Unit 2

Case Study Analysis

 Learning Objectives
• What is a Case?
• Types of Cases
• How to read/analyze a case?
• Persuasion, Argument and the Case method
• How to discuss a Case?
• How to write a Case Based Essay
• What is a Case Study?
• An in-depth investigation into situations,
circumstances, occurrences, events, organizations,
departments, and individuals.

• Puts you in the protagonist’s place, wherein you

evaluate and logically work towards the best possible
solutions.

• Helps in understanding management theories and

principles.
 Types of Cases

• Actual versus fictional

• Complete versus incomplete
• Open-ended versus close-ended
• Video cases
• Cartoon strip cases
Cartoon Case Study Strip
Cartoon Case Study Strip
The Road Map to Case Analysis
• Read, re-read, make notes, do mind-mapping
• Evaluate the situation, grasp the objective,
strategies, policies, problems, protagonist(s),
other key individuals.
 Components of Case analysis
• Identify the problem
• Generate alternatives
• Propose solutions
• Recommend the best solution as per you
• Implementation issues
 Case Study – 5 misunderstandings
 1. General theoretical (context independent)
knowledge is more valuable than concrete,
practical (context dependent) knowledge.
 2. One cannot generalize on the basis of an
individual case’ hence case study cannot
contribute to scientific development.
 Case Study – 5 misunderstandings
 3. The case study is useful for generating
hypotheses only.
 4. The case study contains a bias toward
verification, a tendency to confirm the
researcher’s preconceived notions.
 5. It is difficult to summarise and develop
general prepositions and theories on the basis
of specific case studies.
Mind Map for Case analysis
 Format of Written Analysis of
Cases
 Title page or executive summary
 Synopsis of the situation (background)
 Problem definition
 Diagnosis
 Alternatives or solutions
 Proposed solutions
 Recommendation
 Implementation plan
 Positive and negative outcomes
 References
 Common mistakes to avoid
 Improper problem identification
 Lack of proper structure
 Logical inconsistency
 Restating the obvious
 Vague and lacking concreteness
 Biased
 Unrealistic solutions