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Why cases?

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WHY CASES?

The case study method is a well-proven teaching method and has long been used at many of the world’s most prestigious business schools, most notably Harvard Business School. At HBS, the case study method has been applied in education for more than 100 years (started in 1921). Cases can be used in all disciplines and situations where the purpose is for students to verify and develop their knowledge in real situations. Case studies are an excellent teaching method for entrepreneurs, as entrepreneurs are doers who want to be in reality, and with cases, they gain knowledge from learning from realistic situations. With cases, entrepreneurs will be exposed to real business dilemmas before they actually happen.

Entrepreneurs are the engine of the growth and sustainable development of the modern society. To be an entrepreneur is to create something new, go where no one has gone, and take risks in developing new ideas, goods, services, and businesses/or routines. Entrepreneurship is not easy, entrepreneurs are constantly faced with challenging situations, where the decision on how to solve the situation can have far-reaching consequences for the entrepreneur.

If entrepreneurs can be trained to identify, analyze and learn the consequences of their decisions in different situations before they actually happen, then the probability of entrepreneurs succeeding can be increased. This is exactly what a well-written case does, the cases put the entrepreneurs in different situations before the situations actually happen. A well-written case gives entrepreneurs the opportunity to experience situations in a safe environment where the discussions around the case provide an opportunity to understand the situations better, learn from others, and discuss and evaluate possible decisions to solve the situation.

Why Cases can be creating a faster learning curve than another teaching experience

Being an entrepreneur means that you work in unknown terrain, which means that you will be faced with many difficult issues that have to be solved, many directly crucial to your survival and success. It is therefore important to practice different possible entrepreneurial scenarios before they occur. This can be achieved with cases where the entrepreneur can get perspective and context to solve the scenarios in the best possible way in advance.

A well-written case can provide a rich contextual way to introduce new material and creates opportunities for the entrepreneurs to apply their knowledge and acquire new knowledge to solve a situation they are faced with. In this way, the case study method differs from traditional teaching, with theory learning, repetition, and memorizing, the case study method, requires the entrepreneur to decide which information should be gathered, what concepts to apply in the analysis, and how situations should be resolved.

The cases can span a wide range from very simple to very complex situations. The cases can provide basic information for cases to a very detailed description of a situation with associated data to analyze. It should be noted, however, that short cases do not always have to mean that the case is simple. The lack of information may well develop the discussion in several directions. The information and questions in the case will establish the discussion and ultimately the learning of the case. A good case should form the basis of an extensive discussion, with opportunities for several potential solutions. These solutions should be backed up by analyzing the situation and assumptions about the future.

The case method is based on two parts: the case itself and the discussion around the case. In order for it to be possible to have a discussion, sufficient information and a framework for analysis must be provided in the case. This is so that the students can come up with solutions and then identify how they should be applied in other similar situations.

Teaching with cases gives students a multifaceted teaching experience. For all parts to work, the case must be properly designed and give students the opportunity to be active with feedback from the teacher. In this way, students can develop their skills in:

  • Analyze a situation based on facts and make assumptions

All business decision is about the current situation of the company and market and where they are headed in the future. While the current situation is based on facts, the future is based on assumptions. Both for the current situation and the future, the student has to be able to identify and focus on what is essential in the case. Concentrate on the important, and ignore the noise. Take the case from lack or overload of information and identify what facts you have. Identify what information you need to identify the issues, problems, and opportunities.

  • Understand and apply analytical tools to the situation

When the participants have identified what he/she believes to most important aspects of the case and on which the decision should be collected and based on information. The participants should make a choice on which analytical tools should be used to analyze the issues in detail. There are two types of materials to analyze: quantitative and qualitative. The choice of analysis tool depends on the material and the form of result desired.

  • Analyze the results of the application of the analysis tool

Analyze the results of the application of the analysis tools, with different scenarios/simulations. Provide an in-depth analysis of the results from the various analysis tools. The advantages and disadvantages and the consequences in the short and long term.

  • Make decisions based on what has emerged about complex situations.

In the last step, the students decide on the situation. Motivate why the decision is the best, and listen to the others in the class to hear their proposed decisions and their motivation.

Meta-Skills

In a tribute article by Harvard Business School’s 100 years of case teaching, the former dean of HBS and professor Nitin Nohria describes the magic of case teaching and he does it in one word: meta-skills, defined as the long-lasting ability to learn new things faster. Professor Nohria claims that case teaching provides students with meta-skills, which he describes is a combination of seven specific skills: preparation, discernment, bias recognition, judgment, collaboration, curiosity, and self-confidence.

  • Preparation – the participants learn to be prepared, which they are by reading case material in advance, focusing and prioritizing, identifying key issues, and having the first point of view.
  • Discernment – a good case contains relevant information. Such information is usually background history, present situation with company, people, relationship, and financial data. Even if the case is long, it will not be able to capture the whole situation. Also, people may regard the business issue from different angles. It is important for the participants to identify and focus on the essentials of the case.
  • Bias Recognition – adapt their own initial reaction, to understand and feel empathy with other stakeholders. Being able to recognize and correct personal prejudices provides benefits in multifaceted tasks and input comes from people with different functions, backgrounds, and perspectives.
  • Judgment – most cases are intended to stimulate a decision discussion rather than provide a clear answer. This means that the participants must carefully formulate which decision they recommend. Having a case discussion in the classroom helps to develop leadership skills, in that decisions must be made under uncertainty, the decision must communicate to other participants and receive their “buy-in”.
  • Collaboration – develop the ability to collaborate with others. The case method develops a good collaborative discussion where all participants are offered to contribute and their contributions are carefully considered, which is the final decision.
  • Curiosity – the cases arouse curiosity in the participants that they get to experience many relevant situations and roles.
  • Self-Confidence – in the cases the participants are the leader and decision-maker, so even if that case role far exceeds their previous roles, they get to test being a high decision-maker and feel that they can handle the task, which strengthens their self-confidence.

HBS Professor and Former Dean Nitin Nohria sums up the advantage of the case method by saying “the case method can engage students and help them develop powerful meta-skills like no other form of teaching.” Harvard Business School teaches 500 cases over two years in their MBA program.

The case method creates great learning incentives for entrepreneurs in that they will gain knowledge from realistic situations. The goal of the case study method is to verify, consolidate and integrate the knowledge of the entrepreneurs and to apply this knowledge to different business situations. Case studies promote the entrepreneur’s critical and creative thinking, persuasive communication skills, global and multicultural perspectives, and leadership skills. That is why the case methods are so well suited for entrepreneurs, the doers.

REFERENCES

Barnes, Louis B., C.R. Christensen, and Abby J. Hansen. Teaching and the Case Method. 3rd ed. Boston: Harvard Business School Press, 1994.

Christensen, C.R. Teaching by the Case Method. Boston: Harvard Business School, 1983.

Klein, Hans Emil, ed. The Art of Interactive Teaching with Cases, Simulations, Games, and other Interactive Methods. Boston: The World Association for Case Method Research and Application, 1995.

Nohria, Nitin. What the Case Study Method Really Teaches. Harvard Business Review. December 21, 2021

Rogers, Priscilla S., and Jone Rymer. “Business and Management Communication Cases: Challenges and Opportunities.” Business Communication Quarterly 61, no. 1 (1998): 7–25.

The HBS Case Method. https://www.hbs.edu/mba/academic-experience/Pages/the-hbs-case-method.aspx