Case Study
Officers’ Association Partnership
Written by
Elton Daddow
Commercial & Training Director, Immersive Edge
Preface
Elton Daddow
In 1920 Field Marshal The Earl Haig established The Officers Association Scotland to help relieve distress of officers and their families following the Great War. It was founded as an independent charity in Scotland and, since then, its services have evolved to meet the needs of its clients, providing valuable employment advice and guidance alongside continued welfare support.
As part of their provision all ranks are welcomed onto any of their training, networking and employer events across Scotland.
Through discussions with Immersive Edge’s Founder Tim Dew in 2021, Officers’ Association Scotland joined forces for business simulations training held twice annually at Poppy Scotland’s New Haigh House residence in Edinburgh, Scotland, to support the Association’s overarching mission to provide lifelong support, resources, employment training and financial welfare assistance to officers and their families throughout their transition to civilian life and beyond.
This is a case study which outlines the exciting, rewarding, ambitious and fruitful partnership that has developed throughout several years of successful business simulations training delivery with Officers’ Association members and staff.
Contents
- Bringing Innovation to Military Transition Training
- Simulation Delivery: Agreed Approach
- Simulation Delivery: How it Works
- Meet the Facilitators
- What Did I Learn?
- Facilitator Reflections
- Officers’ Association Scotland Comments
- Ready to Find Out More? Get in Touch!
Bringing innovation to military transition training
Transitioning from a military career to the civilian workforce presents a unique set of challenges, including cultural adjustments, unfamiliar corporate structures, and a need to translate military skills into business language.
Business simulations offer a powerful tool to support this transition by providing veterans with a hands-on, immersive learning experience that mirrors the complexities and dynamics of the civilian workplace. These simulations replicate real-world business scenarios, allowing participants to practice key competencies such as strategic planning, team leadership, financial decision-making, and cross-functional collaboration in a risk-free environment.
For many veterans, the structured and mission-driven nature of the military differs significantly from the often ambiguous and fast-paced environment of the private sector. Business simulations help bridge this gap by contextualizing corporate challenges in a way that aligns with the military mindset—through clearly defined goals, real-time feedback, and opportunities to lead and make decisions under pressure. Participants can see the immediate impact of their decisions on simulated business outcomes, reinforcing learning and helping them build confidence in their ability to contribute meaningfully in civilian roles.
Simulation Delivery: agreed approach
Running with 5-15 participants in person for each session, Officers’ Association Scotland members are given an introductory online overview presentation of the business simulations including:
- What experiential learning is, and its many benefits
- The science behind Immersive Edge simulations
- Gate of Acceptance: Interoperability of key business functions and how they drive productivity effectively together through collaborative, effective teamworking
- Clearly defined learning outcomes for service leavers
- Overview of the TeamWork.Inc & GoGreen.Inc business simulations for respective groups, depending on which base simulation is being played.
The group are shown a facilitator-guided simulation walkthrough level, with preparation time to read the company handbook and onboarding guides before starting level 1 of the simulation gameplay, and running their own business for the first 26 weeks of trading in 26 minutes.
After level 1, teams were shown key metrics about their performance and given the opportunity to reflect on the experience during discussion time, then strategizing before playing level 2, going around the experiential learning cycle again before a closing level 3 and longer wrap up discussion to tie in the full learnings from the day into tangible actions to support the participants’ transition to the civilian world of work.
Simulation Delivery: how it works
Immersive Edge business simulations are designed for 5-15 people, to be played over 3 levels of gameplay, with reflective periods between levels, built on David Kolb’s Experiential Learning Cycle, explained in more detail here.
Participants are assigned the below roles within the simulation, with 1-3 players in each role/department.
A really integral part of the accelerated learning in the simulations is that when the game starts, 26 weeks of company trading happens in just 26 minutes!
During the gameplay, facilitators are observing people, individual behaviors and how they’re going about doing things and performing tasks. Are they good at persuading people of the priorities? Have they understood the complexity of the problem? Are they working as a team, utilizing the brains around them to help solve the problem? What strategy is emerging? How are people communicating with one another? Is it effective? What company culture is emerging? Who is showing leadership qualities?
Meet the facilitators from Immersive Edge Limited
Founder, 1972-2023
Commercial & Training Director
Business Manager
What did I learn?
