McDonald uses simulation to prep hospitality students for real life

Royal Roads University is known for its experiential approach to post-secondary education. From business leadership to climate adaptation, from conflict analysis to disaster and emergency management, RRU aims to bridge the gap between theory and experience, between academia and the working world.

In the case of its School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, an online simulator used in one class that allows students to manage simulated businesses such as golf courses has proved effective in preparing them for a time in their careers when such properties, and the money it takes to run them, are the real thing.

That tool, and the class it was part of, was so impactful that students nominated their instructor, Moira McDonald, for the Kelly Outstanding Teacher Award; she was named co-winner with Guy Nasmyth.

McDonald, who has worked at RRU since 2016, is an assistant professor and program head in the Bachelor of Arts in International Hotel Management program as well as school director for the School of Tourism and Hospitality Management. She used the simulator developed by Praxar in Strategy in Action, a fourth-year course in the BAIHM program.

“The students were generously competing with each other while in class and on the global stage” — in fact, they cracked the top five schools internationally.

How does it work? McDonald says the students had to manage every aspect of a virtual golf club, from the course itself to the restaurant and retail space within it. They handled hiring, both long-term and seasonal; capital investments; sales; payroll and human resources, bringing to the exercise everything they learned in other aspects of the program, including marketing, finances and managerial accounting, and ensuring its operation was handled in a sustainable manner.

The Kelly award nomination committee noted McDonald’s “imaginative use of the simulation” as well as her ability to “maximize its value to… students.” The committee also lauded the emphasis on teambuilding in the course.

McDonald, who says she was “over the moon” when she learned of the honour, says teamwork is critical because on day one on any job, each individual becomes part of a team and every operation depends on everyone pulling in the same direction. That’s why she says it’s important to build teamwork skills, including empathy and humility, in the class.

“Teamwork learning here, in an academic environment, is safe, fairly risk-free,” McDonald says. “The students can find out where they’re weaker and improve or they can find out where they’re great and can amplify. They have all this opportunity here in the classroom to figure out who they are as a teammate.”

She adds: “It’s really exciting to watch when it all clicks.”

She also notes how much knowledge students, many of whom arrive with experience in the hospitality industry, bring to the school to share with classmates and instructors.

“The students, because of their experiences, they have thousands of stories that can be shared that amplify those experiences in the curriculum. That’s our secret sauce — that we’re able to use those adult learning experiences and amplify the curriculum as a result of it.”

The Kelly Outstanding Teaching Awards are open to all Royal Roads University faculty members who are actively engaged in teaching for-credit or non-credit courses at RRU. A call for nominations is sent out each spring to faculty, staff, and students. Learn more about the awards and see past recipients.

Learn more about programs in the Bachelor of Arts in International Hotel Management or request more information.