Navigating the Case Analysis

Process for Strategic Management

Dr. Paul N. Friga
2005

1
 Overview of Document
• This slide deck is designed to guide students
through the process of analyzing a case study for a
general management or strategic management
course
• It is a step-by-step process that is illustrated with an
actual case study - Singapore International Airlines:
Strategy with a Smile (Thunderbird, 2001)
• The material is organized into 5 phases – and each
is supported by a suggested approach, tips and
sample output from the case (but remember to try
and solve the case before reading the sample
output from the case!)
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 2
 Objectives of Case Analysis

• Application of theoretical concepts

• Development of managerial skills
• Use of disciplined problem-solving process
• Group discussions afford multiple context and
perspective opportunities
• Deal with ambiguity

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 3

Source: HBS Note – An Introduction to Cases (Shapiro, 1984)
 Model for Effective Case Analysis

Case Analysis Process

1. Framing 2. Labeling 3. Summarizing 4. Synthesizing 5. Concluding

What are the objectives? What are the facts? What is important? What are the options? What is the answer?

•Identify the key question •Label the facts in the •Summarize the facts •State the 1-3 key •Take a position
•Flip through the case margins of the case: •Eliminate unimportant questions •Identify the few key
•Skim read the case •General (GEN) •Eliminate redundant •Identify options supporting facts
•Carefully read the •Industry (IND) •Mark most important (MECE) •Discuss implementation
beginning and end •Competition (COM) •State decision criteria •Mention risks
•Strength (STR) •Summarize pros/cons
•Weakness (WEA)

The key to good case analysis is to break down the case facts into a
clear, understandable and useful form
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 4
 Model for Effective Case Analysis

Case Analysis Process

1. Framing 2. Labeling 3. Summarizing 4. Synthesizing 5. Concluding

What are the objectives? What are the facts? What is important? What are the options? What is the answer?

•Identify the key question •Label the facts in the •Summarize the facts •State the 1-3 key •Take a position
•Flip through the case margins of the case: •Eliminate unimportant questions •Identify the few key
•Skim read the case •General (GEN) •Eliminate redundant •Identify options supporting facts
•Carefully read the •Industry (IND) •Mark most important (MECE) •Discuss implementation
beginning and end •Competition (COM) •State decision criteria •Mention risks
•Strength (STR) •Summarize pros/cons
•Weakness (WEA)

The key to good case analysis is to break down the case facts into a
clear, understandable and useful form
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 5
 Phase 1 – Framing
Key Question: What are the objectives?
STEPS
Identify the key question (what is the assignment,
discussion questions, and purpose of this case study)
Flip through the case (in less than 5 minutes, look
at the big picture of the case and the overall
components)
Skim read the case (in less than 15 minutes read
the intro and end of each paragraph and skim all
exhibits)
Carefully read the beginning and end (every case
has an important intro section and ending section)
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005
TIPS
•Pay attention to what the Professor says as the case
is introduced
•Understand the context of the case in terms of
material from the textbook
•This is literally intended to give you a look at the
overall contents of the case
•Conclude as to the general nature of the case –
quantitative/qualitative, technical/general, long/short,
etc.
•Don’t bother marking up the case at this point
•Focus on getting the “gist” of the paragraphs without
reading every word (find the 1-2 primary sentences
and understand how other sentences support them)
•Some of the most important information about the
framing of the case comes in the beginning and end
•Realize that every story has a situation, complication
and resolution (try to find the key issues to solve)
6
 Case Template - Framing

Key Question: Flipping and Skimming:

Beginning of Case: Ending of Case:

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 7

Note: Answer key is at the end of this deck; please attempt to fill in the template before looking at possible answers
 Model for Effective Case Analysis

Case Analysis Process

1. Framing 2. Labeling 3. Summarizing 4. Synthesizing 5. Concluding

What are the objectives? What are the facts? What is important? What are the options? What is the answer?

