Guide to Case Analysis

Why use cases in this course?

They give you the chance to actively analyze and make recommendations on messy
real life business situations with absolutely no risk. Ideally, you would be working in the firm,
but it would be very difficult to parachute you all into an ongoing business situation for
pedagogic purposes!
Cases are used for analysis and discussion. There is no right or wrong answer to a
case analysis. You may know afterwards what the company actually did, but this does not
necessarily mean that they chose the right alternative and implemented it well.
Cases fall into three categories:
Specific evaluation cases: This type of case describes what a company did. The
discussion revolves around the evaluation of the soundness of the decision.
Specific decision cases: In this type of case, management faces a problem. The
student (and executive involved) is required to analyze the situation and the possible
alternatives and to make a decision.
General evaluation and appraisal cases: These cases include unstructured information.
It is up to the participants to evaluate how things are going, if there are problems calling for
action, and if so, what action to take.
Getting ready to prepare a case:
The first step in preparing a case report is to identify the problem posed. Unless you
can define the problem in a specific, clear and meaningful way, you cannot solve it. It is
necessary to form the right
question to get the right answer.
The next step is to analyze the problem with the facts at hand. Dont give up because
you dont have all the facts you would like. Use what you have. Use them systematically in a
logical progression to build an argument that supports your solution to the problem. It is
useful to think in terms of findings
key facts which underlie and create the identified problem.
The final step is to state your solution to the problem, making it clear why your solution
follows from your analysis. Elaborate on your solution by stating recommendations. Given
your solution, what actions should be taken to correct the problem? Do not get more specific
than the facts will allow. But do not be
so general as to lose specific relevance with the problem.
Do not think as you write. Read the case at least three times, think, then write what the
reader should know from your thinking. Therefore, proceed in two steps: 1.) prepare the case
and 2.) formal write-up.
Preparing a case:
In preparing an analysis, read through the case and look for the main problems that you
will address. Develop a rationale for your belief that the problems identified are in fact major
problems. In addition, assemble the facts presented in the case that address various
problems.

Once you have assembled all the information provided, develop a framework for analysis.
This framework should:
1. Identify problem areas.
2. Provide evidence that indicates why the problem is a problem and the alternative
ways it may be resolved.
3. Choose a course of action that you feel is based on the soundest assumption.
By following this strategy, you will be able to develop an integrated analysis and you
will avoid
focusing on issues for which there are little data.

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Writing Up a Case and Organization. In the formal write-up, use the following headings:
1. Background (one or two short paragraphs): briefly state the context.
2. Problem Statement (one or two short paragraphs): state the purpose of your report.
Specify the
problem(s) to be addressed in your report. For less complex cases, the Problem Statement
may be one sentence.
3. Recommendations (anywhere from a few short paragraphs to one page): State the
manner in which each of the problems you have identified should be resolved. In this section,
only your recommendations should be given. Your reasons for the recommendations should
appear in the Analysis section. If you feel more comfortable placing your recommendations
after the Analysis section, then please do so.
4. Analysis (two-thirds of your paper): This is the heart of your report. It entails
marshaling factual data which support your problem identification and your recommended
course of action. In essence, it is the link between problems and recommendations. It is also
two-thirds of your grade on the report!
In this section, be sure to separate different issues by using headings. For example, if the first
issue you address in your analysis is the target market, use that term as a paragraph
heading. If the next issue is demand forecasting, use that as a paragraph heading.
Remember that there is no correct answer in case analysis, only good and bad analysis.
Style. Write your report as a memo, not as a thesis. Assume that the reader is in a hurry
(she is). Be concise, meaning leaving out excess verbiage and connecting prose. Dont make
the reader feel she is wading through something. The reader should be swept along by the
flow of the report. Points should leap out; they should force the readers attention. Use bullet
points, bold and underlined fonts,
larger fonts to increase attention.

Use spacing to highlight points

Use bullet points and numbers to avoid transitional sentences
Use, above all, a strong logical flow from problem to findings to recommendations to
replace connecting prose the logic should stand by itself without the need for
excess language

Common Errors in Analysis and Write-up

1. Format outline above is not followed. Subheadings not used in the analysis section.
2. Background, Problem, and Recommendations sections are too long. No more than half a
page is generally needed for each. Use outline form and bullet points throughout the
written report. There is no need for complete prose. However, dont use shorthand that is
unintelligible, even to you at some later point in time.

3. Focus centers on minor issues or issues for which there is little or no data. Let the case
facts guide you to the selection of issues. If there is little or no data addressing an issue,
dont dwell on it in your analysis.
4. Rehashing of case data. Assume the reader is familiar with the case. Present case data
only when it is needed to support a line of reasoning you are developing. Dont summarize
the case situation as a preamble to your analysis (you did this in the Background section),
and dont present case facts unless you are going to drive a point with them. This is a big
problem in first-time case analyses.
5. Noncritical evaluation of case data. Before you use evidence presented in the case, ask
yourself if it was collected in a sound manner and whether it is relevant to the issue that
you are addressing. This does not give you license to eliminate all data. Rather, you want
to qualify the conclusions you reach by evaluating the quality of the data on which a
conclusion is based.
6. Failure to provide a rationale for eliminating unchosen alternatives. It is important to show
that the recommended course of action is likely to deal effectively with the problems
identified. It is equally important to provide a rationale for dismissing unchosen alternative
courses of action.
7. Failure to present analytical work in an understandable manner. When doing computations,
be sure your presentation (usually in an appendix) is sufficiently detailed so the reader can
replicate the analysis. This requires you to indicate where the data came from and to show
how it is analyzed.
8. Neglecting important quantitative analysis (e.g. market potential estimation or breakeven
analysis).
9. Emphasizing quantitative analyses (with questionable underlying assumptions) to the
exclusion of critical qualitative issues.
10.Recommending that management collect more information without specifying precisely
what information is needed, how it will be obtained, and whether it will be cost-effective to
collect. This is a big trap for many students you will never have the ideal information to
make a decision.
11.Failure to evaluate the validity and reliability of case data. The case writer is not perfect.
Before you use evidence presented in the case, ask yourself if it was collected in a sound
manner and whether or not it is relevant to the issues you are addressing. If necessary,
you may want to qualify conclusions you reach by evaluating the quality of the data on
which a conclusion is based.