As businesses become more dynamic, relying solely on traditional learning methods that focus primarily on theory and information transfer is no longer sufficient. Organisations and their team members need immersive and action-oriented learning experiences that allow them to build their leadership capacity, strategic thinking skills, and collaboration skills, and enhance their ability to adapt and transform the way they deliver business solutions, directly impacting their organisation’s bottom line. Business simulations have become an important tool as they offer the opportunity to be put in live, fast-paced, high-risk situations, allowing participants to learn from their experience, develop decision-making abilities, work collaboratively, become more adaptable and reflect and learn how to improve their behaviours for continued long-term career success.
In this article, we will review some of the top business simulation experiences that are currently being leveraged by organisations throughout the world to enhance the leadership capabilities of their current and future leaders, as well as have the ability to build high-performing teams. The experiences we will explore include:
1) The Quest for King Solomon’s Mines (KSM)
2) FreshBiz
3) Self Leadership and Organisational Alignment – Square Wheels Round Wheels
4) SimuRise Experiential Learning Workshops (SELW)
5) Diamonds of Amazonia (DA)
6) The Search for The Lost Dutchman’s Gold Mine (LDGM)
Why Business Simulations Matter in Corporate Learning
Today, companies must cope with an increasingly multiple and complex set of issues. Successful Digital Transformation; Cross-Functional Contacts and Management; Changes in the Role of the Leader; Real-Time Decision-Making (ie, Agile). The typical Classroom Style of Teaching does not adequately prepare learners to meet these challenges.
Business Simulations Offer:
- Learning by doing rather than passive consumption
- The Ability to Experiment Safely with Real-World Consequences
- To Reflect Deeply on Leadership Style, Bias and Decision-Making Patterns
- To Immediately Implement Their Experience in the Workplace
Business Simulations Do Not Only Teach Concepts; Business Simulations Change Our Mindset.
1. The Quest for King Solomon’s Mines (KSM)
Best for:
Growth Mindset, Playing to win, asking for help and collaboration.
The Quest for King Solomon’s Mines is a powerful experiential simulation that immerses participants in a complex environment requiring collaboration, planning, and strategic execution. Teams must navigate uncertainty, resource constraints, and interdependencies to achieve collective success.
Key Learning Outcomes:
- Understanding how fragmented decision-making impacts overall enterprise performance
- Strengthening proactive communication and inter-team coordination
- Building an enterprise perspective beyond functional boundaries
- Improving decision quality under pressure and ambiguity
- Reinforcing responsibility for shared organisational outcomes
KSM is particularly effective for leadership teams who need to see the “big picture” and understand how individual decisions ripple across the organisation.
For more information, check this video:
Check out this Testimonial video:
2. FreshBiz
Best for:
Entrepreneurial thinking, multidimensional thinking mindsets, creativity, proactivity and Business Acumen attributes
Through a fresh perspective on Money, Value Creation and Intrapreneurship.
FreshBiz challenges participants’ traditional views of how to view Profit, Competition and Scarcity, by providing Peers, Collaboration and Innovation through the lens of Abundance, Collaboration and Innovators.
Key Learning Outcomes of FreshBiz include:
- Understand Multidimensional thinking, leveraging creativity and proactivity
- Shift Thinking from Scarcity to Opportunity Focused Thinking.
- Fostering Innovation and Experimentation.
- Become Agile in Business.
FreshBiz will help organisations promote Intrapreneurship, develop their managers as business owners, and help increase their Financial Decision-Making Capabilities.
For more information, check this video:
3. Self Leadership and Organisational Alignment – Square Wheels to Round Wheels
Best For:
Maximising Effectiveness Through Change Management, Continuous Improvement and Mindset Shifts.
With an emphasis on practical learning, this simulation creates a powerful visual to demonstrate how often organisations become ‘stuck’ in less-than-optimal approaches even when more effective alternatives exist. Participants will have a chance to see how resistance to change, inflexible organisational structures and fear of change prevent the ability to consider all avenues of progress toward achieving goals.
Key Learning Objectives include:
- Understanding the concept of Organisation Inertia.
- Recognising how habitual actions limit potential for future success.
- Identifying the Roadblocks to achieving the said business objectives
- Encouraging people to embrace and be open to changes and new ways of working.