•Identify the key question •Label the facts in the •Summarize the facts •State the 1-3 key •Take a position
•Flip through the case margins of the case: •Eliminate unimportant questions •Identify the few key
•Skim read the case •General (GEN) •Eliminate redundant •Identify options supporting facts
•Carefully read the •Industry (IND) •Mark most important (MECE) •Discuss implementation
beginning and end •Competition (COM) •State decision criteria •Mention risks
•Strength (STR) •Summarize pros/cons
•Weakness (WEA)

The key to good case analysis is to break down the case facts into a
clear, understandable and useful form
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 8
 Phase 2 – Labeling
Key Question: What are the facts?
STEPS
Label the facts in the margins of the case (using
the nomenclature below, label the facts in the case )
General – GEN (general issues include the macro
environment beyond the industry as well as
customers and overall trends)
Industry - IND (this pertains to any issues that
affect the specific industry under study – not
companies or general environmental issues)
Competition – COM (specific identification and
data related to competitors in the stated industry)
Strength – STR (any facts that appear to be
positive for the company under study)
Weakness - WEA (any facts that appear to be
negative for the company under study)
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005
TIPS
•Use abbreviations as indicated
•Underline the key sentence in the paragraph
•Review a checklist of the types of issues beforehand
•Remember that this is not company or industry
specific – examples are social, economic, ecological,
technical, and political issues (STEEP)
•Examples include industry consolidation, profitability,
general strategies, differentiation, market growth, etc.
•This does not include individual competitor data
•Examples include names of competitors, market
share, profitability, and specific strategies thereof
•Start thinking of the key dimensions by which you can
compare your company with competitors
•Even if you are unsure if this will ultimately be
positive, include it as a strength if the case mentions it
•Be very careful to identify as many weaknesses as
possible as they drive strategies
•This is of the organization only – not industry level
9
 Case Template - Labeling

General
Industry: Competition:
Environment:

Label in the
case and
capture
here
Strengths: Weaknesses:

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 10

Note: Answer key is at the end of this deck; please attempt to fill in the template before looking at possible answers
 Model for Effective Case Analysis

Case Analysis Process

1. Framing 2. Labeling 3. Summarizing 4. Synthesizing 5. Concluding

What are the objectives? What are the facts? What is important? What are the options? What is the answer?

•Identify the key question •Label the facts in the •Summarize the facts •State the 1-3 key •Take a position
•Flip through the case margins of the case: •Eliminate unimportant questions •Identify the few key
•Skim read the case •General (GEN) •Eliminate redundant •Identify options supporting facts
•Carefully read the •Industry (IND) •Mark most important (MECE) •Discuss implementation
beginning and end •Competition (COM) •State decision criteria •Mention risks
•Strength (STR) •Summarize pros/cons
•Weakness (WEA)

The key to good case analysis is to break down the case facts into a
clear, understandable and useful form
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 11
 Phase 3 – Summarizing
Key Question: What is important?
STEPS
Summarize the facts (the overall goal here is to pull
out the key facts that have been marked in the case)
Eliminate unimportant facts (think of this as
creating two piles - important vs. unimportant facts)
Eliminate redundant facts (as you go, you will
begin to see redundancy in the facts, so eliminate
and combine related facts)
Mark most important facts (highlight the most
important facts)
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005
TIPS
•This process can take some time, but do not attempt
to include everything that has been marked
•Set up some blank templates to be filled in by using
the material covered in the respective textbook
(common frameworks are STEEP, Porter’s 5 Forces,
3 Cs – company, customers and competition, 4 Ps –
product, price, place and promotion, & financial ratios)
•This is one of the hardest elements to effective case
analysis, but perhaps the most important
•As you sort through the facts, ask “so what” about the
fact and try to calculate if you think it may change the
final answer
•As you pull out a fact for the summaries, mark out
related facts throughout the case to avoid redundancy
•Don’t stress about not including something – you can
always come back to the case at a later point
•In the end, the conclusion will be based on a few
critical data points; the key is to start looking for these
facts as you go
•Use a highlighter or coding system to mark key facts
12
 Case Template - Summarizing

General Environment:
•Limit to 3-4 most important

Industry:
•Limit to 3-4 most important

External
Competition:
•Limit to 3-4 most important
What is really
important?
Strengths (of company under study):
•Limit to 3-4 most important
Internal

Weaknesses (of company under study):

•Limit to 3-4 most important

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 13

Note: Answer key is at the end of this deck; please attempt to fill in the template before looking at possible answers
 Model for Effective Case Analysis

Case Analysis Process

1. Framing 2. Labeling 3. Summarizing 4. Synthesizing 5. Concluding

What are the objectives? What are the facts? What is important? What are the options? What is the answer?

