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Business Ethics Case Analysis

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Rowel Ni Bai
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14 views13 pages

Business Ethics Case Analysis

Uploaded by

Rowel Ni Bai
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Guidelines in Analyzing Business Cases

Objectives of the Case Method

1. To make the student become more efficient and accurate in finding the cause
and effect of business problems (fish-bone analysis).

2. To train the student become more imaginative (creative) in formulating efficient and
effective solutions.

3. To help the student apply his own special experience, and to handle new
situations if he has little or no experience.

4. To develop his skill in interacting, cooperating, and fostering closer working


relations with his group members.
Basic Characteristics of a Good Case Analysis

1. It is based on particular situational facts.

2. There is good understanding and identification of the central problem.

3. The solution must be highly creative and have the makings of being practical
and workable under the given circumstances.

4. The student’s position must be supported and defensible.

NOTE: Students commit the serious error of organizing their case analysis
around concepts instead of using the concept as a tool in the analysis
of the case.
Suggested Outline in Solving Business Cases

I. Time Context

II. Viewpoint

III. Statement of the Problem

IV. Objectives
- Short-Range
- Long-Range

V. Areas of Consideration/Analysis

VI. Alternative Courses of Action

VII. Recommendation

VIII. Conclusion/Detailed Action or Implementation Plan


Outline Details

I. Time Context . Specify the time context (month and year) if the case
fact is explicit about it. The time context should tell us when the
problem was observed, which requires the necessity of an action. A
business problem requiring an action in pre-martial law days will have a
different action if it were to be tackled today. Likewise, a business
problem requiring an action in an inflationary situation, as in 1980, will
require an action that is different from the action to be taken in a period
of stable prices, as in 1987. In short, a business problem will have
different solutions under different political and economic environments.
Outline Details

II. Viewpoint. In solving a business problem, the student must specify the
viewpoint he is taking. It is always based on the manager’s viewpoint.
Given a business problem, the president of a company will most likely
have a different approach or solution from those of other company
officers.
Outline Details

III. Statement of the Problem. A problem is a deviation or an imbalance


between what should be and what actually is happening. This
imbalance is caused by a change of one kind or another. A problem
could be answered by the question – what is wrong that needs
correcting?

A business case may contain a variety of issues or problems, from the


trivial to the significant, from the irrelevant to the relevant.

The student should focus his attention on the key or central problem.
The elimination of the central problem will eventually result in the
elimination of other peripheral problems. Specify what the problem is
by describing it very accurately in terms of four dimensions: identity,
location, time, and extent.
Outline Details

IV. Objectives. Objectives are specifications by which alternative courses


of action are to be developed. These are statements or functions to be
performed or undertaken by the courses of action.

IV.1 Short-Range Objective. This objective sets the limits that cannot
be violated by any alternative course of action. These objectives will
help the manager recognize and screen out the impossible and poorer
alternatives right at the outset. These objectives are of absolute
importance to the success of the decision and the survival of the
organization. These objectives should be attained within a year.
Outline Details

IV.2 Long-Range Objective. This objective does not set absolute


limits but expresses relative desirability. They are of relative
performance to the success of the decision but less than absolute.
These objectives should be attained beyond a one-year period.
Outline Details

V. Areas of Consideration. When the student has determined what he


considers to be the central problem and has defined his objectives, he
must proceed to organize the facts around the possible causes of the
central problem. This requires the separation of the significant areas
from the unimportant ones, and the relevant to the irrelevant. The
analysis of each area must come from the personal opinion of the
analyst and not from the case facts.
Outline Details

VI. Alternative Courses of Action. These are possible solutions to the


problem. Alternatives are collections of what appear to be at the
moment the best means of meeting the individual objectives. In some
cases, the alternatives are clear; in others, the student must formulate
alternatives appropriate to the problem at hand.

The student must not remain content with pre-determined alternatives.


He must strive for new and better solutions. Alternatives must be
mutually exclusive. Significantly, an alternative must be able to stand
alone.

Take each alternative and measure it individually against each of the


short and long range objectives. Discard the alternative that does not
meet what a short-range objective requires. Alternatives that satisfy all
short-range objectives should then be evaluated further against the
long-range objectives.
Outline Details

Appraise the remaining alternatives and weigh their individual strengths


and weaknesses. Initially, the student must make a tentative choice of
the alternative which seems best to him.

Assess the possible adverse consequences of the tentative decision or


recommendation. Look for the potential areas where trouble may occur
if the recommendation or decision is implemented. For each
prospective critical area, the student must evolve corresponding
preventive and contingency actions. If prospective serious areas could
not be prevented, review other alternatives for final action.
Outline Details

VII. Recommendation. This is the final decision or recommended course


of action. The student must be decisive; he must not evade making a
final choice of the alternative which seems best to him. Inaction or a
status quo position means indecision.
Outline Details
VIII. Conclusion/Detailed Action Plan. Make a detailed action plan to
ensure the success of the decision or recommendation.

For each prospective serious trouble area, the student should set-up
corresponding preventive and contingency action. If prospective
serious trouble areas could not be prevented, review other alternatives
for final action.

The characteristics of a good action plan are:

 It is systematic.
Plans of action should be properly enumerated from the first plan to
the last plan.

 It is realistic.
The plan must be capable of being carried out. An unrealistic plan
causes frustration and is self-defeating.

 It is flexible.
A good plan should be flexible enough to be changed when change
is called for.

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