Patient Zero

Leadership and Team Decision Making Simulation

Simulation Overview

Participants act as national decision-makers confronting a novel crisis without expert solutions. Through moral trade-offs, incomplete data, and time pressure, learners experience the tension between values and outcomes while developing resilience, ethical reasoning, and teamwork under uncertainty. The exercise illuminates distinctions between adaptive challenges and technical problems, promoting reflective, evidence-based leadership learning.

Players

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Multiplayer

Single Player


Languages

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English


Simulation Time

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Total Time: 2 hours

Intro 5 minutes, Gameplay 1 hour, Debrief 1 hour


Accessibility

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WCAG 2.0 Compliance


Price

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$165 per person

The Story

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Learners take on the roles of high-ranking government officials as an unfolding zombie pandemic grips their nation. Before the crisis escalates, they must collaboratively forge a coherent national identity, defining their government, economy, and core values to allocate critical resources. Over five intense, timed events, they will confront severe moral dilemmas and must make these choices with incomplete information and under the pressure of profound disagreement within their own team, forcing them to lead effectively when every choice involves monumental consequences for their country. At the end of the simulation, learners are informed of the state of their country, including infection rate, public morale, and the likelihood of collapse, and they must then rebound from the losses and setbacks of the pandemic to lead their country safely into the future.

Core Competencies

Resilience

Ethical Leadership and Responsibility

Adaptability

Decision Making Under Pressure

Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

Conflict Resolution

Learning Objectives

Apply knowledge of the adaptive leadership framework to solve complex problems with incomplete information and no historical solution.
Learn about typical team dynamics and create capacity within teams in real-time to cope with problems that spark profound disagreement.
Explore the tension created between stated values and actual behavior.
Rebound from losses and setbacks by building resilience.

Resources to Power Your Simulation

This simulation comes with a Facilitation Guide along with 1:1 facilitator training and free trial accounts.

Available with this simulation

Quick Start Guide

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Facilitation Guide

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Debrief Slides

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Student Video

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Free Trial & Demo

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