Proceedings of 8th workshop of the IFIP WG 5.7 SIG on experiential learning in industrial management Experiential learning in chains and networks, Wageningen 24-27 May 2004, pp. 95-120 Exploring new coordination scenarios for workflows in the Amsterdam Police Force Simulation-games as organizational change instruments Joeri van Laere 1 Gert-Jan de Vreede 2, 3 Henk G. Sol 3 Chair group Communication Management, Wageningen University, P.O. box 9101, 6700 HB Wageningen, The Netherlands, E-mail: joeri.vanlaere@wur.nl Abstract In this paper we discuss the value of simulation-games as organizational change instruments. We present a case where new information and communication technology is introduced in the Amsterdam Police Force to enhance coordination and communication in workflows like handling firearm criminality or handling youth criminality. Policemen have participated in 9 occurrences of a social simulation-game where they perform daily tasks and explore new coordination scenarios. From our action research study we conclude that simulation-games provide more detailed insight in coordination issues than oral participatory design discussions. Furthermore we discuss how simulation-games can serve different interests in the different phases (unfreeze-rebalance-move-freeze) of an organizational change process. Keywords: Gaming-simulation, organizational prototyping, business engineering, organizational change, coordination, distributed work, computer supported cooperative work (cscw). Introduction Through the ages organizations have faced the challenge of organizing (distributed) work and coordinating the efforts of (distributed) organizational members. The increasing rate of development of information- and communication technologies (ICT) in the past 20 years has raised some new challenges around this old issue. At first sight there seem to be numerous opportunities to solve well-known coordination problems more easily. By adopting the new technology coordination, collaboration and the accomplishment of work itself can become independent of time and place. This independence leads to more flexibility for individual group members in accomplishing their tasks and may thereby improve individual performance, work group performance as well as organizational performance. Malone and Crowston (1994) predict a shift to more coordination-intensive organizational structures, like for instance adhocracies (Mintzberg, 1983; Toffler, 1970), network organizations (Van Alstyne, 1997) and (inter) organizational networks as a result of the decreasing costs of coordination. 1 Chair group Communication Management, Wageningen University, the Netherlands 2 College of Information Science & Technology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, USA 3 Faculty of Technology, Policy and Management, Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands