Rising uncertainty in the global business environment has once again pushed crisis management simulations to the forefront of executive education. Such simulations, which initially gained prominence during the Covid-19 pandemic, are now being driven by geopolitical instability, cyber threats and supply-chain disruption.
Business schools say demand is growing again as companies seek to better prepare senior leaders for prolonged turbulence.
“Geopolitical uncertainty, unfortunately, has become our new reality – and has significantly added to environmental turbulence. And that risk is something companies need to manage in order to avoid a crisis later,” says professor Miriam Müthel at WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management in Germany.
For participants, these simulations reveal not only how they think under pressure, but also how they react emotionally — lessons that could prove vital when the next real crisis arrives.
“Simulations allow executives to experience cognitive overload while analyzing a crisis, and to realize how they are reacting to it,” adds Müthel.
Executive education courses expand simulations to reflect evolving crisis scenarios
Several business schools, including WHU, are using simulations to train executives to navigate uncertainty, disruption and full-blown crisis situations.
In Switzerland, IMD Business School has launched a five-week online crisis management course that helps executives anticipate disruption, lead through uncertainty and manage trust.
The program blends conceptual frameworks with applied exercises, including work on bias and stakeholder communication. It also offers one-to-one coaching, with each participant developing a tailored crisis-response plan over the duration of the course.
At the University of Georgia’s Terry College, a three-day executive certificate in crisis and risk management trains leaders to manage the full cycle of disruption. The program combines case studies, peer learning and a “war room” simulation with an emphasis on decision-making, reputation protection and stakeholder communication.
Business school educators say crisis scenarios have evolved significantly over time, and simulations are being redesigned accordingly. Before the pandemic, exercises often focused on contained events such as product recalls.
“Post-pandemic, I would conceive scenarios that reflect geopolitical tensions and how that impacts organizations’ operations,” says professor Augustine Pang at Singapore Management University’s Lee Kong Chian School of Business.
Exercises now incorporate the complex interaction of politics, economics, media dynamics, activism and culture.
“Training has evolved to address new risks, by shifting the focus from solely media relations to managing corporate reputation in the digital economy,” says associate professor Yeo Su Lin, also at SMU.
Taking executive education beyond the classroom
Simulations expose executives to pressures that cannot easily be replicated in lectures. In cyberattack simulations, for example, participants may face information overload under severe time pressure.
“In a more traditional classroom setting, we can teach executives more broadly how to analyze a crisis. However, it is more difficult to prepare students for experiencing cognitive overload,” Müthel explains.
For many participants, the experience is eye-opening.
“Many managers believe they will stay cool in a crisis situation, only to realize that they hyperventilate and end up missing important information. Simulations thus add a self-experiential layer to the educational journey, which makes their studies more powerful,” she adds.
For Pang, realism is the key advantage. “Executives gain hands-on experience and practical skills from crisis simulation exercises that traditional classroom teaching often cannot provide,” he says.
Participants are immersed in lifelike scenarios that test decision-making, communication and teamwork under pressure. Yeo highlights another takeaway.
“Through these simulation exercises, many come to realize the importance of building reputation capital – an asset that helps organizations better weather crises,” she says.
Executives also come away with a deeper appreciation of the challenges in managing corporate narratives in today’s digital economy.
“They begin to see that crisis management is not solely the responsibility of the corporate communications team, but a shared responsibility across the entire organization.”
