The Need:

The effectiveness of case method of instruction in management education at graduate and post graduate level is well understood. Pioneered by Harvard Business School, the Pedagogy has been adopted by several business schools in India and abroad. Case Format:

The case is research based and portraits real life events. It is a description of a particular situation facing an organization and the people within the organization. Cases should ideally have a decision focus. A good case places the reader in a position of having to consider various alternatives and make a decision. A teaching note relates the situation described in the case to the theoretical constructs in a given field of study. A teaching note indicates the goals and objectives of the case, the courses in which the case can be used, suggestions about using the case in a classroom situation and alternative approaches. As for a structuring a case, it is recommended to present the case like a story, which has an interesting beginning, suitable background, a middle and a conclusion. Overview Case analyses are designed to provide you with the opportunity to develop your diagnostic, problem solving, and project implementation skills. The following sections discuss successful strategies for preparing cases for this particular class. Content of the Paper and the Presentation Your case analysis should focus (at a minimum) on four different issues: 1. Identification of the problem(s) in the case 2. Identification of the causes of the problem(s)

3. Recommendations regarding solutions for solving the problems (including identification of assumptions, specific implementation guidelines, risks and benefits of the solution, and development of contingency plans) 4. Identification of managerial lessons to be learned from the case

Your presentation and paper should include (at least) all of these issues. You should be prepared to discuss and defend your analysis. You should assume that we have all read the case. There is no need to lengthily reiterate the facts of the case (please). Please note that a primary objective of this assignment is the development of your implementation skills. Thus, it is not sufficient to simply diagnose what is wrong in the case. Rather, you also should present detailed and specific plans for solving the case problems. When preparing your case, it may be useful to keep the following in mind: Issues regarding problem identification What specifically is (are) the problem(s) presented? What are the priorities? Issues regarding problem causes What things/processes/behaviors are driving the problem? Issues regarding solution generation, evaluation, and evaluation What specifically needs to be accomplished (short-term and longer-term)? What are my goals? What specific measurable outcomes do I want? What assumptions do I need to make? What resources do I need? What resources do I lack? How can I obtain them? What constraints do I face (time, money, political constraints, etc.)? How can I work around them? Who needs to approve this? Who needs to know about this? Who might be affected? Who might be supportive? Who is likely to oppose? How can I persuade them to support me?

What are the specifics of implementation? Specify who, what, when, and how. Please provide as many details as possible including:

How and when should others be involved? How can they be persuaded to cooperate and implement my actions? What specific steps need to be accomplished and when? How can I monitor progress? What actions do I take once I get the data from monitoring?

What are the consequences of the solution(s) and implementation? Identify major risks. Specify contingency plans to handle the major risks. Issues regarding managerial lessons When this class is only a dim, hazy memory, what lessons do I really need to know?

Format of the Paper Your case write-up should be approximately 7-10 pages long. ( 1.5 spaced, Times New Roman font, 12 font size) along with one page abstract of the case study Grading of the Case Paper and Presentation Your paper and presentation will be graded using the following criteria? Content of analysis
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Have you adequately identified the problem(s) and causes(s)? Can your solutions be justified? Do they solve the problems? Have you specified implementation details? Have you analyzed the consequences of your solutions? Are contingency plans adequately specified? Have you identified the managerial implications? Have you made appropriate use of assigned reading material? Have you made appropriate use of additional research?

Written and oral communication

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Have you clearly presented your analysis in written and oral format (including acceptable grammar and spelling)? Does the discussion session encourage further analysis and evaluation? Have you answered questions fully (and in a constructive way)?