simulation page

Product Overview

A ranching family, owner of the Fiddler Livestock Company, faces an important decision. A loan was coming due and to convince the banks to refinance the loan, the family needed to bring in substantially more money, and quickly. Its revenue-increasing options included opening an endangered species reserve, leasing ranch land for oil drilling, or expanding livestock production. The fate of the ranch and its operations moving forward rested in the hands of this full family council, spanning three generations, now present in the cookhouse. Without a consensus, the Fiddler Livestock Company, along with the family relationships, was in danger of being destroyed.

Learning Objectives

Expose business students to a unique business situation in which family dynamics collide with an ethically charged decision. Have students carefully evaluate the options presented for saving an organization or company while also considering the biases of the decision makers. When multiple decision makers sit at the table, a wide set of values and goals must come to bear. Presents a good opportunity for stakeholder analysis. Broadens the scope of business decision making by moving from the boardroom to a less typical setting: the open range.