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    How to Write Case-based Essay

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    7 views8 pages

    How To Write Case-Based Essay

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    wenlei liu

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    We CHAPTER 9 HOW TO WRITEA CASE-BASED ESSAY iting ahout 2 cate i very different fom talking about it You collab forte with others in a dicustin, bringing to bear everyone's back= ground and case preparation along with the instructors knowledge and facilintion sill, But you oswally work on your own when writing about a case You have to perform the entie analysis yourself as well as organize and. ‘expres your thinking fr a readee ‘However, the diference between talking and writing about 2 case runs deeper sill Audiences have mach more exacting expectations of ext than they do of spoken comments. Logies! gaps and the back-ané-filcoleable jn a diseossion sre 4 major problem in an esay, confusing readers and undermining the wriver’ credibility Audiences don't want 2 transcripe of the writer thinking se ie evolved. They wane to know the end predict of| the writer’ thinking, exprested logically and econorsical. CHARACTERISTICS OP A PERSUASIVE CASE ESSAY ‘Writing abou a cate builds on the process of analysing 2 cate. The cae sit ustions described in previous chaptees can be used 19 oxgarize essays. An essay arguing 2 decision is organized in a diferent way fom one offering 3 problem diagnosis-The seructare of problem, decision, and evahsation essays 4s described ia chapters 10 through 12, respectively. The chapters also include cases and sample eszys about chem. The esays are based on the ‘wniting of MBA seudens, “To convince a reader chat a conclusion about 2 cae is vali, che writer smut offer credible evidence Hnked directly t0 the conclusion. This fact Jaelps explaia the characteristics ease-bated essays have in common: 41. Answers two questions —What? Why?—and offen think—How? 2. Makes 2 positon statement (What?) 06 WRITING 3. Uses evidence to persuade the reader (Why?) 4. IEneeded, provides an action plan (How?) ‘Three Questions Contry to what many MBSA students think, mos profesoce don't want sys fled with engehy case summaries and fs of intighss and observations ‘They don't want you to prove to them that you have read che case carefily| by teling them everything you know about it They want you to answer whatever questions you have been asked shout a case—and to answer them as efficiently 2 you ean. ‘The parts ofa case esay can be organized sround three simple questions What? Why? How? The position stacment responds co What? and che asgument snewer: Why? How? refer to action: How should the recom mended ection be implemented? How can the problem be fined? [Exhibi 9-1 sums op the organizing questions for a case-based esa. Position Statement A sharply focused position statement organizes the entire ext, Without ‘ong, the essay has no prrpote or direction as fara the eader is concern. ‘The most coramon failing ofthe case exams [ have seen over the yeats i ‘that the writer ey to Jooke ata situation from all angles, suggesting many ‘meanings but committing to none.1 use only one negative example i eis Dbook, but itt instructive to look at an essay that complicates the reader's ‘ask fom the beginning. Ie was writen asa response to the decision stma- tion described in “Genera Electric: Major Appliance Business Group (Abridged)’"a case wed in chapter 11. net Paton satemert esses contr we eumert How paonpn HOW TOWRITE A CASB-BASED BSSAY 107 A. Dacision command that the Projet C (RIC heen management teams go fo the and of Sirens ak for an added capital authorization suctaed as flows +4096 = $2.8 ion forthe maraerent ination and suppor 59- tes hich de req foal apr. “+586 = $1.5 mon forthe sl raing in ech ble sling, sec would ge oa sero Meo I rromend that the BC tee mat dg Se $1 ion inset sent in aged cmp nel oor ast cnc fr he divisions proses T would not ppt he aitiona copia spending of 1.5 milion in the Fatoryensironment becuse it des’ big deeb Te tony aa ite get union yn The unio’ spore con be gid ety by teaicing ob enbancenent ad enrichment pgs. Tanz so cpa aig a atonal tron in he produc dendogmert (ED hina) proses The wil only dy the press thot cer bone sexing the pein fo athe fo he exgacring tos. Soc eaves sil exe icon ad commit ‘The eute is shout the development of a new GE didhwasher. The wo previous machines lave missed their sales trgess Jack Welch bas clleaged the managers of the prodcer development process Project C) to set a Denchumark for a world-class operation and introduce a product that beats the competition The managers have to decide which, ifany of five ada sions should be made to the projece and how much more investmect and time they will require. The opening you have just read zenders a decision fon each ofthe five proposed additions, but the decisions don't seem to have anything to do with one another, and the writers reasons for advocating or rejecting chem are either vague or not stated. ‘The fie paragriph of anocher assay on the cave ip «revelation: it relates the decSions to a larges issue This writer recommends five diferent deci- sions, fu chey ae linked togecher. "The Projet C managers team shuld peruae senior senegemant ad the bord of decors 20 inrease the budget ny 15 pocent, or $4.2 milion, and ected the dna for completion by our montis, Four the fe change shold be led 9 the projet, laving improvements in CEs management i oe sos warnine and support estos fora leer age The cntgic importance