How Not to Run a War Game – Lessons Learned from an Industry Vet

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How Not to Run a War Game
A Complimentary Webinar from Aurora WDC
12:00 Noon Eastern /// Wednesday 26 October 2016
~ featuring ~
Alysse Nockels Michel Bernaiche

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Alysse is a Principal Engineer and Director of Competitive Intelligence at Intel Security with 15+ years of
experience working in information technology. Previously, Alysse was a security engineer at Lockheed
Martin where she designed shipboard networks and facilitated Navy security accreditation. She
transitioned into CI and was responsible for forecasting competitor proposal strategies and deriving bid
prices for multi-billion dollar competitive government contracts. Alysse has a master's and bachelor's
degree in IT, held speaker and thought leader roles at numerous CI conferences, earned CIP-II certification,
served on the SCIP Board of Directors, and is Pragmatic Marketing certified. She resides in Prescott,
Wisconsin and is an avid Packers fan!
Email: alysse.nockels@intel.com
The Intelligence Collaborative is the online learning and networking community powered by Aurora WDC, our clients, partners and
other friends and dedicated to exploring how to apply intelligence methods to solve real-world business problems.
Apply for a free 30-day trial membership at http://IntelCollab.com or learn more about Aurora WDC
at http://AuroraWDC.com.
Alysse Nockels

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So, What Exactly is a War Game?
► War Game 101:
► A war game is a simulation of moves and countermoves within a given market. It is a tool used to try out
potential strategies, pressure test the market, and predict competitor action.
► Participants are divided into teams:
► Each team immerses themselves into their assignment throughout the entire game
► The Market Team throws out scenarios to see how each team reacts
► After the game, you create a comprehensive After Action Report (AAR) to document the game’s findings
Competitor 1 Competitor 2 Competitor 3 Competitor 4 Home Team Market Team
Represent their companies and build strategies given the
timeframe and conditions set by the market team
Represents
your company
Represents external critics and
acts as the judge and jury
during the game.
► Proceed with Caution…
► A war game can make or break your career:
► When done well, opens doors for new opportunities
► But done poorly, don’t ever expect to run another one

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A Little Background for Context
► Intel Security’s competitive landscape is a mess
► Hundreds of competitors, ankle biters everywhere…
► This didn’t happen overnight
► Took 7 years to convince management they needed it
► First ever business unit war game
► Equate that to ‘a ridiculous amount of work’
► Short turnaround time
► Needed to pull this together for an upcoming strategy meeting
► Hired Aurora WDC to help
► Knew we needed professional assistance

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A Few Pop Culture References…
►Since this is a ‘what not to do’ presentation, why not tie it
to movies that also showcase what not to do:

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How Not to Run a War Game
Making the
Case
Do it by
yourself
Use it as a
‘team-building’
exercise
Give up at the
first ‘no’
Invest in a
consultant
Scope it for
actionability
& ROI
This takes
patience!

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How Not to Run a War Game
Preparing for
the Game
Allocate a few
weeks to prep
Let anyone
play the game
Rely on the
sponsor for
guidance
More like 2+
months!
Teams are
everything
Take charge
and own this

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How Not to Run a War Game
Running the
Game
Have a strict
game plan
Go easy on
the ‘home
team’
Put the
sponsor on the
market team
Let it play
naturally
Brutal honesty
works the best
Put ‘em on the
home team

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How Not to Run a War Game
Summarizing
Results
Quick delivery
over quality
File the AAR in
a drawer
Get frustrated
if no actions
are taken
It’s all about
the details
Share broadly
Persistently
remind people
of the results

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How Not to Run a War Game
Making the
Case
Do it by
yourself
Hide the true
costs
Give up at first
‘no’
Preparing for
the Game
Allocate a few
weeks to prep
Let anyone
play the game
Rely on
sponsor for
guidance
Running the
Game
Manipulate
game results
Be nice to the
teams
Put the
sponsor on the
market team
Summarizing
Results
Quick delivery
over quality
Cut-&-Paste
team results
Distribute only
to game
participants
Invest in a
consultant
Scope it for
actionability
& ROI
This takes
patience!
More like 2+
months!
Teams are
everything
Take charge
and own this
Let it play
naturally
Brutal honesty
works the best
Put ‘em on the
home team
It’s all about
the details
Share broadly
Persistently
remind people
of the results
Summary: How to Properly Run a War Game

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Thank you!
Now how about a little Q&A?
Email: alysse.nockels@intel.com
The Intelligence Collaborative is the online learning and networking community powered by Aurora WDC, our clients, partners and
other friends and dedicated to exploring how to apply intelligence methods to solve real-world business problems.
Apply for a free 30-day trial membership at http://IntelCollab.com or learn more about Aurora WDC
at http://AuroraWDC.com. See you next time!