harvard business case study

Case Studies

Case studies are written by professors at HBS and at renowned business programs worldwide and offer slices of business life, focusing on actual problems and decisions companies face.

Google's Project Oxygen: Do Managers Matter?

Google's Project Oxygen started with a fundamental question raised by executives in the early 2000s: do managers matter? The topic generated a multi-year research project that ultimately led to a comprehensive program, built around eight key management...

Big Hit Entertainment and Blockbuster Band BTS: K-Pop Goes Global

Bang Si-Hyuk ('Hitman Bang') is the founder and co-chief executive officer of Big Hit Entertainment, the company behind BTS, a 'K-pop' band that has found unparalleled success around the globe-a remarkable feat given that most of their songs are in...

Cirque du Soleil

Retaining talent is an issue for any company whose success relies on the creativity and excellence of its employees. This is especially true for Cirque du Soleil, the spectacularly successful "circus without animals," whose 2,100 employees include 500...

GE's Two-Decade Transformation: Jack Welch's Leadership

GE is faced with Jack Welch's impending retirement and whether anyone can sustain the blistering pace of change and growth characteristic of the Welch era. After briefly describing GE's heritage and Welch's transformation of the company's business...

Pinckney Street

Although inexperienced in real estate, Edward Alexander hopes in June 2013 that youthful enthusiasm and an $240,000 in savings and inheritance will help him enter the real estate business. His experience chronicles the process of finding, evaluating, and...

Army Crew Team

The coach of the varsity Army crew team at West Point assembled his top eight rowers into the first crew team and the second tier of rowers into the second team using objective data on individual performance. As the second boat continually beat the first...

Chase Sapphire: Creating a Millennial Cult Brand

The Inside the Case video that accompanies this case includes teaching tips and insight from the author (available to registered educators only). The launch of the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card was enthusiastically received by Millennial consumers,...

Trader Joe's

The Inside the Case video that accompanies this case includes teaching tips and insight from the author (available to registered educators only). Based on a variety of metrics, Trader Joe's ranked as one of the most successful grocers in the United...

Amazon.com, 2021

In February 2021, Amazon announced 2020 operating profits of $22,899 million, up from $2,233 million in 2015, on sales of $386 billion, up from $107 billion five years earlier (see Exhibit 1). The shareholders expressed their satisfaction (see Exhibit...

Leadership in Crisis: Ernest Shackleton and the Epic Voyage of the Endurance

Provides an opportunity to examine leadership and entrepreneurship in the context of Ernest Shackleton's 1914 Antarctic expedition, a compelling story of crisis, survival, and triumph. Summarizes Shackleton's career as an officer in the British Merchant...

The Tulsa Massacre and the Call for Reparations

The Inside the Case video that accompanies this case includes teaching tips and insight from the author (available to registered educators only). How should historic social injustices be addressed? Survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre and their...

The RealReal: Luxury Retail Platforms and the battle for a profitable business model

The case taps into several contemporary and classical issues in the realm of competitive strategy. Set in the luxury resale business, it explores the business models adopted by The RealReal and several of its competitors, such as Vestiaire Collective, in...

Linking Projects to Strategy at Medtech

This case study explores the strategic and operational challenges faced by Medtech under the leadership of CEO Adrien Leclerc, focusing on the complexities of managing key projects within a matrix organizational structure. It emphasizes the importance of...

Eclipse Climate Profile: Confidential Instruction (C)

The "Carbon Credit Negotiation" explores the negotiation between Eclipse Climate, a European carbon trading firm, and Alpha Air, a Denver-based airline. It focuses on Eclipse Climate's efforts to sell carbon credits to Alpha Air as part of their strategy...

Alpha Air Profile: Confidential Instruction (B)

Satya Nadella at Microsoft: Leading the next transformation into AI

The case study follows Microsoft's transformation under CEO Satya Nadella over the last decade. The story of the transformation emphasizes two critical and inseparable themes, namely strategy and leadership. In doing so, it hews closely with the...

Scoring Talent: Global Soccer and the Independiente del Valle Model

The case presents Independiente del Valle Specialized High-Performance Club, an Ecuadorian sports club focused on soccer. It competed in the third division until 2007 when a group of businessmen led by Michel Deller assumed ownership. Since then, the...

Catalent: Catalyzing the Next Era of Growth

Building an AI First Snack Company: A Hands-on Generative AI Exercise

Although the term 'Generative AI' (GenAI) is widely recognized, its practical application in daily workflows has yet to be understood. This exercise introduces students to GenAI tools, demonstrating how they can be seamlessly integrated into professional...