“Immersive Edge is the perfect solution for anyone transitioning from the military into the civilian area of work. This Business Simulation training expanded my understanding of the complexities of how a business works but if you think it’s just a day of power point presentations and a tutor talking, you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
This extremely fun and interactive training is delivered in such a way that you’ll be learning whilst not realizing you are. But that’s not all, you’ll be having lots of fun at the same time. It’s just the perfect way to learn.
From CEO decision making down to budgeting for a company and running your own marketing campaigns, I now understand just how a business needs to operate for success.
This interactive educational learning is delivered in a safe and fun environment, that is a must for anyone transitioning out of the military.”
Karl Sparks – Co-founder & Director at KDS Property Networks
“The most important thing I learned from the day was the importance of communication across all disciplines. Whilst I have previously understood this from an intellectual level, actually ‘practicing what was preached’ absolutely reinforced the power of that message. I suppose it is similar to a picture painting a thousand words but, in this case, it is actions that prove a thousand words!
The skills and understanding that I received from the Business Simulation day have given me a solid foundation on understanding how a ‘good’ organisation/business should operate. No matter what aspirations someone has for transitioning from the military, I believe the understanding gained from this day will serve them well and enable them to show a wider awareness of any organisation/business they are looking to join.
I think any organisation (private or public) could use this sort of training to better develop their associates to deepen their understanding of what makes business’s tick!”
Julie MacD
“On reflection I learnt a lot about my own team working ability, the differences and overlaps between the military and civilian work practices, what skills I currently have and what I lack and need to work on during transition.
I have not attended a event that provides such a steep learning curve in such a short period, transfers such a volume of knowledge and information, and remains enjoyable.”
Hugh Wilson – Health & Safety Advisor, Local Government
Facilitator reflections
Wendy Zwart
Business Manager
Immersive Edge
“What I remember most about the sessions with the Officers’ Association Scotland members is that they are highly qualified in communication, discipline, teamwork and organisation. They definitely don’t need to learn that.
What the members benefit most from, is help with how to apply those qualities to the environment of businesses. Although the business language is different from military language, with some specific sector jargon here and there that can be difficult to understand for any new employee, businesses are not too different from the military. The core is the same: working together with different departments and elements like skills, capacity, cashflow and R&D to accomplish success.
Playing the simulation gave the groups insight into the impact actions from one department can have on the others, and on the company as a whole. And they worked together to overcome challenges by communicating and taking the time to strategize, not only taking the financial implications into account, but also paying attention to ethics and sustainability.”
Elton Daddow
Commercial & Training Director
Immersive Edge
“One thing you know when you walk into a room with Officers’ Association Scotland members is that you’re walking into a room of people who will already have excellent communication, collaboration, organisation, discipline and determined approaches to making a success of any challenge they are presented with – and that has been the case with every group and individual I’ve encountered during these sessions.
As a facilitator in this client-facing scenario it is therefore vital that the value we bring is delivered directly via the learning outcomes of transferring those already very well honed skills into the corporate world, giving them a grounding in terms of how business functions operate and the decision-making and interoperability of those departments to be able to contribute to proactive and agile business performance as we progress through the day.
All groups have adapted to this environment with great aplomb and always with a very good camaraderie to overcome challenges and support each other to succeed, as you’d expect. Bravo!”
Officers’ Association Scotland comments
“The Officers’ Association Scotland recognizes the exceptional value of Immersive Edge’s business simulation training for service leavers and veterans.
Their dynamic, fast-paced simulations provide a uniquely hands-on experience that builds real-world business skills—such as leadership, strategic thinking, financial awareness and effective communication—within a safe and engaging environment.
For those transitioning from military to civilian careers, this training bridges the gap with practical insight into how organizations operate, empowering veterans to confidently apply their strengths in leadership and teamwork to the commercial world.”
Interested in finding out more?
If you’re seeking a really innovative way to support those transitioning from the military service to the civilian workplace, get in touch with us to find out how our facilitated business simulations provide a structured environment where veterans can develop and refine essential business skills, such as strategic thinking, leadership, and decision-making, in a context that mirrors real-world corporate challenges whilst learning about how core business functions operate effectively together.
Sometimes you win, EVERY time you learn
Download this Case Study: Immersive Edge – Officers’ Association Partnership Case Study.
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