CUD FOM

MBA 655
Fall 2020-2021
Case discussions

Every week a case study, or case studies, must be prepared for discussion in the MBA 653
class. These case study discussions will count 25% towards your final grade. You will
receive five (or, as announced in advance, ten marks for some case discussions - if there
are less than five such discussions). The rubric for presentations and seminars will be
applied to grade your work every week.
You should be fully prepared for the case analysis, BUT you cannot lecture us! You must
facilitate a class discussion that 1) analyses the case, 2) apply at least two foundational
theories in the process of analysis, and 3) recommend ways to change the organizational
dilemma that the case illustrate.
Your facilitation should last for no more than one hour.
We are required to read the case(s) thoroughly and prepare ourselves to participate in the
discussions.
Your facilitation session must focus on the application of relevant models, principles, and
theories help you to:
1. Identify the key events and issues in the case that indicate a leadership success or
challenge (the dissatisfying parts of A).
2. Identify the key events or issues that must be addressed to help the organization
change (a change plan for C).
3. Identify the outcomes to be reached after the change (the anticipated B).
This means that you are responsible to facilitate our discussions to articulate a theoretical
rationale for the identification of the need for change (1) and the key events or actions to be
taken in C (2) as well as how we will know that the change led to a desired future state (B).
1, 2 and 3 must be achieved through class participation under your guidance without you
telling us what to think exactly – i.e. helping us to learn and discover. If you want to
BRIEFLY and relevantly add very pertinent and useful extra theoretical and application
insights after we achieved the three sets of outcomes, you are welcome to do so. That will
count in your favor (illustrating independent inquiry and creative use of relevant material).
Two important facilitation competencies that you have to plan and master:
1. Asking questions that help us to explore and to guide our thinking (without playing
‘what-does-the-facilitator-think”, or asking leading questions with obvious answers)…
part of this will be have to be practiced “live” but if you are sure of the direction you
are going in and well prepared, it would be easier to also ask, “… but how is that idea
similar to…?

2. Critical thinking on your feet. Encouraging us to dig deeper, seeing alternatives,

seeing the advantages AND the disadvantages and disagreeing from us without
losing our interest and participation.