Carbon Credit Negotiation (A)

El Salvador - Surfing from the Red to the Blue Ocean? From the "Homicide Capital of the World" to a Country of Hope and Prosperity

Strategy is as much for nation states as it is for companies, a point clearly demonstrated by El Salvador under President Nayib Bukele. Bukele set out to shift El Salvador from a violent red ocean of gang violence and low growth to a blue ocean of...

Go Pure: Transitioning from a Regional to National Brand

Ashish and Ranu Surana, a husband and wife team and co-owners of Go Pure Ice Cream ("Go Pure"), had managed to turn their passion for developing and selling fruit-based ice cream into a successful business. Having crossed the milestone figure of INR 10...

Knowledge-Enabled Financial Advice: Digital Transformation at Edward Jones

Edward Jones, a wealth management advisory from that prided itself on its interpersonal connections and face-to-face interactions, was eager to augment their services with AI capabilities. Built on 1-to-1 close-knit relationships, the firm had more than...

Barbie: Reviving a Cultural Icon at Mattel (Abridged)

The 2023 live-action Barbie movie spurred a cultural craze, driven both by Mattel's 160+ marketing partnerships and organic content. Barbie was suddenly seemingly everywhere; pink lattes, pink milkshakes, and pink handbags abounded. The movie smashed...

Market Dynamics and Moral Dilemmas: Novo Nordisk's Weight-Loss Drugs

Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk was owned by a charitable foundation, and since its founding in the 1920s had focused on producing insulin to treat diabetes. In 2017, however, it released Ozempic, a diabetes treatment with the revolutionary...

FIGS: Scrubbing the Status Quo

In October 2023, FIGS had revolutionized the medical scrubs industry with its fashionable and functional designs, but the venture was at a critical juncture. The digitally native vertical brand (DNVB) had gone public in a successful IPO in 2021 and...

Aidoc: Building a Hospital-Centric AI Platform

In 2023, Israel-based AI health care company Aidoc evaluated its future. The company, founded in 2016, had grown from commercializing a single AI product for radiologists to a software platform that could detect 20 conditions and immediately notify care...

Gates Ventures: Making Alzheimer's a Forgotten Past

Italy at a Crossroads

Web3 Business Model Design for Entrepreneurs

Instacart: Putting a Price on the IPO Share Valuation

Instacart is an online grocery delivery platform that is seeking to go public through an initial public offering (IPO). Instacart has hired an investment bank to be its lead bookrunner, and the bank is responsible for coming up with an IPO price range...

Darktrace: Scaling Cybersecurity and AI (A)

In 2023, Darktrace CEO Poppy Gustafsson was contemplating her growth strategy at a leading U.K.-based cybersecurity venture, launched in 2013 by a group of anti-terror cyber specialists, University of Cambridge mathematicians, and artificial intelligence...

Caesars Entertainment: Governance on the Road to Bankruptcy

Caesars Entertainment was a large casino operator in the United States that had been purchased in a 2008 leveraged buyout by Apollo and TPG. In January 2015, Caesars Entertainment Operating Company (CEOC), its largest subsidiary, filed for Chapter 11...

Darktrace: Scaling Cybersecurity and AI (B)

Supplement to 824092.

Icahn Enterprises: Ponzi Scheme or Sound Investment

Icahn Enterprises, a publicly traded limited partnership founded and operated by famed activist investor Carl Icahn, had earned above market returns for over a decade. Between 2018 and early 2023, it had a compound annual return of 31%. Icahn invested in...

Hospital for Special Surgery: Returning to a New Normal? (A)

Early on the morning of April 27, 2020, Justin Oppenheimer stood outside the entrance to the lobby of the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) Pavilion Building with mixed emotions. On one hand, Oppenheimer, HSS' Enterprise Chief Operating Officer and...

Ashesi University: The Journey from Vision to Reality

In 1997, Patrick Awuah had a dream: to bring liberal arts education to Ghana. Amid the country's declining economy and pervasive corruption problems, Awuah saw education as an opportunity to reverse its fortunes by investing in the next generation of...

Lyft 2023: Roads to Growth and Differentiation

New CEO David Risher evaluates new strategic pathways while asking how much change his team can withstand in a given period.

The Silicon Valley Bank Crisis: MAPFRE USA's Investment in SVB Financial Group Bonds

Hotwire.com: Navigating Through Turbulence

On September 10, 2001, after speaking at an industry conference at New York's World Trade Center, Hotwire co-founder Spencer Rascoff boarded a flight from Newark to San Francisco. After returning home, Rascoff awoke the next morning to a phone call...

Microsoft Azure and the Cloud Wars (B)

By 2023, the global market for cloud infrastructure had consolidated into a three-horse race. As of Q4 2022, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google collectively accounted for 66% of the global market. AWS had a market share of 33%, Microsoft Azure had 23%, and...

