Writing a Case Study Analysis: Main

Steps
Business management is built on case analysis. Every single economic result
shows that the methods and instruments employed were either well-timed and
expedient, in the event of success, or not, in case of failure. These two
options indicate whether the strategy is efficient (and should be followed) or
requires corrections (or complete change). Such an approach to the case
study will make your writing piece more proficient and valuable for the reader.
The following steps will direct your plan for writing a case study analysis.

Step 1: Preliminary work

 Critical reading of the case

o Make notes and highlight the numbers and ideas that could be
quoted.
 Focusing the analysis
o Single out as many problems as you can, and briefly mark their
underlying issues. Then make a note of those responsible. In the
report, you will use two to five of the problems, so you will have a
selection to choose from.
 Brainstorming the solutions
o Outline a possible solution to each of the problems you found.
Course readings and outside research shall be used here.
Highlight your best and worst solution for further reference.
Step 2: Drafting the Case

 Executive Summary (= Introduction + Background)

o Provide a general description of the situation and its history.
o Name all the problems you are going to discuss.
o Specify the theory used for the analysis.
o Present the assumptions that emerged during the analysis, if any.
 Case Evaluation
o Describe the detected problems in more detail.
o Indicate their link to, and effect on, the general situation.
o Explain why the problems emerged and persist.
 Proposed Solutions
o List realistic and feasible solutions to the problems you outlined, in
the order of importance.
o Specify your predicted results of such changes.
o Support your choice with reliable evidence (i.e., textbook
readings, the experience of famous companies, and other
external research).

  Recommendations
o Define the strategies required to fulfill your proposed solution.
o Indicate the responsible people and the realistic terms for its
implementation.
o Recommend the issues for further analysis and supervision.

Step 3: Finalizing the Case

Like any other piece of writing, a case analysis requires post-editing. Carefully
read it through, looking for inconsistencies and gaps in meaning. Your
purpose is to make it look complete, precise, and convincing.

 Preparing a Case for Analysis

Your professor might give you various case study examples from which to
choose, or they may just assign you a particular case study. To conduct a
thorough data analysis, you must first read the case study. This might appear
to be obvious. However, you’d be surprised at how many students don’t take
adequate time to complete this part.

Read the case study very thoroughly, preferably several times. Highlight,
underline, flag key information, and make notes to refer to later when you are
writing your analysis report.

If you don’t have a complete knowledge of the case study your professor has
assigned, you won’t conduct a proper analysis of it. Even if you make use of a
business case study template or refer to a sample analysis, it won’t help if you
aren’t intimately familiar with your case study.

 
Analyzing the Case
You will also have to conduct research. When it comes to research, you will
need to do the following:

 Gather hard, quantitative data (e.g. 67% of the staff participated in the

meeting).
 Design research tools, such as questionnaires and surveys (this will
aid in gathering data).
 Determine and suggest the best specific, workable solutions.

It would be best if you also learned how to analyze a case study. Once you
have read through the case study, you need to determine the focus of your
analysis. You can do this by doing the following:

Identify the main research problem
Analyze the main underlying causes of
the existing problem
E.g., the loss of brand identity as a problem faced by
Starbucks
 When and why did Starbucks lose its brand
identity?
 Were there certain changes in the company’s
strategy before the problem occurred?

Establish the cause-and-effect Starbucks’ brand image – possible sources of

relations between the various factors influence:

 The inner vision of the company

 Advertising
 The design of the stores

Formulate the best solutions to address  Paying more attention to advertising

the problem campaigns
 Reconsidering the vision and mission
 statements
 Improving the design of stores

Write a report or express your position during a class discussion

Compare your chosen solutions to the solutions offered by the experts who
analyzed the case study you were given or to online assignments for
students who were dealing with a similar task. The experts’ solutions will
probably be more advanced than yours simply because these people are
more experienced. However, don’t let this discourage you; the whole point of
doing this analysis is to learn. Use the opportunity to learn from others’
valuable experience, and your results will be better next time.

