Case Methodology

& Case Discussion

Prof Ashish K Mitra

Associate Dean

Professor - Strategic Management & Business Strategy

Chairman – Information Resources
Coordinator – Management Research Projects
Methods of Learning…

Lecture
Case Study
Role Playing
Experimenting in Labs
Simulation – computer simulation, Flight simulators,
Business Games
Learning through Experience (concrete experience)
“Lecture Method” vs. The Case Method
Largely passive learning in the “role of receiver” vs.
extremely involved & participative learning
Teacher “delivers” lecture vs. Teacher “facilitates” /
leads a discussion,
Students carry the task of independent thinking
Stress is on ‘passing’ knowledge (theory)
to the students vs. making students make
decisions based on situation analysis
Experiential way of building theory
Greater learning if you ‘use’ a theory than only
hear about it
Cases help students learn ‘how to apply
theories’ to real situations
Help students learn how to solve real life
problems
Objectives & benefits of Case
methodology

Cases allow development of skills in

thinking clearly about ambiguous,
unstructured situations using incomplete
information
Develop skills at recognizing what
information is important and what is
missing
Develop problem diagnosis, alternatives
identification & evaluation skill
Cases enable ‘learning by doing’ – simulates real life
problems and puts the students in decision maker’s
shoes
Improving industry knowledge and developing analytical
skills
The process of finding the answer is more important
than the answer itself.
Develop skills in presenting, to influence and persuade
others
Improve your ability to predict behavioral outcomes –
yours and others
Cases sometimes oversimplify the
business situation
Function Specific cases , Capstone
(Company as a whole ) cases
Field Cases , Secondary data / Library
cases
Your responsibilities………………..

Preparation
Informal Discussion groups
Participating in Class discussion
Preparing for a Case

Step 1: Comprehend the Case situation –

identify relevant facts, collect evidences and
numbers
Step 2: Defining the problem – what are
the critical issues or problems to be solved.
What we at first think is the real problem
often isn’t the real problem.
Step 3: Identify the causes – most critical
here is avoiding solutions prematurely
…Preparing for a Case

Step 4: Generate Alternative Solutions

Step 5: Decision
Step 6: Taking Action
Reminder …….
Cases rarely have enough information, often
certain degree of ambiguity, multiple causality
‘Identifying problem’ often most critical aspect.
May never be sure that you have identified the
real problem
Cases rarely have one “Right’ solution
No elegant solution. No one can ‘solve’ the
case including the instructor
Avoid confusing symptoms with problems,
making premature evaluations
Don’t blindly apply stereotypes to problems
accepting information at face