•Identify the key question •Label the facts in the •Summarize the facts •State the 1-3 key •Take a position
•Flip through the case margins of the case: •Eliminate unimportant questions •Identify the few key
•Skim read the case •General (GEN) •Eliminate redundant •Identify options supporting facts
•Carefully read the •Industry (IND) •Mark most important (MECE) •Discuss implementation
beginning and end •Competition (COM) •State decision criteria •Mention risks
•Strength (STR) •Summarize pros/cons
•Weakness (WEA)

The key to good case analysis is to break down the case facts into a
clear, understandable and useful form
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 14
 Phase 4 – Synthesizing
Key Question: What are the options?
STEPS
State the 1-3 key questions (decide what the few
key questions to the case are, note that it may be
that there is only one key question)
Identify options - MECE (for each question, list out
the options or alternatives, using the MECE format as
described in tips)
State decision criteria (an important step is to
identify the few dimensions that will be used to
decide between options/alternatives)
Summarize pros/cons (list out the support for and
against each option/alternative)
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005
TIPS
•Go back to the key questions identified in the first
step
•Do not include more than 3 key questions (otherwise
they likely are not “key”)
•MECE stands for “Mutually Exclusive, Collectively
Exhaustive”
•Examples of MECE are timing-day/night; profit-
revenue/expenses; expand oversees – yes/no; etc.
•This is a step that many people skip and as a result,
it is difficult to reach a decision
•Explicitly state the decision criteria before deciding
(examples include profit, market share, growth,
impact on shareholders, implementation effort,
timing, fit with overall vision, etc.)
•Review the summarized facts to find support for and
against alternatives
•Prioritize the pros and cons based upon decision
criteria
15
 Case Template – Synthesizing
Question Option / Decision Pros Cons
Hypothesis Criteria

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 16

Note: Answer key is at the end of this deck; please attempt to fill in the template before looking at possible answers
 Model for Effective Case Analysis

Case Analysis Process

1. Framing 2. Labeling 3. Summarizing 4. Synthesizing 5. Concluding

What are the objectives? What are the facts? What is important? What are the options? What is the answer?

•Identify the key question •Label the facts in the •Summarize the facts •State the 1-3 key •Take a position
•Flip through the case margins of the case: •Eliminate unimportant questions •Identify the few key
•Skim read the case •General (GEN) •Eliminate redundant •Identify options supporting facts
•Carefully read the •Industry (IND) •Mark most important (MECE) •Discuss implementation
beginning and end •Competition (COM) •State decision criteria •Mention risks
•Strength (STR) •Summarize pros/cons
•Weakness (WEA)

The key to good case analysis is to break down the case facts into a
clear, understandable and useful form
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 17
 Phase 5 – Concluding
Key Question: What is the answer?
STEPS
Take a position (this is the exciting end to analysis;
the first step is to decide what the best supported
answer is to the key question)
Identify the few key supporting facts (pull out the
most important support from the summaries and
pros/cons analysis)
Discuss implementation (one way to differentiate a
good case analysis is the consideration of what it
would take to implement the recommendation)
Mention risks (the final step is to identify risk and
contingencies that may be encountered if the
recommended course of action is pursued)
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005
TIPS
•Don’t be afraid to take a stand even if you feel that
you do not have enough data – any position is better
than no position
•Avoid the typical compromise solution (pursue both
of the alternatives)
•The best arguments are clear statements that are
supported by 2-3 key data-based observations
•Be very familiar with the underlying assumptions,
facts, and numbers when you present in class
•Think in terms of the few key action steps that must
be taken
•A checklist for consideration includes changes in
staff, style, systems, structure, shared values, and
skills
•This is the chance to show that you have completed
a thorough analysis and considered what may go
wrong
•Do not underestimate the power of the caveat!
18
 Case Template - Concluding

Overall Recommendation
Implement-
Risks
ation

Key Supporting Facts

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 19

Note: Answer key is at the end of this deck; please attempt to fill in the template before looking at possible answers
 Final Tips
• The key to success in case analysis is to take a structured
approach to organizing and using facts
• It is easy to get carried away with too much data and lose
sight of the need for a clear story with a few supporting
ideas
• Prepare for multiple outcomes and see the pros and cons
• Use hypotheses to focus analysis but do not get personally
attached to one (“possible solution”)
• In strategic management, there is no one right answer, but
there are better and worse ways to present ideas
• Be structured, objective and thorough and you will succeed
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 20
 Answer Key –
Singapore International Airlines
• A sample set of possible answers is presented in
this section to the Singapore International Airlines:
Strategy with a Smile (Thunderbird, 2001) case
• Remember to try the case on your own first, using
the suggested approach, tips and templates from
the preceding slides
• You very well may come up with different and/or
additional concepts than those shown here, but
remember, it is not the actual answer, but the
process that leads to learning
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 21
 Model for Effective Case Analysis

Case Analysis Process

1. Framing 2. Labeling 3. Summarizing 4. Synthesizing 5. Concluding

What are the objectives? What are the facts? What is important? What are the options? What is the answer?

