The document provides guidelines for writing business case studies, including developing a plot around a central problem or dilemma, structuring the case study to provide relevant background information and describe symptoms of the problem or challenge faced by the protagonist, and asking the student to analyze the situation and identify the underlying issues requiring resolution. It also discusses where to find information, getting permission to use real company data, and testing different levels of knowledge through undergraduate versus MBA case studies.
Measures of Central Tendency: Mean, Median and Mode
How to write simple business case studies
1. How to Write
Business Case Studies
By
Maxwell Ranasinghe
Presentation made to lecturers at
Department of Marketing at
University of Kelaniya
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
2. Outline of the presentation
Types of Case studies
Importance of case studies
Undergraduate/ MBA level case studies
Guideline for case study writing
Developing a plot
Where to get information
How to get commitment from a company to write a real
case study
Structure of a case study
Q & A
Comments of Harvard’s “Nike” case study – Practical
Session
Discussion
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
3. We write assignments/case studies for
testing of knowledge and skills of
students
We usually write two types of
scenarios as follows:
◦ 1. Find the answer through given facts
◦ ( analysis based assignments)
◦ 2. Request students to answer by
collecting further information from the
market place
◦ ( tasks based assignments)10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
4. The first option where you provide
information in the case study itself and
let student answer it without referring to
any other material (but with logical
assumptions)
These case studies can be given in an
exam, where student write the answer on
his own
The second option is a kind of
exploratory, observational or research
type of tasks. These case studies can be
given as individual or group
assignments. 10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
5. A business case study puts the student in
to real life scenario.
It challenges student to apply theory he
or she has learnt in the class to a practical
situation.
The case study should be a story that
changes the student’s view point to a
business manager’s
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
6. Student should feel that he is the
principal character( protagonist-
ප්රෝටැ) who is given the responsibility
of solving the problem in the case.
He should also feel that the body of
knowledge that he had acquired
through academic work and
experience can be used to handle
the case.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
7. Therefore, a good case study
should be written to create a
real life kind of situation with a
well crafted story to intrigue
the student.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
8. Undergraduate level case
studies
Case study writers who write
cases for undergraduate level or
diploma Level students should
bear in mind that the answer
expected could be provided well
with the level of knowledge and
experience that those students
posses.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
9. Case study should not be
complicated and it should
have one central decision
point or dilemma ( bear in
mind that this is not an MBA
case)
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
10. MBA Level case studies
These case studies may have one or
more core issues and could be
complicated.
Therefore the case writer should be in a
position to describe a scenario that has
many facets to the problem
Case writer has to mix different areas of
the problem to form a challenging
situation
Individual related areas could be thought
separately and it has to be mixed
together by superimposing each other to
have a one single story. It is a challenge
! 10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
11. Layers to be thought separately
and superimposed
Internal layer( staff relations, resource
constraints and corporate culture etc.)
Operational layer(Suppliers,
Intermediaries, Competitors- Direct
and Indirect ,Customers of a
business/marketer, Publics)
External layer ( PESTEEL factors)
It is important to note that they are not
written in sequence but throughout
the story
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
12. Lets start with undergraduate
case study to illustrate
Case should have a proper problem
within the facts of the case
Student should not feel that he can
answer the case study without going
through the facts of the case but
referring to the class notes or any
other material outside of the case
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
13. The nature of the situation should be
clearly apparent once the case is
read.
Most importantly the case writer
should not write too much of
background details which may not
have much bearing on the problem.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
14. In marketing case studies
Case writers should be careful
when making the plot of the
story not to end up in asking
the student to write a
marketing plan as it has
become a common feature of
many marketing case studies
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
15. There is no proper format for case
studies but it is always better to
have a logical format so that the
case writer will be directed to
include the main ingredients of a
case study
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
16. Have you got to follow
Harvard, Princeton or Yale
University styles ? No
Have your own Sri Lankan
style. Then only you will get
creative and objective.
Can we have a simple
guideline in writing case
studies ? Yes10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
17. Guideline
1. Decide what you need to
test in students through the
case study.
