Case Brief

CASE BRIEFS CHECKLIST Read “Guide to Case Analysis” before reading this document to get an idea of the goals of case analysis. The descriptions of the sections in that document are more informative while the details in this document are complementary to that discussion and more technical (i.e., specific tips to support your learning curve). My strongest recommendation is that this document be used as a checklist. When your team has finished creating a particular brief, go through each item, especially those that are noted under specific sections (e.g., situation overview, etc.) and ensure each aspect has been met. General Comments:

1. Approach briefs as though you are part of a team of consultants who have been contracted to investigate an organizational problem. In doing this, you will want to provide your client a discussion where they can see you have thoroughly investigated the issues and that your recommendations are objectively supported, logically sound, and consistent with the client’s organizational objectives.

2. Do not use contractions. 3. Third-person speech should be your default. 4. Insert page numbers. 5. Double-spacing between lines within the same paragraph is not necessary. You are

writing reports instead of research papers. 6. A reference or works cited list is not usually needed. However, should you use

information from a source other than your head(s), the case, or the material posted on Bb, cite and reference those materials.

7. A Table of Contents and/or Table of Tables is not usually necessary unless your document is very long (and it probably will not be).

8. Work with your classmates, colleagues, family, etc. in generating alternatives and refining ideas. Real life problems are not solved in isolation, so there is no need to take that approach here. Teams are responsible for their own work but discussing ideas across teams and options is a robust practice.

9. You are engaged in a scientific exercise, so the importance of details and precision can never be understated. Make them count.

10. Realize each section must be built on the foundation of previous sections and subsequent sections are only as strong as those that precede them. I recommend writing each section in sequence and integrating them using similar language.

11. Expect to revise each brief several times. Professional documents are never complete with only a rough draft – revise until the job is finished.

12. Compare and contrast when appropriate; many aspects of organizational issues are relative, so providing a referent point (e.g., context, other issues, mission/vision, strategic objectives, etc.) can greatly support your points, and, as a result, reader understanding.

13. Writing matters, and I commit to reading every word that you write. Therefore, given that you are graduate students working in teams with other graduate students, I expect a pristinely perfect document in this regard. Any errors in punctuation, spelling, grammar, type-o’s, etc. will be considered egregious and penalized accordingly. I strongly encourage the use of Grammarly or a similar service to assist you in this effort.

Section-relevant Tips With the exception of the Executive Summary, you will notice the “Guide to Case Analysis” document provides an overview of each section referenced below. While you do have some flexibility in writing your case briefs, I fully expect that, at a minimum, you will have use these four sections/headings and each point below them will be diligently addressed. Freely use sub- headings as necessary. Executive Summary:

1. Write this last. 2. Depending on the nature of the project, Executive Summaries can sometimes span

several pages. However, given relative “small” problems you will be discussing this term, two-three paragraphs succinctly written paragraphs will be sufficient.

Situation Overview & Problem Identification:

1. Be sure to provide sufficient but not excessive context to frame the problem. It might be useful to think, “Have I provided the information necessary to understand the individual, group, and structural determinants of behavior as they relate to this case?” Be sure that you do not simply cut and paste material already written in the case. You must only include the relevant portions.

2. Clearly state the problem(s) in a way that is easy to find and see; do not just embed it in a paragraph. One approach I use is to have someone scan the document. If they cannot tell me the problem I am attempting to address (in a general sense – remember that they only scanned it), then I revise this section.

Analysis & Evaluation: 1. The goals in this section are three-fold: (1) produce a list of possible alternatives that may

address the problem; (2) introduce and justify the criteria through which you will evaluate your alternatives; (3) and review the alternatives produced in Part 1 using the criteria justified in Part 2.

a. First, identify potential alternatives to addressing the problem. i. Potential alternatives should be exhaustive and, collectively, may very

well incorporate factors across all levels of the organization (i.e., individual, group, & structural).

ii. Use lists or other formatting approaches to clearly highlight potential options.

b. Second, identify the criteria by which you will judge/evaluate/assess your alternatives.

i. The criteria list needs to be comprehensive, and it may be necessary/advantageous to assign relative weights to each criterion according to its importance to the organization.

ii. You must justify, using case information and/or logic, both the criteria you chose and the weights you assign them.

iii. Use lists or other formatting approaches to clearly highlight your options. c. Third, systematically review each of your alternatives according to every criterion

you previously identified. i. For example, if you have four alternatives and five critical issues, you will

have 20 different items to examine and explain (4x5). ii. Qualitative explanations are useful, but quantitative ones are vital to

objectively supporting your recommendations. iii. Tables are critical tools for showing your findings. Ensure they are

professional in appearance. It is sometimes easier to create a table that summarizes your findings first, discuss with your colleagues and refine the ideas second, then explain the logic behind the information in the table last. If you use this approach, do not be afraid to modify the information in your tables as you begin writing and justifying your ideas.

iv. You are trying to convince your clients they should immediately enact your ideas, so you must be persuasive. State things as fact and support as such.

2. Regarding tables: a. They must be referenced in the narrative before they are shown. Next, they

should be pasted into the document as close to the reference in the text as possible (but not before it). Finally, the table must be discussed/referenced in the text.

b. All tables/exhibits should be appropriately labeled (e.g., “Table 4: Criteria & Weightings”) and should be professionally and consistently formatted to match other tables.

Recommendations:

1. All recommendations must be supported by evidence from the previous sections, and there must be a logical flow of ideas and critical treatment of issues throughout the document (by “critical” I mean that you have adequately considered relevant elements and justified them accordingly). The quality of this section is fully dependent on the quality of prior sections. If one or more prior sections are weak, then your recommendations will be subsequently weak.

2. If an idea or issue has not been previously raised in a previous section, then it probably has no place now. In general, introducing key ideas/alternatives in this section is not appropriate. You are merely specifying the alternative or combination of alternatives that your group thinks will address the problem.

3. Be sure to include both short- and long-term solutions and use appropriate headings to segment these discussions. In the short-term, think, “What must we do now to address the issue at hand?” For the long-term, think, “What must the client do

4. Provide a timeline and budget where appropriate. 5. Translate recommendations into actionable initiatives. Think of this as a step-by-step

guide that a manager might take to implement your ideas. Depending on the structure of your brief, you may two sets of initiatives, one each for the short- and long-term, or one encompassing set for both – either option can work.