🎥 CompXM Strategy Guide – Round-by-Round Walkthrough
Capsim Exam 2025–2026 Version
Hello and welcome!
This is your step-by-step CompXM simulation strategy guide — designed to help you score top results (up to 999/1000) in a short amount of time.
Whether you're preparing to take the CompXM exam or you're already inside the simulation, this video will give you a complete overview of how to win across all 4 decision rounds and 5 quiz modules.
Let’s begin.
🔍 What is CompXM?
CompXM is the final exam that follows the Capsim Capstone simulation. Unlike Capstone, CompXM is individual, not team-based, and includes four decision-making rounds and five quiz sections. You must manage your virtual company’s performance while answering quiz questions based on company reports.
You can complete it in 1–2 hours, depending on how familiar you are with Capsim. Some students may need longer — and that’s totally fine. What matters is strategy, not speed.
📈 Market Overview: Know the Four Segments
CompXM consists of four market segments:
- Traditional (TRAD)
- Core (CORE)
- Nano (NANO)
- Elite (ELITE)
Their market shares are approximately:
- Traditional: 25–30%
- Core: 35%
- Nano: 20%
- Elite: 15–20%
Most students focus too much on Traditional and Core, but Nano and Elite offer significantly higher contribution margins and profit potential. So, if you want to maximize your results, be sure to pay attention to these high-margin segments.
🧠 Step 1: Understand Industry Conditions and Strategy
The first thing you must do before making any decisions is read the Industry Conditions Report (ICR). This report tells you:
- Customer preferences by segment
- Ideal product specs (performance & size)
- Price ranges and buying criteria
- Growth rates per segment
Use Table 2 (segment criteria) and Table 3 (drift rates) to update your products for each round. You will need to increase performance and reduce size each round to meet customer expectations.
You can use a prebuilt Excel template (linked in the video description) to help calculate the ideal coordinates each round.
🔄 Step 2: R&D – Update Your Products
We recommend creating two new products in Nano and Elite in Round 1. These segments grow fast and generate higher margins.
Your existing products can continue serving Traditional and Core segments. Each round, update your products’ performance and size using Table 3 data.
The strategy is simple:
- Increase performance by ~0.7
- Decrease size by ~0.7
Repeat this each round to follow the ideal path and maintain high customer satisfaction.
💰 Step 3: Marketing – Set Price, Promotion & Sales Budget
Let’s now move to the Marketing module. Your focus here is:
- Set competitive prices
- Allocate promotion and sales budgets
- Accurately forecast demand
Here are recommended prices for Round 1:
- Traditional: ~$22
- Core: ~$30
- Nano: ~$38
- Elite: ~$42
Promotion and sales budgets:
- Traditional & Core: $2000–$2500
- Nano & Elite: $1500–$2000
Important: Use last round’s Courier Report to find actual sales and inventory. Then calculate your Sales Forecast:
Forecast = (Last Year’s Sales – Inventory) × (1 + Growth Rate) × 1.05
Adding around 5% buffer is good. Avoid going over 10% — CompXM doesn’t tolerate overproduction well.
🏭 Step 4: Production – Match Capacity to Demand
Now let’s move to Production decisions.
Because you’ve added two new products (Nano and Elite), you must:
- Buy new capacity for them
- Schedule production to match your forecast
- Account for starting inventory
Also, remember to increase automation levels:
- Traditional & Core: Gradually raise to ~10.0 by Round 3–4
- Nano & Elite: Start with ~3–4 automation, increase slowly
Higher automation reduces labor cost long-term but makes R&D updates slower — balance accordingly.
👥 Step 5: HR – Build a Strong Workforce
Each round, go to the HR Module and set:
- Recruiting Spend: $5,000
- Training Hours: 80
This ensures you attract top-quality workers and improve productivity. Even though it’s expensive in early rounds, the benefits in later rounds are dramatic.
💳 Step 6: Finance – Raise Capital Strategically
You’ll need funding to cover:
- R&D costs
- Marketing and promotion
- Production capacity
- TQM investments
Use all three sources of capital:
- Issue Stock: ~$30,000–$40,000
- Take Short-Term Loans: ~$15,000
- Take Long-Term Loans: ~$15,000
Keep at least $50 million in available cash to avoid emergency loans, which damage your score.
✅ Step 7: TQM – Total Quality Management
Don’t skip TQM!
In Round 1, invest $1,000 per initiative, across all 4 initiatives. This totals $4,000 per round.
TQM improves quality, reduces costs, and increases productivity. It compounds round by round — start early to get the full benefits.
📊 Step 8: Monitor Results and Adjust
After submitting Round 1 decisions, review the Proforma reports:
- Check Net Profit
- Check Sales Volume
- Review Contribution Margin (aim for 35%+ in Round 1, 50%+ by Round 4)
- Watch your Stock Price and ROE
You’ll likely see big improvements by Round 2 and even more in Round 3–4 if you follow this strategy.
📌 Sample Round 1 Strategy Summary
|
Module |
Key Action |
|
R&D |
Update all products based on Table 3 |
|
Marketing |
Set price + promotion; forecast demand |
|
Production |
Match capacity; add new products |
|
HR |
$5,000 recruiting; 80 hours training |
|
Finance |
Raise capital using stock + loans |
|
TQM |
$1,000 per initiative |
🔁 Long-Term Strategy: Rounds 2 to 4
For Rounds 2, 3, and 4:
- Continue updating performance & size
- Gradually raise automation levels
- Invest more in HR and TQM
- Keep margins high
- Limit unnecessary inventory
- Adjust capacity based on actual sales
Remember, the quiz portion of CompXM also matters. Read reports carefully and use logical reasoning based on company performance.
🆘 Need Help?
If you want help reviewing your decisions or understanding your simulation results:
📩 Email: mbahelp2002@gmail.com
🧑💻
You can also schedule a Zoom coaching session for one-on-one guidance.
🎓 Final Words
Thank you for watching! I hope this guide gives you clarity and confidence as you work through your CompXM exam.
Stick to the strategy, understand your data, and focus on efficiency and customer satisfaction. If you apply what we covered in this video, you’ll be on track to score top marks — even 999 out of 1000.
Be sure to check out our other videos covering Rounds 2–4, quiz tips, and Excel templates.
Good luck, and success in your Capsim journey!
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