2. Develop a plot
3. Structure the case
4. Find information and data to
fill the structure
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
18. 5. Provide symptoms of the
situation
6. Let student analyse the
symptoms and find out the central
problem.
( Case writer should not write all information that student could
write that back in his/her answer in the same form. In other words,
do not ask a question that student can write the answer without
analyzing the facts of the case)
7. Ask questions to provide
answers to the central problem or10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
19. Decide what you need to test in
students through the case study.
Most importantly the case writer
should know the level of
knowledge and experience that
the student posses
At least the course content and
the syllabus should be known to
the case writer
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
20. Case writer should not write a
problem that he has to face in
his business which may not be
suitable to check on students
at this level or in the subject
that the case is given
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
21. Case writer should know the
areas of studies done by the
student where the practical
application is very important
Those are the areas that he
should test through a case study.
Then the student will also
appreciate about the importance
of the case study10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
22. Developing a plot
Here the case writers creativity comes to
play ( copying from other exam papers or
case books are not recommended….. be
creative ??????)
He can have any kind of logical formats
(where the facts that he is going to relate
will have a bearing on finding the symptoms
of the problem that would finally pave the
way in finding the central problem)
The plot should provide a “fine idea” “ big
idea” to be structured and developed
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
23. Where to get information
Published information: ( no permission from
company is needed)
Newspaper articles
Magazines
Special brand related books, reports or
periodicals such as “Super brands Sri Lanka” or
Brand Finance, Millward Brown and Interbrand
Reports.
Annual Reports and company websites
Students’ assignments
Your own experience
Many other secondary sources
( please quote all the sources you have obtained
data and information at the end of the case)
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
24. Unpublished information
If you are indicating unpublished actual information of a company,
please take proper authority to indicate them in your case study
If a business case employs insider
information, written permission must be
obtained from the company to use,
publish, and market the case study.
Organizations can be notoriously
frustrating to work with in this regard—
especially large, complex organizations
with sophisticated legal and marketing
departments.
Once the case is complete, it can take
months (or longer) to obtain permission
and approvals. So many drafts may
have to be written
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
25. It is best to let the organization know
up front that you are writing a case
study that will be used in teaching and
published for use in institutions of
higher learning.
Assembling the right team of
advocates for the case study is a
critical task, and the team should
include representatives from the
company.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
26. WHAT IS THE ROLE OF THE
FEATURED ORGANIZATION?
The role of the Featured Organization
is to provide information and data, to
check for accuracy/completeness, and
to assist in final review and release of
the case.
Most importantly, the Featured
Organization must provide legal
permission to use the case for
educational purposes upon completion
of the case.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
27. WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF BEING A
FEATURED ORGANIZATION?
1. Being a Featured Organization is
both a practical and altruistic role.
The organization will play a significant
role in helping tomorrow’s business
leaders become better prepared to face
complex decisions in the constantly-
changing world of business.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
28. 2. The organization will also gain
broad exposure to thousands of future
graduates who are likely to seek out
the organization for employment.
( Students with diverse experience may
come out with fine answers. Sometimes the
business managers of the featured
company in the case study, attend class
discussions and presentations to find out
the ideas of the students)
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
29. 3. Many Featured Organizations use
the completed case study in their
internal training programs.
4. Employees within the Featured
Organizations benefit from sharing the
importance of their roles and tasks in
the case study’s business situation.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
30. Structuring the case studies
Title and introduction
Company
Industry
Competitors
Symptoms of the problem
Challenges
Problems to be answered
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
31. Structuring the case
studies….
Title and Introduction
It is always better to have a creative
title so that the student will feel he is
not reading another note
Even a journalistic title should create
interest in student to read
In a case study written in English, can
even have a title in your own mother
tongue e.g. Sinhala
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
32. Introduction
Within the first paragraph, identify the
protagonist. ( main character)
Within the first few paragraphs, present—
from the protagonist’s point of view—the
decision point. (This will avoid posing case
study questions such as “Assume you are
appointed as Marketing Manager” at the
end)
In a good case, you need to set the main
character that the students has to play in the
case, from the beginning.
