Case analysis how to
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This document provides guidance to students on how to effectively study and analyze case studies using the case method approach. It recommends that students: 1) Quickly read the case initially to understand the overall scope and key information, then re-read more carefully while taking notes. 2) Put themselves in the position of the decision-maker by considering questions like who the key players are, the nature of the business/product, and goals and performance of the firm. 3) Carefully define the problem by considering if the stated issue is a symptom of a deeper problem. 4) Focus analysis on the most important financial and business issues rather than unimportant calculations. 5) Take a stand by developing
Case analysis how to
- 1. SBS Swiss Business School Zurich, Switzerland Good judgment comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgment. Walter Wriston Note to the SBS student: How to study, analyze and discuss case studies The lessons worth learning all come from taking a stand. From that truth flows the educative force of the case method. In the typical case, the student is projected into the position of an executive (senior management, CEO, President, CFO, CIO) who must do something in response to a problem. It is this choice of what to do that constitutes the executive’s stand. Over the course of a career, and executive who takes stands gains wisdom. You can learn from errors. Wisdom can grow out of error. What can you do to gain the maximum from the study of cases? 1. READING: The very first time you read any case, look for the forest not the trees. This requires that your first reading should be quick. Do not begin taking notes, read the case like you read a magazine article. The first few paragraphs of a well-constructed case usually say something about the rest of the case, seeking mainly a sense of scope of the problems, and what information the case contains to help resolve them. Leaf through the exhibits, looking for what information they hold, rather than for any analytical insights. At the conclusion of the first pass, read any supporting articles or notes that the instructor may have recommended. 2. DEVELOP YOUR AWARENESS: With the broader perspective in mind, the second and more detailed reading will be more productive. Your mind will be able to organize the details of the case in a useful fashion rather than inventorying them randomly. Making linkages among case details is necessary toward solving the case. At this point, take notes that will help your analysis. The most successful students project themselves into the position of the decision-maker because this perspective helps them link case details as well as develop a stand on the case problem. Assignment questions may help you do this; but it is a good
- 2. idea to get into the habit of doing it yourself. Here are the kind of questions you might try to answer in preparing every case: *Who are the key players in the case? What is the nature of the product ? What do they have at stake ? What pressures are they under ? *In what business is the company? What is the nature of the product? What is the firm’s distinctive competence ? What is the structure of the industry ? *What are the goals of the firm? Financial and business strategies can be inferred from analysis of financial ratios and the cash-flow statement. *How well has the firm performed in pursuit of its goals? 3. DEFINING THE PROBLEM: A common trap for many executives is to assume that the issue at hand is the real problem most worthy of their time, rather than a symptom of some larger problem that really deserves their time. For instance, a leader is often asked to advance funds to help tide a firm over a cash shortfall. Careful study may reveal that the key problem is not that the key problem is not a cash shortfall, but rather it is product obsolescence, unexpected competition, or careless cost management. Even in cases where the decision is fairly narrowly defined, the problem generally turns out to be the believability of certain key assumptions. Students who are new to the case method tend to focus narrowly in defining problems and often overlook the influence, which the larger setting has on the problem. In doing this, the student develops narrow specialists habits, never achieving the general manager perspective. It is useful and important for you to define the problem, process and validate it. 4. GO TO THE HEART OF THE MATTER: All finance cases require numerical analysis. This is good because figure work lends rigor and structure in your thinking. If you have invested wisely in problem definition, economical analysis tends to follow. The best-case analyses get down to the key facts on which the executive is wagering the prosperity of the firm, and his or her career. Get to the business issues quickly, and avoid lengthy churning through relatively unimportant calculations. 5. PREPARE TO PARTICIPATE: To develop analytical insights without making recommendations is useless to executives, and drains the case study experience of some of its learning power. A stand means having a point of view about the problem, a recommendation, and an Analysis to back up both of them.
- 3. 6. IN CLASS: PARTICIPATE ACTIVELY: To take a stand in case discussions means to participate actively in the discussion and to advocate your stand until new facts or analysis emerge to warrant a change. The case study method is not a passive sport. The purpose of the case study is to develop and exercise one’s own skills and judgment. This takes practice and general suggestions. Contribute to every case discussion. 7. CONCLUSION: The learning from a case-method is impressive. They arrive cumulatively over time. In many cases, the learning continues well after the course has finished. View the case method experience as a series of opportunities to test your mastery of techniques and your business judgment. As in real life, there are no right answers to these cases in the sense that they have an exact solution. What matters is that you obtain a way of thinking about business solutions that you can carry from one job (or career) to the next. OVERVIEW: Problem Statement: Put yourself in the senior management position Define the problem PESTEL Analysis SWOT Analysis Financial analysis Different alternatives: From each alternative Pro and CONTRA Conclusion and recommendations for future actions Lessons learned The text is written by Bert Wolfs. The author wishes to thank Dr. Charnaud and Mr. Brunner for their input.