Square Wheels to Round Wheels ® is a fantastic way to accelerate transformation efforts by providing teams with the tools to move from awareness through to action.
4. SimuRise Experiential Learning Workshop (SELW)
Best For:
Building Self Awareness, building future-ready skills, and Personal Effectiveness
SimuRise Experiential Learning Workshop is focused on the internal aspects of Leadership – values, purpose and alignment with self (internal organisation). It allows participants to discover how values and purpose inform their decisions and behaviours, and how these values and purpose create team dynamics and influence performance.
Key Learning Outcomes:
- Increased Self-Awareness
- Increased Emotional Intelligence
- Improved Interpersonal Relationships
- Increased Clarity of Purpose
SELW has been designed for leadership development programs that are intended to develop 50+ highly engaging future-ready skills such as problem solving, decision making, working together, first time right, analytical thinking, etc
For more information, check this video:
5. Diamonds of Amazonia (Virtual)
Best For:
Strategic Thinking, Productivity, maximising resources and maximising mindsets
Diamonds of Amazonia (Virtual Business Simulation) immerses participants within a pressure-filled environment that stresses collaborative and ethical decision-making. The conflict between achieving individual goals and collective success is demonstrated within the game.
Key Learning Outcomes:
- Understanding the impact of thinking strategically
- Enhancing Collaboration
- Enhancing productivity
- Maximising resources and mindsets
DA is used extensively in leadership development to bring to the surface actual behaviours exhibited in a pressure-filled environment, allowing leaders to reflect on powerful real-life examples of how they act under pressure.
For more information, check this video:
6. The Search for The Lost Dutchman’s Gold Mine (LDGM)
Best for:
Strategic Thinking, Execution, Trust, and Cross-functional Collaboration
LDGM is a deeply immersive board-based simulation that mirrors the complexities of real organisations. Leaders experience firsthand how siloed decisions, short-term optimisation, and lack of alignment can sabotage enterprise goals.
Key Learning Outcomes:
- Seeing the organisation as a connected system
- Understanding interdependencies
- Strengthening strategic alignment
- Improving cross-functional Collaboration
This simulation is particularly effective for mid to senior leadership teams and cross-functional groups navigating transformation.
For more information, check this video:
For more information, check this testimonial video:
Why Leading Organizations Choose Simulation-Based Learning
Organisations in all industry sectors are moving to business simulations because they provide new performance results that traditional training cannot achieve. Below are four of the key advantages that business simulation training provides over traditional forms of training:
1. More than Just Awareness
Business simulations reveal how participants will behave under pressure. The participants experience true leadership rather than just learning about it.
2. Accelerated Capability Development
Immersive experiences greatly compress years of experience and knowledge into just a few short hours. Consequently, participants see accelerated capability building through immersive experiences.
3. Increased Level of Engagement
Business simulations are designed in a way that actively engages participants. As a result, a higher-quality engagement level is achieved and retained through gamified, energetic formats.
4. Linking Directly to Business Results
Through business simulations, organisations can visualise the connection between decision-making, behaviour and performance results.
How SimuRise Delivers Impact Through Business Simulations
At SimuRise, we utilise business simulations not simply as an isolated event, but as part of a product lifecycle approach that supports your organisational objectives. Our methodology incorporates the use of a robust learning experience, followed by continuous reflection and developed action plans, thus enabling organisations to translate their newfound insights into actual workplace impact.
Through our simulation-based expedition, organisations gain the following capabilities:
- Working in collaborative ways,
- Strategically thinking,
- Acting with responsibility,
- Making confident decisions,
- Being culturally sensitive.
Our process assists in not only helping teams to learn, but also allowing teams to transform.
Conclusion: The Future of Corporate Learning is Experiential Learning
In an era where agility, collaboration, and innovation define success, organisations must move beyond traditional training. Business simulations like KSM, FreshBiz, SELW, Diamonds of Amazonia, Square Wheels to Round Wheels, and LDGM offer immersive, high-impact learning experiences that shape real-world behaviours.
For corporate companies looking to build future-ready leaders and high-performing teams, simulations are no longer optional; they are essential.
Wishing you a powerful, purpose-driven, and transformative 2026–2027.
For more information, reach out to us at marketing@simurise.com | 0845-208-4442 /
0932-498-0145.