•Identify the key question •Label the facts in the •Summarize the facts •State the 1-3 key •Take a position
•Flip through the case margins of the case: •Eliminate unimportant questions •Identify the few key
•Skim read the case •General (GEN) •Eliminate redundant •Identify options supporting facts
•Carefully read the •Industry (IND) •Mark most important (MECE) •Discuss implementation
beginning and end •Competition (COM) •State decision criteria •Mention risks
•Strength (STR) •Summarize pros/cons
•Weakness (WEA)

The key to good case analysis is to break down the case facts into a
clear, understandable and useful form
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 22
 Case Example – Framing
Singapore International Airlines
Key Question:
How can SIA best position itself for the future?
•Should SIA invest in Virgin Atlantic?
•Should SIA pursue a low-cost strategy?
•Should SIA stay in the Star Alliance?
Beginning of Case:
What is going on and what is the problem?
•The timetable is the beginning of the 21 st Century (1999)
•A major strategic issue is the possible investment in VA
•Other strategic issues include: (i) increasing
competition; (ii) labor costs are rising; (iii) customers
are moving toward lower fares; (iv) alliances
Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005
Flipping and Skimming:
What is most notable during the flip & skim?
• 16 page case with 10 exhibits and a glossary
•Lots of data provided – not all will be relevant
•The organization of the case is: (i) introduction;
(ii) industry; (iii) markets – NA, Europe, Asia;
(iv) alliances; (v) Singapore – country and company;
(vi) issues moving forward
Ending of Case:
What other insights may impact our decision?
•An important fact is that even though the airline industry
is increasingly global, there are very few true global
players
•The alliance decision is critically important
•SIA leaders seem to be in support of the VA investment
23
 Case Example – Labeling
Singapore International Airlines

Here are two

examples of
labeling

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 24

Note: the most important issues are summarized in the next slide
 Case Example – Summarizing
Singapore International Airlines
General Environment:
•Globalization is increasing demand for international air travel (esp. to Asia)
•Political changes include the increase of free trade markets (like Singapore)
•Economic conditions are important as recessions cause price sensitivity

Industry:
•Consolidation in the airline industry is increasing to enhance scale and scope
•Alliances are the hottest strategy tool as companies seek global connections
•Customers are increasingly price sensitive but business segments are loyal
External •There are little to no substitutes for international air travel

Competition:
•Key domestic competitors are Japan Airlines, Thai Airways, and Cathay
•Key international competitors are United, KLM, and British Airways
What is really •SIA has the best cost structure for premium level service but losing ground
important?
Strengths:
•Reputation and brand image of the “Singapore Girl”
•Young fleet and excellent training facilities and programs
Internal •Extensive regional and international route network

Weaknesses:
•Increasing difficulty supplying high quality labor at low costs (esp. Singapore)
•“Buttoned Down” image may not be attractive to younger demographic
•High cost structure needed for high quality service is difficult to change

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 25

 Case Example – Synthesizing
Singapore International Airlines
Question Option / Decision Pros Cons
Hypothesis Criteria

Invest in VA? Yes Return on Investment •Enables a lower cost •Competes with Star
product offering Alliance
•Access to younger •Limited resources/
demographic opportunity cost
•Complimentary routes •May affect reputation

Overall Strategy? Low Cost (rather than Long Term •Head to head with •Lose reputation as
Differentiation) Profitability new competitors high quality provider
•Seems to be the trend •Goes against
in the U.S. infrastructure
•Fuel costs are rising •Differentiation may be
the only way to win
Stay in Star Alliance? Yes Market Share Growth •Cross-selling •Lose control of
opportunities to new scheduling
customers •May compromise the
•Access to additional consistent quality of
routes quickly service

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 26

 Case Template – Concluding
Singapore International Airlines

SIA should set a strategic

Vision to be the leading global
Implement-
Risks premier service airline ation

•Alliances don’t deliver •Invest in VA (but go high end)

•Costs get too high •Stay in Alliance
•Other airlines act first •Expand high quality labor pool

•This is a critical time as technology and global reach

require a high-end international access airline
•SIA’s best strengths are high end service and global routes
• Going low-cost will damage long-term profit potential

Dr. Paul N. Friga, 2005 27