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Team Case Presentation

Case Presentations

Case presentations are a most effective way to simulate an actual business environment, and offer an excellent opportunity to prepare for the future. Think of your team as representing a management consulting firm that has been asked to study a business enterprise and provide analysis and recommendations on the conduct of the business. Members of each team should work together outside of class to determine their approach and individual responsibilities and participation in the presentation. (NOTE: HALF THE MEMBERS OF EACH TEAM WILL HAVE TO PRESENT THE CASE, THOUGH ALL WILL HAVE TO WORK ON IT. THE OTHER HALF WILL BE REQUIRED TO BE AVAILALBLE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS IN CLASS AT THE END OF THE CASE. IMP: THE PEER EVALUATION GRADES WILL BE APPLIED TO THE ENTIRE TEAM, NOT JUST THE PRESENTERS)

The presentation will include:
• A brief summary of the case.
• Identification of the various underlying problems
• Your recommendations.
• Analysis and rationale for the recommendations.
• Actions required to implement the recommendations.

The thrust of the presentations will be to identify and discuss the critical strategic and tactical issues in the case as opposed to rehashing details and history. Each recommendation will be supported by clear-cut rationale and quantitative analyses.

Time allowed: 25 minutes.

The time limit will be enforced strictly.

Case Discussion

While one team will be responsible for the presentation of a case, other members of the class will be participating in the discussion of the same case. Each individual who is not a member of the presentation team must hand in an individual case write-up. (see below). Following the case presentation there will be a discussion. Maximum Time Allowed for the discussion: 10 - 15 minutes The participants in the discussion should be ready to:

1. Constructively critique and lead the discussion about the case analysis after the case has been presented, and
2. Approach the case from the role of the board of directors.

Guidelines for Individual Case Write-up

This is an individual report, though you are free to discuss the case with your team members, and analyze the case jointly. Spelling and grammatical errors will be severely penalized. Proofread the report thoroughly, utilize spelling and grammar checks of word processing software and, if time permits, have it read by someone else to weed out errors. The questions that you should answer for each of the cases is given below. You may choose three to four questions to answer. All your answers should be typed in one page, with single line spacing, 1" margins. (PLEASE NOTE THAT YOU HAVE TO HAND IN EIGHT INDIVIDUAL REPORTS DURING THE SEMESTER:PLUS ONE SET OF TEAM PRESENTATION TRANSPARENCIES Note NINE Cases will be covered dring the semester)

Participation

Over the years, we have found that peer feedback plays a major part in adding value to student presentations. 1/3 of the `class participation' grade will be based on the following:

• Individuals will evaluate the presenters. The evaluators will evaluate
1. Each of the individuals who are presenting the case.
2. The team performance.

Note:

You must do a good job of evaluating the cases, since this part of your participation grade depends on how rigorous your evaluation is. You must specifically emphasize problem analysis and creativity in problem solving. (See last page of syllabus for a sample.)

• 1/3 of the participation grade will be based on how active a part you take during the case and other discussions.
• The rest of the participation grade will be based on two minute white papers that you will be asked to write at various times during the semester. The two minute white papers will be typically based on one of the following questions:
• What is the most important point I made in class?
• What is one question that is uppermost in your mind at the end of today's session?
• How is today's material related to previous subject matter?
• What changes would you have made in my presentation?
• Is there any new concept that was introduced to you in the syllabus?

Guidelines for Homework and Classwork

Homework and Classwork problems have to be done individually, though you are free to discuss them  with your friends/team mates. Late homework (homework that is handed in after the class on the due date) will be penalized. There will be one individual+group homework dealing with electronic commerce on the internet.

Imperatives

Students are expected to prepare all cases and take an active part in class discussions. A regular record of students' participation in each class will be maintained. An indicator of the importance and earnestness of this is the requirement that students sit in the same seat throughout the course. Also, that they bring a name tag to class for display on their table so that participation can be accurately identified. Since a major part of the course work is done in teams, it is critical that you choose a team with members who are accessible to each other and can work together. A major part of your learning in this course will come from team interactions for case and case-study analyses. All members of a team are expected to contribute to the projects. Also, all members are expected to participate in all oral presentations made by the team. At the end of the course, each member is required to turn in a written typed evaluation of their team members.

Standards of Integrity

List of Team Presentation Cases

• Case A:The Vasa Capsizes
• Case 1: Verifone
• Case 2: KPMG Peat Marwick: The Shadow Partner
• Case 3: Canadian Airlines, Inc.
• Case 4:Singapore TradeNet: A Tale of One City
• Case 5:Open Market
• Case 6:Frito-Lay, Inc.: A Strategic Transition (1987-1992)
• Case 7: Air Products and Chemicals Inc: Project Icon (D)
• Case 8:Xerox: Outsourcing Global Information Technology Resources

CASES

Case A:

The Vasa Capsizes

This case exposes the need for a leader with a strategic vision. It is very important that information technology be integrated with the normal, day-to-day operating and managing of the business. For this it is very important to create and maintain IT strategy.

