What is a case?

A case is a description of an actual situation

, commonly involving a decision, a challeng
e, an opportunity, a problem or an issue face
d by a person (or persons) in an organizatio
n.

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Why are cases used (1)?

To
Allow you connect theory with applic
to take on the roles and res ation, to develop theoretic
ponsibilities of specific pe al insights.
ople in specific organizati
ons Cases provide i
nformation about how wor
Give you a chance k is planned and organized
to practice the art of mana in various settings, how sy
gement in a laboratory sett stems operate and how org
ing, with little corporate a anizations compete
nd personal risk involved.
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Why are cases used (2)?

Cases enga
Cases ge you in a process of lear
force you to make decisio ning how to learn. While
ns with available informati every case is different, it i
on, thereby helping you to s the process of learning h
tolerate incompleteness of ow to learn that is generali
information and ambiguity zable.
.

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Cases help you to develop a wid
e range of skills
Analytical skills Time manag
Decision making ement skill
skills Interperson
Application skill al or social skills
s Creative skills
Oral communicat Written com
ion skill munication skills

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Cases help you to develop a wide range of skills
Analytical
skills

Written Decision
communication making skills
skills

Creative Application
skills skills

Oral
Interpersonal or communication
social skills skill
Time
management skill 5
The three dimensions of case difficulty

The
analytical
dimension

The The
presentation conceptual
dimension dimension

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The analytical dimension--degree one

Susan Lee, the finance manager of Excelsior I

nc., was seeking additional funds for an expansi
on project and, after considering debt and equit
y options, decided that borrowing the money w
as the best decision.
Task: assess whether the decision taken was ap
propriate and the process followed correct, whe
ther further alternatives might have been consi
dered and what future consequences could be.

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The analytical dimension--degree two

Ms. Lee, the finance manager of Excelsior Inc.

, was seeking additional funds for an expansion
project and wanted to determine whether debt
or equity financing would be the best way to sec
ure new capital.
Task: analyze the situation, generate additional
alternatives, evaluate all alternatives against sp
ecified decision criteria, make a decision, and to
develop an action and implementation plan.

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The analytical dimension--degree three
Ms. Lee, the finance manager of Excelsior Inc.
, was reviewing the corporations current finan
cing position.
Task: analyze the situation, figure out whether
a decision (or more) needs to be taken and what
alternative might be considered, what decision
criteria should be applied and which alternativ
e is preferable, how it might be implemented an
d what outcomes are likely to be.

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The conceptual dimension

What theories, concepts or techniques might b

e useful in the understanding and/or resolution
of this case situation?

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The presentation dimension--Wh
at is really important and relevant information here and
what is still missing?
Short Long
Well-organized disorganized
contains almost all re missing information
levant information a lot of extraneous in
contains little extrane formation
ous information

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The case learning process is composed
of three major stages:

Individual
preparation

Large group
Small group
or class
discussion
discussion

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Stage 1--Individual preparation
Become acquainted with the information
through reading
Acceptance of role and responsibility
I think that the key person in the case should do this
I would do this under these circumstances
If I got fired if I made the wrong decision and prom
oted if I made the right one, how hard would I be wo
rking on this decision?
How much can I accomplish alone within
the time available?
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Stage 2 - Small group discussion
Teach others--there is no better way to learn tha
n having to teach others.
Encourage individual
preparation--learning through peer pressure
Develop communication skills--learn to spea
k and listen
Recognize good ideas
Foster effective teamwork
Build confidence--the classroom discussion pro
cess can be threatening
Build relationships

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Stage 3 - large group discussion
Overcome the fear
of participating
Inadequate individual preparation and small group wor
k. You dont hide ignorance by talking.
Wrong answers can provide a valuable insight.
Practice public speaking
Test ideas
Learn about your colleagues.

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Analyzing the case
1. Defining the issue
2. Analyzing t
he case data with focus on causes and effects as well as con
straints and opportunities
3. Generating alternatives
4. Selection decision criteria
5. Analyzing and evaluating alternatives
6. Selecting the preferred alternative
7. Developing an action and impleme
ntation plan

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1. Defining the issue
Starting the right problem takes you more than half
way towards the right solution
recognize that cases contain both facts an
d opinions. You can question or challenge opinions.
(symptoms) (problem)
Determine the urgency of issues.
Differentiate between immediate and basic issues

immediate issue refers to the specific decision, problem fac
ed by the decision maker, one that need to resolve within th
e limited time frame
basic issue are larger and more generic in nature (such as
make or buy, design of a compensation structure)
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2. Analyzing case data
Causes and effects
What is the time-line an
d causal sequence of events that have produced the curre
nt situation?
Why are the planne
d or anticipated results not achieved?
Task
: to identify potential causes and assess their relative cont
ribution to the effect so that the most important causes ca
n be addressed in an action plan.

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 2. Analyzing case data (2)
Constraints and Opportunities

Not always explicit, may be implied by the environ
mental context
Consider the key resources of an o
rganization: money, people, materials, equipment, faciliti
es and the management system

Each of these resources or a combination of them ca
n be a constraint or an opportunity

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3. Generating alternatives
To re
move the causes of the problems by developing a
number of different ways to address the issues
Whe
n formulating different courses of action, consider
constraints and opportunities that you have identifi
ed
The status quo can
be considered as an alternative

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4. Selecting decision criteria
Decision criteria pr
ovide the basis for evaluation or assessment measu
res. They are the standards by which alternatives
may be evaluated and compared.
You should be g
uided by what you believe are the objectives or str
ategy of the organization and by your good sense
of what is important to you as the decision maker.

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List of common decision criteria
Quantitative Qualitative
profit competitive advantage
cost customer satisfaction
return on investment employee morale
market share corporate image
risk ease of implementation
productivity synergy
growth rate ethics
capacity motivation
flexibility

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5. Analyzing and evaluating alternativ
es
Compar
e and contrast each of your alternatives agai
nst the criteria you have selected. List the k
ey advantages and disadvantages of each alt
ernatives

Weigh these pros and cons to select the b
est course of action

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Alternative analysis matrix
Alternatives Decision Criteria

Cost Time Ease of Customer

implementation satisfaction

1.

2.

3.

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Short versus long term
In analyzing alternatives, predicting outc
omes, and planning and implementing ac
tion, both short and long term considerat
ions are relevant. Which is preferable:
an alternative that has quick highly beneficia
l results and mediocre long term
an alternative with good long term prospects
but no immediate pay-offs?
What is short-term and what is long-ter
m?
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Predicting outcomes

Prediction of future results and conseq
uences of any change is a fundamental step
in alternative assessment.
Uncer
tainty arises with predictions and forces you
to assess probabilities for various random e
vents which may impact the outcomes.

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Use the decision tree diagram
Best possible outcome

Most likely outcome

Alternative A
Worst possible outcome

Best possible outcome

Alternative B

Most likely outcome

Worst possible27 outcome

6. Selecting the preferred alternative
There is rarely
one sensible course of action to a case.
It is your analysis, the use you make of the i
nformation available, and your justification
for adopting certain alternative that counts.
Your reasoning should be consistent with th
e solution recommended.

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7. Developing an action and implementa
tion plan
Be specific about your action
plan by answering : who, what, when, where, and
how?
Implemen
tation planning provides a schedule and milestone
s for the action plan. It provides the measures or si
gnals that will allow managers to know they are m
aking progress according to the plan.
Consider the ease of implementa
tion.
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Policy analysis Institutional New paradigm

Policy-making entrepreneurship