Guide to Individual Case Preparation Case Notes Template The following outline and question areas are intended

as a guide to your thinking for case preparation. Some question areas, as noted, are required for each case, while others are relevant only for selected cases, depending on the content and focus of the case. You may use this template to guide your preparation of your individual notes on assigned cases. If your notes are handwritten, rather than typed, they must be submitted as photocopies as evidence you have prepared your notes before class. I. Current Situation A. Current Performance (required) How has the organization performed in recent years in terms of return on investment, market share, and profitability? (This section must be based on and present evidence of your conduct of appropriate numerical analyses of the firms market and financial performance i.e. ratio analyses and/or change (and percentage change) over time in key market and financial measures over time.) Your task is to conduct analyses and discover possible problems facing the company, not to just present data. What are the organizations current mission, objectives, strategies and policies? B. Corporate Governance Who are the Board of Directors and what is their level of involvement in strategic management? C. Top Management What person or group constitutes top management? Have they established a systematic approach to strategic management? Are strategic decisions made ethically in a socially responsible manner? Is top management sufficiently skilled to cope with likely future challenges? II. External Environment A. General Environment (required) What general environmental forces are currently affecting both the organization and the industries in which it competes? Which of these forces present future threats or opportunities? Are these forces different in other regions of the world? (where the firm does business) B. Industry Environment (required) What (How do the five) forces or industry economic characteristics drive industry competition? What are key factors in successful competition in the industry? What key factors in the immediate environment currently affect the organization as opportunities or threats

Which factors represent future threats or opportunities? Which firms are major competitors in the industry and/or the organizations strategic group? C. Summary of External Forces (required) Which of the general and industry environmental forces are most important to the organization and to the industries in which it competes at the present time? Which will be important in the future? III. Internal Environment Corporate Structure Is the present structure consistent with current organizational objectives, strategies policies and programs as well as with the firms international operations? A. Corporate Culture Is there a well-defined or emerging culture composed of shared beliefs, expectations and values? What is the cultures position on important issues facing the organization? (that is, productivity, quality of performance, adaptability to changing conditions and internationalization) B. Organizational Activities Analysis (required) Through appropriate analysis of raw data or relevant information as provided in the case, evaluate the following areas of firm activities, functions and business processes. Not all assigned cases will include information on all organizational activities. Marketing- How well is the firm performing in terms of analysis of (both domestic and international) market position and marketing mix? What trends emerge from this analysis? How have these trends affected past performance? What is the likely impact of these trends on future performance? Do these activities provide the company with a competitive advantage? Finance-How well is the firm performing in terms of financial analysis (consider ratios, common size statements and capitalization structure) What trends emerge from this analysis? How have these trends affected past performance? What is the likely impact of these trends on future performance? Do these activities provide the company with a competitive advantage?

Research and Development-What are the firms current R&D objectives, strategies, policies and programs?

Does R&D provide the company with a competitive advantage? Operations and Logistics- What are the firms current manufacturing/service objectives, strategies, policies and programs? Have you observed any significant (positive or negative) trends in costs or efficiency? How well does the firm perform relative to the competition? Are operations managers using appropriate concepts and techniques to evaluate and improve current performance? Does operations provide the company with a competitive advantage? Human Resources Management (HRM)- What are the firms current HRM objectives, strategies, policies and programs? How well is the firm performing with respect to HRM? (turnover, grievances, strikes, layoffs, employee training, quality of work life) What trends emerge from this analysis? How have these trends affected past performance? What is the likely impact of these trends on future performance? Do these activities provide the company with a competitive advantage? Information Systems (IS)- What are the firms current IS objectives, strategies, policies and programs? How well is the firms IS performing in terms of providing a useful database, automating routine clerical operations, assisting managers in making routine decisions, and providing information necessary for strategic decisions? What trends emerge from this analysis? How have these trends affected past performance? What is the likely impact of these trends on future performance? Do these activities provide the company with a competitive advantage? C. Capabilities/ Core Competencies of the Firm (required) Identify the firms most valuable capabilities. (A capability has been defined as the capacity to deploy resources that have been purposely integrated to achieve an end state such as the Gillette Cos effective promotion of a brand name product.) Could or do any of these capabilities actually or potentially serve as a basis for competitive advantage? D. Summary of Internal Factors (required) Which of the internal activities and capabilities are most important to the organization and to the industries in which it competes at the present time? Which will be important in the future? IV. Analysis of Strategic Factors (required) What are the most important internal and external factors (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) that you believe may significantly impact the organizations future performance?