Some relevant links
The Vasa Case Online (by Prof R. Mason)
The Vasa Museum

Case 1:

Verifone.

Verifone is an excellent example of an organization which embodies the "new"  management principles such as the "virtual organization", "forward deployment",   and the use of only electronic mail for internal communications. Verifone is a  young agile corporation that has made the transition from being an  entrepreneurial startup to a mature mid-sized company.
 
Suggested Assignment Questions

2.Describe and evaluate the role of the CIO at Verifone. How is Will Pape's role different from the CIO roles that you have observed at other companies?

3.What major changes will Verifone senior management face in the future?
 

Verifone Home Page

Case 2: KPMG Peat Marwick: The Shadow Partner

1. Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages to KPMG of the shadow partner project.
2. If you were a member of the US Operating Committee, in February 1991, in which the project is being presented for a decision on funding, how would you vote? What would be your rationale in explaining your position to the partnership as a whole?
3. Critically evaluate the approach that was taken to develop the shadow-partner initiative. Would you have proceeded differently? If so, be prepared to describe why your approach might be preferred to the one taken.
4. How can a project like the KPMG shadow partner be successfully implemented?

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Case 3:    Canadian Airlines.

No industry has provided so clear and public an example of evolving strategic use of IT as the international airline industry. This case cast in the mid 199s portrays two medium-sized struggling firms trying to survive in an information intensive world where they are not big enough to be self-sufficient in the world of electronic commerce. The case combines national interest relating to competition, IT and corporate survival.

Suggested Assignment Questions
1.What is Canada's position in the airline industry?
2.What are the core IT issues facing the two airlines?
                  3.How important is a good reservation system?
                  4.Do you agree with the Ottawa court?
                  5.Carefully analyze the Appendix of the case. Do you agree with
                    Frontier's complaints?

 
 Some relevant links

Canadian Airlines Home Page
Frontier Airlines Home Page

 
Back to List of Cases
 

Case 4: Singapore TradeNet: A Tale of One City

The Singapore TradeNet: A Tale of One City permits discussion of the role that information technologies can play in the competitive position of a country. The case presents the story behind the development of an industry wide information technology (IT)-based platform to facilitate trade documentation processing. The system is critical for the competitive position of Singapore. TradeNet involves the partnership of a unique assortment of government agencies, bureaus, statutory boards, private agencies, and private companies involved in all aspects of shipment of goods. The apparent success of the effort invites a review of the factors that contributed to the initiative and its implementation. The case also expands the theme of IT-enabled business transformation from the organizational to the interorganizational perspective.

Suggested Assignment Questions

1. What was Lee Kuan Yew's vision for Singapore? What challenges did he face in reaching his goals?
2. Describe the trade documentation process before and after the implementation of TradeNet. Who were the major stakeholders involved in the process redesign?
3. Evaluate the process used to implement TradeNet. Would you consider the implementation "successful"? If so, what factors contributed to its success. If not, what factors contributed to its failure?
4. What impact will TradeNet have on countries outside the Pacific Rim?

Case 5: Open Market,Inc.

               Shikhar Ghosh, Open Market's President, is convinced that doing business on
               the net will transform how companies sell and how consumers buy. The only
               questions in his mind are "When will this happen?" What will it all look like
               when it does?" "Who will be the winners and losers?" and What do we do
               while this is all taking shape?" These fundamental questions are particularly
               salient for open market, which having seen its nine-month-old business plan
               become ancient history, must revise its business strategy.

               Suggested Assignment Questions
                  1.What is Internet? How should one integrate it with the overall IT
                    architecture of an Organization?
                  2.Is the Internet the technology solution to creating the global
                    information superhighway?
                  3.What impact is the Internet having on the way firms conduct
                    business? What are the future implications? As business leaders,
                    how do you think it will influence your careers?
                  4.What are the new business opportunities offered by the Internet?
                    How do you explain the performance of Netscape's IPO?
                  5.How should large, multinational firms evaluate the Internet as a
                    potential communications platform for their firms? Give specific
                    examples of how large firms can exploit the opportunities offered
                    by Internet? What strategy should a company employ towards
                    investments in Intranets?

                    Specific Questions

                  6.What recommendations do you have for Shikhar Ghosh and the
                    management team of Open Market? (a) What strategy should they
                    adopt? (b) What implications does the strategy have for the firm's
                    position within the industry? (c) What implications deos this
                    strategy have for organizational design? (d) What are the technical
                    and business risks that must be addressed immediately?
                  7.What steps should be taken within the next six months to implement
                    the strategy you propose?
                  8.How will management know if the strategy is successful? How will
                    they know if it is not successful?
 

