The RED Game: an immersive tool to understand ESG debt
Thirty Pre-Master students from EDHEC got an exclusive preview of the RED Game: an immersive tool developed by EDHEC Entrepreneurs to help students experience firsthand the ESG dilemmas faced by startups during their growth phase.
Learning responsible entrepreneurship through action
How can we teach responsible entrepreneurship in a tangible way to students who have never faced the realities of launching a startup? How can we make them truly feel the dilemmas and trade-offs that shape a company's future, beyond theoretical concepts?
The answer: the RED Game.
This immersive simulation is designed to replicate the challenges of a fast-growing startup. It pushes participants to live the entrepreneurial experience. Structured as a realistic and dynamic scenario, the pedagogical approach allows key concepts to emerge, such as ESG debt (Environmental, Social, Governance) and its impact on a startup’s long-term viability.
The session took place as part of a course led by Jana Thiel within EDHEC’s Pre-Master program.
A high-stakes scenario
During the session, 30 students were plunged into a world where every decision mattered. Divided into teams, they took the reins of a fictional startup and navigated three critical stages:
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MVP: Design a viable first product under time pressure
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Pre-Seed: Kickstart growth and convince early investors
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Seed: Scale up without compromising the company’s stability
Adding to the complexity: each student played a key role within their team, with personal objectives to defend. Could the CEO align with the CFO? How do you balance long-term vision with short-term emergencies?
These tensions mirrored the internal dynamics of real-life startups.
No theory, only strategic decisions, drawn from real cases of startups incubated by EDHEC Entrepreneurs. Students faced ethical dilemmas that would define the future of their startup.
Make ESG Debt tangible
The RED Game stands out for its ability to make ESG debt concrete: all those often-invisible, sometimes-necessary trade-offs founders make in environmental, social, and governance areas to ensure short-term survival.
Students quickly learned how a quick financial decision can have long-term consequences, such as:
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Misalignment between co-founders destabilizing the organization
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Neglecting eco-design harming the brand’s reputation
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Underestimating cybersecurity exposing the company to major risks
Every action has a consequence. This tension anchors the learning experience in a lasting way.
Entrepreneurship can't be taught, it must be lived
The RED Game goes beyond traditional pedagogy. It offers a real-world, immersive experience that helps students grasp the complexity of entrepreneurial action, especially when pursued responsibly.
By placing them in near-real conditions, the game sharpens their analytical skills, their ability to collaborate under pressure, and their sense of responsibility. These are all vital entrepreneurial competencies they’ll carry throughout their careers.
