Case Method Instructions – All

Case method teaching immerses students into realistic business situations.  Cases provide the reality of managerial decision making — which includes incomplete information, time constraints, and conflicting goals — as students learn how to analyze business situations.  The case method stimulates students’ thinking and encourages discussion.  Not only is it a very relevant and practical way to learn, it’s exciting and fun.

The cases are from Harvard Business School Press.  The cases will help you understand how companies are using Supply Chains in innovative ways.  The instructor will provide a list of questions with each case. The instructor will lead a discussion of these cases in the class.  For each case, one group will also be expected to make a presentation of the case in the class.

One group will present this case in the class, and another group will post the correct answers to these case questions on the blog after the class discussion.  The remainder of the groups are required to submit a printout of their answers to the instructor at the beginning of the class. Also, be prepared to discuss the case in the class.

Instructions for each Student and All Groups

Although the answers to the case questions posed are to be submitted by the group, each individual student’s preparation and participation is critical.  Specifically:

1. Preparation. Each student must read the case.  Then work within their team to analyze the case, and then formulate an action plan.  Without this, the case discussion will mean little.
2. Presence. If the student is not present, she or he cannot learn and, more important, cannot add her or his unique thoughts and insight to the class discussion.
3. Promptness. Students who enter the classroom late disrupt the discussion and deprecate the decorum of the process.
4. Participation. Each student’s learning is best facilitated by regular participation.  More important, the case student has the responsibility to share his or her understanding and judgment with the class to advance the group’s collective skills and knowledge.