     Some relevant links

        Open market's Home Page
        Managing the Internet:A Consulting Firm's View
        Online Version of the Internet World Magazine
 

Case 6:Frito-Lay, Inc.: A Strategic Transition 1987-1992

This case details Frito-Lay's competitive challenges between 1987-1992 to transform to meet the challenges in a more complex faster-paced and intensely competitive environment. Korn, the CEO in the early 80s focused on information technology.  IT, in the form of a handheld computer (HHC), was a key element of his strategy. Korn abruptly departed when Frito-Lay's profits plummeted. This case deals with the actions taken by the new CEO to return the company to previous profitability levels, clarify the vision, and build inrastructure (people, capital, physical and information) needed to support long terms change in strategy and organization.

Suggested Assignment Questions:

1. What key lessons were learned from analysis of the problems the company faced in 1986? How did these lessons help senior management clarify its future vision for the company?
2. Evaluate Jordan's actions between 1987 and 1989. What was he trying to accomplish? What would you have done differently?
3. Evaluate the information infrastrucutre developed to support business operations and management systems at all levels of the organization. Describe the HHC project/the "Pipeline" project/the "Blue Chip" project. Explain how these IT projects relate to the company's overall strategy.
4. Evaluate the actions taken by managers at Frito-Lay during 1990-1991.
5. What have you learned from the Frito-Lay story about the challenges of managing in an "information -age", the characteristics of the organization and information infrastrucutre design required, and the implementation process?

Case 7: Air Products and Chemicals Inc: Project Icon (D)

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. Project ICON (D) deals with the tough changing complex issues of leading a compnay's IT activities in the mid-1990s. Their past successes have led to new challenges with the result that every skill level and organizational structure for integrating IT with the company is up for review.
 

Suggested Assignment Questions

1. What do you see the key issues facing Air Products for June of 1994 are in relation to its IT activity?
2. What advice and caution would you want to give to Peter Mather and his key staff.
 

 
Back to List of Cases 

Case 8:Xerox: Outsourcing Global Information Technology Resources

1. Identify the key events leading up to outsourcing at Xerox.
2. Would you have made the same decision to outsource IT at Xerox? Why? Why not?
3. Sketch a management framework to assist senior management to appropriately think about the alternatives, and the pros and cons of IT outsourcing for different situations.
4. What are the key management challenges of ensuring that the Xerox/EDS outsourcing agreement is successful?

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Guidelines for Cases

Your group is responsible for dividing the case workload and presentation into "equal" parts. Be sure to focus on the information systems issues in the case. You may enhance the class's knowledge about the case in almost any way you want. Whatever your presentation, include the following: Planning:Plan and rehearse the presentation carefully. Assume that your classmates have read the case. Don't spend more than a sentence or two reminding us what the case is about. (Do add new facts or a new point of view if you want to.) Participation: All people responsible for the presentation should have an obvious responsible role. Liveliness: Try to make the presentation interesting to your classmates who are your captive audience. Involving your classmates in discussion is usually more interesting than lecturing to them. Keep your time limit in mind (20-25 minutes each group). In terms of content I will expect your presentation to include this information at a minimum:

• A. What information systems issues does the case raise. Relate the case to the ideas in the chapters the class has already gone over.
• B. Bring the case up-to-date by discussing if the information systems issues that the case raises are now dead, and if so why. Determine if new information systems issues should be brought to bear on the case. Read other materials about this case to help update it.

More Guidelines for Case (Team) Presentations

Team Evaluation Instructions

General You are to use the Rating Guidelines and the Evaluation Form (given to you in the class by me) to evaluate each of your team member's role in your meetings. Please pay very careful attention to the guidelines. It is not intended or expected that all students will get an "A" rating. Purpose For each member of the team including yourself (do not label who you are per se), give a letter grade from 1 to 5 in each category (see next page). Average the four category grades for each student. Record this numerical average in the "Average" column. Record this letter grade in the column headed "total". Remember:Rate your entire team including yourself.

Team Evaluation Rating Guidelines

1. Attendance at the team meeting
1. always attended
2. almost always attended
3. usually attended
4. occasionally attended
5. never attended
2. Contribution of ideas to the team effort
1. made the major contribution in terms of ideas
2. made an important contribution
3. made reasonable contribution
4. made little contribution
5. made no contribution
3. Contribution to the overall process
1. was the most helpful in encouraging others to participate, in integrating the various ideas, in resolving disagreements and in keeping the team "on the track"
2. was often helpful in several of the areas
3. was moderately helpful, especially in selected areas as in report writing
4. was occasionally helpful
5. was rarely helpful