Evolving and improving a board game to enhance business acumen

Undergraduate University students training to be future accountants have a clear career path ahead of them in South Africa as members of the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA). Their future employers have recognized a knowledge gap in terms of their insights into the world of business. A key industry employer and training company partnered with the University to develop a bespoke board game to develop their business acumen using a gamified learning experience. On game day 350-550 students (depending on the year) simultaneously compete in groups of 6 with a game master at each table. After the conclusion, students receive questionnaires soliciting their feedback and suggestions for improvement. The researcher and other organisers' also have an annual reflection and brainstorming meeting where feedback is discussed, consolidated and incorporated. The open-ended student feedback from 2015-2019 were thematically analysed and mapped to iterative improvements. The study reveals that the concerns of students and game masters are vested in their own experiences and perspectives. Themes revolve around students concern for procedural justice related to time allocations and the influence of luck and potential variations between game masters on their final results. The findings from the researcher and organisers' reflexive standpoint relate to improving the flow of the game and building in mechanisms to support student preparation and mastery of game play. Questionnaires soliciting feedback from students are influenced by self-reporting bias. However, this feedback stretches across years and therefor data triangulation plays a mitigating role. The research offers an overview of the evolution of a board game designed to facilitate student mastery of business concepts. In the emerging market context of South Africa the board game is a novel approach to teaching and assessment and creates both excitement and anxiety amongst students.