Case Study: Training Project Teams

Project teams in the pharmaceutical industry are usually comprised of multiple experts from various fields such as biology, chemistry, IT, business, etc. Running a project in the pharmaceutical industry places high demands on the team members. Projects usually run for a long time period, with project team members being distributed across different locations or even countries. Differences in mental models as well as a lack of face to face interaction make it difficult for project teams to succeed, as cultural and personal barriers hamper communication and cooperation.

In order to improve teamwork and decision making, we designed a unique training for a Swiss-based pharmaceutical company. In the training, project teams are given the task of managing a computer-simulated cosmetics company. The computer-simulated company is divided into three different departments which are physically separated. Each department receives only a fraction of the total information and may decide only on a subset of the issues at hand. Thus, the departments can operate autonomously. In order to succeed, however, the business game requires close coordination between the three departments.

Through the course of the training, participants rotate between the different departments, experiencing how the business evolves from the perspective of R&D, marketing, and production / HR. In between playing stages, reflection stages are scheduled in which participants reflect on their experiences in the business game. Transfer sessions are used to discuss implications of the training for the everyday work of participants.

The simulation-based training has proven a highly unique, highly effective measure for team building and training of multidisciplinary project teams. The training is conducted on a regular basis since 2001.