of Project C 2 GE’ sucess nthe ddwasher industry demands meting all ofthe projet objcivs and the four charges are ctl to mecting them, Failure 10 40 $0 toould put at sk the iil investment and overall ompestvenee in the shvasher indy, ‘When you finish this pengraph, you have no doubt about what the ‘writer thinks. This excellent example of a postion statement abo asers a single reason forall ofthe decisions. Stating your pociion at the beginning has sever] adesazaget, Fis, che reader expects you to answer dhe question you have been asked, Whe make the reader wait for it? Second, critical readers evaluate an argument ae they 0 slong, Professors do this in arder to award a grade. Others do 10 to judge how convincing the argument is and what implications it may have for their thinking and for action, Readers cant evaluate an argumeat, howeves, ‘unt chey know what irs tying to prove. 'your conclusion appears at the ‘end ofthe essay, they mast go back to the beginning and compare the prot te the postion, Their reading will be more eicont if they know the posi- sion before the proof. Finally, and probably mest important 2 position state= ment at the heginning of an esty providas a eatament of intention for the readee—and for you, the writer That statement of intention ca be your reference point as vou compose. In this paragraph, the writer states 2 position and expresies an intention about dhe organization of the ey: Ragen tok over a oponiztion tat rewarded the pli of linet and cexpated leaders tobe vireully dato. They had lst Bennet, the tyne who mde te division work The market salvo changing The division probe ems stom fiom tre soues: a ack of «new vio, Regen led weak ese anda miscligned ganization. ‘The last sentence gives both the reer and the writer an agenda for an sxgement prove that vision, an individual leadership weakness, and mis- aligament are the primary causes of sn onganization troubles (Opcoing with 2 position sasement does have a downside. It can be dif ficult to write the conclusion of an esay before you vite the estay stele Depending on your writing proces, starting with the conclusion may be a problem because you develop one at you vite. Howovey, that is a high-risk ‘yy to write when time is short Better to write a paral position statement to get stated and chen add to it, eg., ame ewo causes of 2 problesn that yon are ur of and ther ada the one or two move chat become clear later, ‘Asecond disadvantage of an early position statement stat ic can make the HOW70 WRITE A CASE-BASED ESSAY 109, ‘writer seem aggresive and arrogant to readers. On certain occasions and in cern caloaey, i may be bes to defer + position sexemant until you have proved it, However, there ae many situations in which you cam reasonably assume that knowing your conclusion will help she reader. A case-based ‘exiza i one of those sisationt. If you have any doubts ak the profesor. Bridence Using evidence wel is probably dhe most crucial sil dor a writer of eave essays, Mustating how eo wse evidence is dificult, though, because it require fii with the case tha furnishes the evidence. hope to pro~ ‘vide enough of the cate context vo that you can understand bow each of the following examples of evidence works "The fist example uses qualitative and quantitative evidence Ie dis. ‘cusing one ofthe five proposed additions co the dishwasher product devel- lopment effor called Project C described in "General Electric: Major ‘Appliance Business Group (Abridged). The value engincering cycle needs ore sime and money, both rouchy isuet st GE since late rollouts and qolity problens have plagued prior models. Infact, sales ofthe Project B smacsine were 30 t0 40 peroent lower than expected because of the bad Gury of the A model, The fst sentence is che recommendation, (4) Afiec PermsTufA and B filed to meet the desired goals, one addi- ‘sonal prototype cycle ot iteration before marker rollout seems 10 bea very tound measure. Ie will ance high product qulty end wil alco lower waranty and service cost Te most ral pert of implementing this change is the projec daly of the four monthe Heweve the value engineering syle would incest prof quit ler css gain mavbet share besos of prod 1 improsements xd ensure that Project C dees mot nn into the same prob lame a A and B Although ii posible to dely this change for ene o 200 eas afr the launch by then i aight be t00 late. The produc’ reputation ‘ould ahead be jeopardized and st wuld be exter dificult 0 convince oh the cle foe and caterers tha the produ is he improved varson they expected in he fst plac In adn, senior management hasbeen ver da: "Do righ the it sie.” ‘The total esi $1.2 milion, By year 3 (1985), the ade cos ofthe pro= pol wil be eavered tough adtonal cnsribution rom Proje C. By esr 7 (1989), Project Cy tof wil dnresecommbution 70 perent com ‘pared with tol contain i 1979. With each yar er the lech of he ‘new mode, more and more of the ineased rcenv fromthe projec wil all ely tthe Boioe Bie r 7 sean HOWTO WRITE ACCASEBASED ESSAY ML ~ ‘Bahibi 9-2 summaries che evidence in the paragraph The author cites many advantages of value enginesring, and there is quantitative confirma~ tion that i¢ will increase contribution over the Jong term. The two pari- graphs ace a good example of how qualitative and quantitative evidence can be used to reinforce each other "The second example uses primarily quantitative evidence. One leson of the example i that merely citing nombers will not persuade 2 reader; writ= fxs have to tell the reader whar they mean in the conte

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