Case Study Guide Ukzn Westville South Africa
UKNZN, SCHOOL OF MIG- DISCIPLINE OF MAKERTING AND SUPPLY CHAIN
SCMA 305 2013
CASE STUDY GUIDE
ANSWERING CASE STUDIES
The following problems that have prevented companies to be successful are as follows:
1. The inability to recognize important problems; 2. Difficulty in formulating the main problem; 3. The inability to actually visualize or understand the situation; 4. The inability to communicate with other managers and decision makers; 5. A lack of experience of working with "messy" data; and 6. A lack of experience in working with complex organizational environments.
The Case Approach
The case study approach offers an excellent opportunity for students to think about supply chain management decisions in realistic situations. It also provides a number of advantages that are either impossible or difficult to grasp using standard lectures alone. A few of the advantages of the case studies are:
1. The opportunity to identify and separate real problems from symptoms and trivial problems; 2. Experience in developing one or more examples that embody the essential elements of a particular situation or problem; 3. Increased awareness of a business and how it really functions; 4. The ability to understand the impact of various environmental concerns, such as political, social, and legal systems, on the organization and the application of appropriate supply chain management techniques; 5. The opportunity to ask the appropriate questions when formulating the problem and gathering relevant information; 6. The opportunity to identify and isolate qualitative factors that will have a significant impact on the application of quantitative analysis methods; 7. The ability to think clearly in ambiguous and complex situations; 8. The chance to develop recommendations and action plans that are consistent with the business' goals and problem-solving strategy; 9. The opportunity to determine what information is required in applying one or more supply chain
SCMA 305 2013
CASE STUDY GUIDE
ANSWERING CASE STUDIES
The following problems that have prevented companies to be successful are as follows:
1. The inability to recognize important problems; 2. Difficulty in formulating the main problem; 3. The inability to actually visualize or understand the situation; 4. The inability to communicate with other managers and decision makers; 5. A lack of experience of working with "messy" data; and 6. A lack of experience in working with complex organizational environments.
The Case Approach
The case study approach offers an excellent opportunity for students to think about supply chain management decisions in realistic situations. It also provides a number of advantages that are either impossible or difficult to grasp using standard lectures alone. A few of the advantages of the case studies are:
1. The opportunity to identify and separate real problems from symptoms and trivial problems; 2. Experience in developing one or more examples that embody the essential elements of a particular situation or problem; 3. Increased awareness of a business and how it really functions; 4. The ability to understand the impact of various environmental concerns, such as political, social, and legal systems, on the organization and the application of appropriate supply chain management techniques; 5. The opportunity to ask the appropriate questions when formulating the problem and gathering relevant information; 6. The opportunity to identify and isolate qualitative factors that will have a significant impact on the application of quantitative analysis methods; 7. The ability to think clearly in ambiguous and complex situations; 8. The chance to develop recommendations and action plans that are consistent with the business' goals and problem-solving strategy; 9. The opportunity to determine what information is required in applying one or more supply chain