The first National Multiplier event within the S.O.S. International Business project in Bulgaria was held in Dobrich on the 21st of June 2024. The event was organized and hosted by the Bulgarian project partner – Varna University of Management (VUM), and was aimed at disseminating the project results and achievements to the target groups and the wide audience.
The participants were welcomed by the project coordinator on behalf of VUM – Mrs. Christina Armutlieva, who also presented the project background, goals and achievements. She outlined some aspects of the challenges faced by the international team of experts, the research tasks and evaluations carried out so far, and also shared some insights about the impact of the use of simulation on teaching sustainable international business.
Further, the agenda focused on the presentation of 3 key project results – all of them focused on sustainable international business: (R1) the platform for digital simulation of sustainable international business, (R2) the simulated cases of sustainable international business and (R3) the mobile game on sustainable international business. Dr. Nedka Dimitrova and Dr. Diyan Dimov – two of the key experts at VUM who participated in the development of the project results – explained the structure and the logic behind the development of the 3 project results and highlighted their experiences of ICT implementation in the learning process and in international cooperation. They outlined the possibilities of introducing innovative pedagogy through digitalisation and at the same time strengthening internationalisation through digital and interactive tools, different then the usual ones, such as distance teaching/learning. The simulations were promoted as a digital tool that not only serves as an educational method in teaching international management, but also as an approach that fosters cross-sectoral and international collaboration.
The innovative solutions offered by R1&R2 were then explained in details and the relevance of sustainability for international business was presented. Ideas on how it can be introduced in digital simulations of international business and more broadly in learning processes of management, business, administration, etc. were shared and exchanged. Dr. Dimitrova presented her experience of implementing R2 in the learning processes with international and local students at VUM, and Dr. Dimov shared the experience the project team had with exploring the developed simulated cases. They engaged the participants in an example case by illustration of the principles and processes behind the training process through a real-time role-play game implemented by the attendees.
In the third session, the participants were introduced to the third project result’s concept and purpose. They got familiarised with the gamification and positioning of the developed learning mobile game (R3) in the wider context of existing learning games and its usefulness (content, learning objectives, responses so far, etc.).
The final session was dedicated to evaluation and feedback collection, networking and discussions on the role of the HE sector in Bulgaria’s transition to a digital society and its input into the economy growth. Possible uses of the presented results outside the HE sector were also identified by the educational sector’s representatives in the secondary education and potential synergies within the school system were outlined.
The event was very successful as it managed to involve 30 representatives of the project target groups among which there were: representatives of educational institutions working with young people and also adults, as well as teaching and administrative staff, career guidance services and students; professional and umbrella organizations and NGOs, as well as the local branch of the Chamber of commerce and industry; business representatives, experts and wide audience; media.
This event also served as a verification of the pre-final version of the presented results. The attendees shared their interest in using and applying the project results into their daily work with students and/or employees, and to disseminate the products and project achievement to their communities, so they may also benefit from them during the final stage of the project.
The project S.O.S. International Business is co-funded by the European Union under the Erasmus+ Programme, Key Action 2: Cooperation Partnerships. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