If you are still in doubt, 4the University of South Carolina offers a

great guide on forming a case study analysis.

 Case Analysis Format & Structure

When you are learning how to write a case study analysis, it is important to
get the format of your analysis right. Understanding the case study format is
vital for both the professor and the student. The person planning and handing
out such an assignment should ensure that the student doesn’t have to use
any external sources.

In turn, students have to remember that a well-written case analysis provides

all the data, making it unnecessary for the reader to go elsewhere for
information.

Regardless of whether you use a case study template, you will need to follow
a clear and concise format when writing your analysis report. There are some
possible case study frameworks available. Still, a case study should contain
eight sections laid out in the following format:
 Executive Summary. Also known as a synopsis, this acts as the
introduction to the case study analysis. The University of Wollongong
provides examples of good and poor executive summaries. In the
executive summary, you will:
o Describe the purpose of the current case study;
o Provide a summary of the company;
o Briefly introduce the problems and issues found in the case study
o Discuss the theory you will be using in the analysis;
o Present the key points of the study and present any assumptions
made during the analysis.
 Findings. This is where you present in more detail the specific
problems you discovered in the case study. In this section, you will:
o Present each problem you have singled out;
o Justify your inclusion of each problem by providing supporting
evidence from the case study and by discussing relevant theory
and what you have learned from your course content;
o Divide the section (and following sections) into subsections, one
for each of your selected problems.
 Discussion. This is the section in which you summarize each issue or
problem and present your argument for each chosen solution. Here you
will:
o Present a summary of each problem you have identified;
o Present plausible solutions for each of the problems, keeping in
mind that each problem will likely have more than one possible
solution;
o Provide the pros and cons of each solution in a way that is
practical.
 Conclusion. This is a summary of your findings and discussion.
 Recommendations. This is the section of your analysis where you
make your recommendations based on your research and conclusions.
Here you will:
o Decide which solution best fits each of the issues you identified;
o Explain why you chose this solution and how it will effectively
solve the problem;
o Be persuasive when you write this section so that you can drive
your point home;
o Be sure to bring together theory and what you have learned
throughout your course to support your recommendations.
 Implementation. In this section, you will provide information on how to
implement the solutions you have recommended. You will:
o Provide an explanation of what must be done, who should take
action, and when the solution should be carried out;
o Where relevant, you should provide an estimate of the cost in
implementing the solution, including both the financial investment
and the cost in terms of time.
 References. While you generally do not need to refer to many external
sources when writing a case study analysis, you might use a few. When
you do, you will need to properly reference these sources, which is most
often done in one of the main citation styles, including APA, MLA, or
Harvard. There is plenty of help when citing references, and you can
follow these APA guidelines, these MLA guidelines, or these Harvard
guidelines.
 Appendices. This is the section you include after your case study
analysis if you used any original data in the report. These data,
presented as charts, graphs, and tables, are included here because to
present them in the main body of the analysis would be disruptive to the
reader. The University of Southern California provides a great
description of appendices and when to make use of them.
When you’ve finished your first draft, be sure to proofread it. Look not only for
potential grammar and spelling errors but also for discrepancies or holes in
your argument.

You should also know what you need to avoid when writing your analysis.

 Things to Avoid in Case Analysis

Whenever you deal with a case study, remember that there are some pitfalls
to avoid! Beware of the following mistakes:

 Excessive use of colloquial language. Even though it is a study of an actual

case, it should sound formal.
 Lack of statistical data. Give all the important data, both in percentages and in
numbers.
 Excessive details. State only the most significant facts, rather than drowning the
reader in every fact you find.
 Inconsistency in the methods you have used. In a case study, theory plays a
relatively small part, so you must develop a specific case study research
methodology.
 Trivial means of research. It is critical that you design your own case study
research method in whatever form best suits your analysis, such as
questionnaires and surveys.

It is useful to see a few examples of case analysis papers. After all, a sample
case study report can provide you with some context so you can see how to
approach each aspect of your paper.