Then student will read the case as it is his/her
problem.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
33. Context
Provide the context for the situation.
Include the situation’s time frame,
location, the purpose of the company
or organization, relevant business
factors, and the goal of the
protagonist.
( write only the relevant facts, even
famous case studies by renowned
universities, make this mistake)
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
34. Structuring the case studies…
Background
Case writers often add extraneous
information in this section in a deliberate
effort to lead students astray.
Case writer should bear in mind that he
should provide the relevant information only
to set up the foundation to build his story
Many cases have too much of background
factors
Do not write a lot of historical matter just
because you find them in the internet or other
journals/magazines
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
35. Structuring the case studies…
Company and products
A brief historical setting of the
company, its product lines,
brands, status in the market place,
market share etc.
Consider depicting the structure,
culture and resources of the of the
company or organization, if it has
any bearing on the story that you
are going to present
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
36. - Industry
Brief introduction of the industry, size,
nature and the trends should be
provided depending on the problem
that you are going to write in the case
study
If any PESTEEL factor would be
relevant to your case, you may write
about it too
.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
37. Competitive environment-
Major competitors, market
share, products, challenges
posed and strategies
adopted can be discussed
depending on the case
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
38. Structuring the case studies…
Symptoms and the problems
The important part of the story begins here
Bear in mind that you are writing a story. It
should not be totally technical or
colloquial. Use some dialogues of company
managers
A fine blend will make the case interesting for
the reader
It is always better to bring the main character
here into play so that students will read in his
point of view. ( protagonist)
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
39. Structuring the case studies…
Bit of his background, character and
the dilemma faced by him should be
introduced
The writer should describe what has
happened to create an emotional
attachment by the reader to the
central character( protagonist) of the
story
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
40. Structuring the case studies…
Readers who have both an emotional
connection to the Central Character
of the story will be more motivated to
find actionable solutions to the
problems depicted in the case.
Keep this section complex enough
that students cannot come to an easy
decision.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
41. Structuring the case studies…
Write the symptoms supported by
data, sales, profits, tables, graphs
to show the status where the
student can analyse and find out
the trend .
( Students should not be able to get the
trend or problem by just reading the figures,
but by analyzing it)
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
42. Structuring the case studies…
Connect the background in this
section to the current situation,
including underlying causes and
current results.
• Deal more deeply into the context and
possible consequences of the decision
point, dilemma faced.
Include the consequences for the
central character as well as for
company or organization.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
43. Tell what has the principal character
done in order to remedy the situation
and what is the status after such
action
Clearly state the current status
What finally matters in your story is to
provide information to the student to
analyse and find out the underlying
reason/reasons for the central
problem.
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
44. Structuring the case studies…
Challenge
Throw the challenge of finding the
underlying problem to the student on
behalf of the Central Character of the
case study
Students should be looking at problems
from a systemic perspective and trying to
solve problems based on the
complexities of the environment,
resource constraints, availability of
information, and a general understanding
that the main characters situation is
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
45. Structuring the case studies…
Problem to be answered
At the conclusion of this section,
include the degree of urgency involved
in the decision-making or the timeline
for the decision to be made
Offer him the chance of suggesting
the proper course of action or task to
be done in order to remedy the
situation
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
46. Tables and Exhibits
You could have tables such as market
share, financial information etc. in the
body of the case study or at the end
Exhibits such as advertisements,
paper articles, reports etc. should
come at the end of the case study.
Links to video clips, websites etc.
( Let student analyze data to take
decisions rather than citing what is
stated) 10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
47. Do not issue case studies
Without going through you draft
several times to ensure it is in line with
your plot.
Without checking spelling and
grammar
Without developing your own model
answer before it is issued to the
students.
Without being moderated by a Senior10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe
48. The only way to learn is to commence
writing at least small case studies.
Then you will develop the art of writing
case studies
Good Luck
Email: maxran1@yahoo.com
10/2/2020 Presentation By Maxwell Ranasinghe