees the official launch of an innovative new board game designed to teach young people of all ages about the importance of today’s supply chain in global commerce.
The game – Business on the Move – aims to inspire, excite and educate young people from the age of 9 to 19, and beyond. The aim of the game is for players to move different products from China to their UK customers by land, sea and air, as quickly, as profitably and as responsibly as they can. In so doing, they are faced with taking decisions similar to those made regularly by many businesses, such as: “How do I meet the delivery deadline?”; “Will I make a profit?”; “How can I improve my supply chain?”; and “How can I cut my carbon footprint?”
The game has been devised by two former Business Studies teachers – Andy Page and Pat Smedley – who set up their Very Enterprising Community Interest Company, a social enterprise, in 2011 to create a versatile supply chain game that could be used by teachers across age groups, school subjects and ability levels. Business on the Move has already won an award under the Royal Bank of Scotland’s Inspiring Enterprise initiative and from the UnLtd charity which supports social entrepreneurs.
Extensive trials of the game in more than 30 schools as well as businesses have proved both its relevance to today’s commercial world and the classroom, as Pat explained: “Research shows that active learning improves students’ understanding and retention of information and can be very effective in developing higher order cognitive skills such as problem solving and critical thinking.”
To date, nearly 600 young people, teachers and supply chain professionals have played Business on the Move, with another 15,000 young people projected to play over the next 12 months. Andy and Pat’s vision is that by 2020 over 100,000 people will have played the game.
To make the game a reality the initiative has the backing of 50 sponsors from across the business spectrum, including banks, major retailers, logistics service providers and others. The backing from these Partners will enable over 1,800 of the 2,800 games produced to be distributed free-of-charge and with training to some 500 schools across the UK. Maureen Barwell, HR Director, from one of the Platinum-level sponsors CHEP UK & Ireland, commented: “CHEP is impressed by the way Business on the Move manages to combine the sophistication of the supply chain with the simplicity and fun any game needs to work.”
One of the dimensions that make the game particularly different is that the sponsoring businesses feature in the game as themselves, playing the same role in the game that they do in the real supply chain. Sue Green, Programme Manager at Skills for Logistics commented: “Business on the Move is an excellent learning tool that, through real world examples and game play, raises awareness of the global supply chain and helps inspire and attract young people to the exciting career opportunities available in the modern logistics sector.”
The national launch of Business on the Move, taking place at the headquarters of the National Union of Teachers in central London, features pupils from Ashmead Primary School in Lewisham, students from Mount Carmel Catholic College for Girls in Islington and apprentices from Norbert Dentressangle playing the game, demonstrating to more than 100 invited guests from across the supply chain just how to run a successful business.
You can see the game in action and read the comments of teachers and young people of all ages by visiting the game’s website at www.businessonthemove.org
Comments are closed.