Research Center for Business Simulation

This research aims to further develop the work conducted at this research center (April 2023–March 2026) under the theme “Designing and Managing Sustainable Service Systems.” Building on this foundation, the study seeks to clarify how decision-making, improvement, and learning can be realized in service settings characterized by human resource constraints and uncertainty, through gaming simulations addressing human–technology coexistence. Inheriting the center’s prior focus on identifying “satisficing” states that are feasible in practice rather than pursuing theoretically optimal solutions, this research aims to construct a design framework that enables experiential examination of the dynamic interactions between human and technological elements.
The significance of this research is threefold. First, by positioning gaming simulation as its core methodology, the study enables dynamic examination of role allocation and coexistence conditions between humans and technology, thereby providing sustainable design guidelines for service DX and operational reform that do not rely solely on full automation or efficiency maximization. Second, the research advances prior efforts on AI-supported facilitation in gaming simulations by systematizing operational methods that encompass facilitator development and player decision-making support. Third, through collaborative research with private-sector partners, the study develops and validates gaming simulations robust enough for practical use, while also advancing methodologies for gaming design and implementation using generative AI, as well as developing and evaluating training systems that enhance employees’ decision-making skills based on unstructured workplace data.
Through these efforts, this research aims to elucidate design principles for decision-making, learning, and improvement in which humans and technology collaborate, thereby contributing to both service research and business simulation research, and establishing a sustainable framework for the application of gaming simulations in educational and practical contexts.