Question
What material should be included under each section of a case analysis?
Answer
A properly developed case requires more than the student responding to the questions in the text. What is required is research into the issue, Therefore it is required that you develop an understanding as to the underlying reality of the situation, develop a thesis as to what you are going to study, Test that thesis, arrive at a Conclusion and Recommendation The sections are:
Background. Starting with case in the text, but going beyond it, develop information from on-line sources. This will include background information on the company involved, the issues they are confronted with that resulted in the case and any other relevant information one needs to know that will allow a fair judging of the case as you present it.
Objective What is the purpose of your effort. It is best stated as a thesis or hypothesis to be tested. Include also any corollaries to the thesis that you will discuss.
Procedures How did you go about the process of building the Background, establishing an Objective, gather data and analyzing same. Also. What limitations do you believe exist that the reader should know about?
Findings This is where you present your analysis of the data you collected. Most normally it will be in the form of answers to the questions raised in the case in the text … but, it could be more extended. Particularly since you have studied the situation and know more than what is presented in the case write up.
Summary of Findings The key elements of the Findings. It is in fact a distillation of the Findings. In your report it will be placed just prior to the Findings.
Conclusions Having summarized your Findings, you are now in a position to arrive at the Conclusion. Did data cause you to accept or reject the thesis and why.
Recommendation An action statement. Given your conclusion, what do you recommend the company do to optimize their position and why you say that
Also, make sure to include a Table of Contents and a Bibliography
