Author: Sebastian Benad
Pictures: Frank Leonhardt 7/ChatGPT4o

Change is omnipresent - especially in the healthcare sector. But how can people not only be affected by change processes, but actively involved in them? The participants of the Master's degree course in health care management at Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences addressed this question in an innovative teaching project in the summer semester of 2025: the "SysTeamsChange" simulation game. In four intensive block courses, the students experienced the dynamics of change in a practical way and acquired valuable skills in change management. Falk Maiwald, David Sauer and Frank Leonhardt were responsible for the content of the project.

At the heart of the block courses was the "SysTeamsChange" simulation game, an experience-oriented teaching format that makes the emotional and social complexity of change processes tangible. Based on real challenges in organizations, participants not only experience the theoretical dimensions of change management, but also go through the typical phases of a change project at first hand. The focus is not purely on imparting knowledge, but on experiencing and reflecting on individual and collective reactions to change. As the game progressed, it became clear that it is only by consciously letting go of familiar structures that new things can be tried out and stably integrated. Gaining knowledge and increasing performance went hand in hand.

The central didactic goal was not only to grasp change intellectually, but also to penetrate it emotionally. Change always means uncertainty, friction and personal questioning. The simulation game created a protected learning environment in which the participants could deal with their own reactions to change. Targeted reflection units and guided discussions turned the simulation into a real learning experience. The students experienced first-hand how emotional insight affects their own willingness to change - an insight that cannot be gleaned from textbooks, but must be experienced.

The "SysTeamsChange" project is an example of future-oriented university teaching: it promotes interdisciplinary thinking, supports independent action and strengthens cooperative learning processes. Participants contribute their individual perspectives, reflect on their actions in a team context and actively take responsibility for change processes. Thanks to the dedicated support of David Sauer and Frank Leonhardt, the students not only developed their theoretical knowledge, but also their ability to tackle complex challenges in the healthcare sector in a solution-oriented manner. The simulation game - part of the "Market-oriented corporate management and business model transformation" module - thus proved to be an important key to developing sustainable leadership skills - for shaping a resilient healthcare system and a society ready for change.