This section (a SWOT analysis) should summarize the significant factors you have identified in Sections II and III of your report and serve as the basis for your identification of any strategic issues or recommendations you develop for the firm. V. Identification of Strategic Issues (required) A strategic issue is a challenge that stands as an obstacle to a firms future success. The results of both internal and external analysis are utilized to identify issues and problems as clearly and sharply as possible. Worrys, obstacles or problems of strategic importance should be expressed as how to (how to reduce the companys high costs) questions. Potential opportunities should be expressed as whether to (whether to expand the firms product offerings) questions. Strategic recommendations must address all strategic issues identified. VI. Strategic Alternatives And Recommendations (required)

A. Identify the generic business and/or corporate level strategy currently being followed by the organization. Can current or revised objectives be met by fine-tuning or the more careful implementation of current strategies? B. What are the major feasible alternative strategies available to this firm as it addresses its strategic initiatives? What are the pros and cons of each? C. Which of the strategic alternatives are you recommending for this firm? (If appropriate, differentiate your recommendations for corporate, business and functional strategies and different units of the firm.) D. Explain how your recommendation resolves both long and-term problems and effectively deals with strategic factors. E. What kind of programs should be developed should be developed to implement the recommended strategy? Who should develop and or administer these programs? Are these programs financially feasible? VII. Evaluation and Control (required)

A. Is the current information system capable of measuring critical success factors and providing sufficient feedback on implementation activities? B. Are adequate control measures in place to ensure conformance with the recommended strategic plan?

PREPARATION OF THE WRITTEN CASE SUMMARY. The written case assignment is to be prepared on an individual basis. It is expected that the content of your written case will reflect your thoughts and analysis rather than the work of others. The conceptual emphasis for the written assignment is briefly noted in your syllabus and I will give further advice to students during the lecture/ discussion periods prior to the due date for each case. The criteria for grading written case presentations include: 1. Was clear evidence of understanding of the firms current situation as developed through the appropriate application of objective financial and market analysis techniques. demonstrated? You must begin each case analysis with some number crunching. (Summarize Part I of the Case Notes Template) 2. Was evidence of understanding of the external and internal environmental conditions and trends which define the firms strategic situation and may impact possible choices shown? Your summary must demonstrate that you have developed your understanding of the firms situation through the use of appropriate analytical tools and techniques. Using charts or tables to summarize your analyses is often useful. You are expected to demonstrate that you can use the tools and techniques of strategic analysis presented in the chapters and those you have learned in previous courses. Both breadth and depth of analysis will be evaluated. (Summarize Parts II, III and IV of the Case Notes Template) 3. Were the key problems/strategic issues facing the firm clearly identified? Strategic issues are those significant strategic or implementation questions which the firm must address regardless of the strategies chosen. Express strategic issues as 4. How to? or Whether to? questions facing the firm. (Summarize Part V of the Case Notes Template) 5. Was the firms current strategy clearly described and accurately identified? Were realistic, strategic alternatives presented and evaluated for each of the strategic issues identified? Alternatives are possible solutions to the issues identified. You should always propose and evaluate more than one alternative to strategic issues facing a firm. Making no change in the firms current strategies is always a possibility. (Based on Part VI of the Case Notes Template) 6. Were recommended solutions to the issues (the chosen alternatives) clearly identified? . Were these recommendations appropriate to the firms strategic situation and were they practical and implementable? (Based on Part VI of the Case Notes Template) 7. Did the summary demonstrate good communication skills? Failure to use good grammar, spelling, and other written communication skills will result in a grade reduction. .Did the summary show evidence of adequate preparation, pride of workmanship, and did it display a professional attitude and approach? Written case assignments are due on the day the case is scheduled for class discussion (see the Learning Schedule) and should be turned in to your instructor at the end of the class period.

All written case assignments are to be prepared individually; group work is out of bounds for individual case note preparation. Cases turned in after the scheduled class period are eligible for a grade no higher than a 5/10 points only if the paper is otherwise a 9 or 10 point paper). No late papers will be accepted if submitted more than 2 class days past the scheduled due date (except by prearranged consent of the instructor). Credit will be given for group case work accomplished on any day a student is absent only if the student has prepared his or her case notes and submitted them to another member of their group prior to class deliberations. All written case summaries (as assigned) are to be typed (double-spaced) and should incorporate correct form, spelling, grammar, sentence structure, and communication skills.