Operations Strategy with Paper Boats.

When participants in introductory business courses encounter the term "operations strategy," it is not easy for them to appreciate what operations strategy is about, or how it fits with overall business strategy. This game breaks down highfalutin jargon into experiences that participants can readily relate to. While working in teams to make paper boats, and competing with other teams, participants realize that they have intuitively engaged in the formulation and implementation of their team's operations strategy. They begin to appreciate the interplay between the customer's requirements, their own team's strengths, the "competitive priorities" that their team must emphasize, and the tradeoffs inherent in making these decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]