Replika AI: Alleviating Loneliness (A)

Mondelez India Social Media Crisis: Sugar Content in Bournvita

In April 2023, an issue emerged around the elevated level of sugar found in Mondelez India's nutritional beverage, Bournvita. The sequence of events began with the posting of a 90-second video by a prominent social media influencer, which rapidly gained...

Carnival Corp: Cruising In the Time of Covid

Korea Venture Investment Corporation

Korea Venture Investment Corporation is the venture capital arm of the Korean government with a founding mission to build a domestic startup ecosystem that would be as competitive as Silicon Valley. KVIC manages a basket of funds-of-funds and has become...

Mitigating Climate Change with Machine Learning

This note highlights how machine learning is being used to decarbonize (reduce GHG emissions) several key sectors including electricity, transportation, building, industrial processes, and agriculture -- and how machine learning is being used to...

SundaySky: Changing Customer Experiences Through Personalized Video

In June 2023, SundaySky CEO Jim Dicso considers growth strategies. The software-as-a-service company provided software to create advertising videos, customer service videos, and other videos, like employee training modules, and had begun to pilot a new...

Open Source Machine Learning at Google

Set in early 2023, the case exposes students to the challenges of managing open source software at Google. The case focuses on the challenges for Alex Spinelli, Vice President of Product Management for Core Machine Learning. He must set priorities for...

Is Rice Climate's Next Petrol? Sustainability at Loc Troi Vietnam

Could rice become as crucial as petrol in the fight against climate change? In 2023, Nguyen Duy Thuan, General Director of Loc Troi Group (Loc Troi) Vietnam, was sceptical. His company, the largest rice producer in the country, faced a pivotal moment in...

All Home CA: Ending Homelessness Easy as 1-2-4?

Lowe's: Improving the Total Home Strategy

In 2023, Marvin Ellison, CEO of Lowe's, contemplated enhancements to the company's Total Home Strategy to accelerate performance and grow market share. In the last five years since becoming CEO, Ellison had championed a turnaround of the company,...

Copyright Permissions

To obtain copyright permission to share this PDF with your team, purchase one copy per user.

Order for your team and save!

• Browse All Articles
• Newsletter Sign-Up

• 03 Sep 2024
• Cold Call Podcast

How the US Government Is Innovating in Its Efforts to Fund Semiconductor Manufacturing

In February 2023, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo was deciding whether or not to sign off on a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for $39 billion in direct semiconductor manufacturing incentives. But this NOFO had several unconventional provisions: a pre-application (pre-app) to the actual application, upside sharing provisions to align incentives, and funding milestones so that only awardees making progress would receive additional funds. The funding had been made available through the US Department of Commerce by the CHIPS (Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors) and Science Act passed a few months earlier. Raimondo’s team had proposed additional measures that would help the US regain technological leadership while protecting taxpayer funds. Should Raimondo move forward with the “innovative” NOFO, despite the risks? Harvard Business School professor Mitch Weiss explores the issue of risk-taking and innovation in government in his case, “The CHIPs Program Office.”

• Research & Ideas

Is It Even Possible to Dam the Flow of Misleading Content Online?

With a US presidential election on the horizon, tech companies are struggling to stem misinformation on social media. Research by Scott Duke Kominers and Jesse Shapiro suggests it's time to focus on eliminating content that can lead to potential harm rather than false beliefs.

• 29 Aug 2024

Shoot for the Stars: What to Know About the Space Economy

Outer space has come a long way since the 1960s. Matthew Weinzierl explains the current state of the space economy, highlighting the various opportunities for businesses hidden among the stars.

• 28 Aug 2024
• Managing the Future of Work

Marshall Goldsmith outlines the humble path to better leadership

The noted executive coach on the value of letting go of the past, taking candid and anonymous 360-degree feedback, and playing it forward. Also, spreading the word via a generative AI avatar.

• Climate Rising

CNN Chief Climate Correspondent Bill Weir: Media's Role in Shaping Climate Action

This episode is the first of our latest series on climate in media and entertainment, where we explore and understand the role of storytelling in shaping climate actions. Today we have Bill Weir, Chief Climate Correspondent at CNN who shares his expertise on how CNN integrates climate narratives into their news coverage, the power of storytelling, and the strategies they employ to highlight both the urgency of the climate crisis and the innovative solutions emerging worldwide. Host and Guest Climate Rising Host: Professor Mike Toffel, Faculty Chair, Business & Environment Initiative (LinkedIn) Guest: Bill Weir, Chief Climate Correspondent, CNN

• 26 Aug 2024

Can AI Match Human Ingenuity in Creative Problem-Solving?

Generative AI handles a variety of business tasks, but can it develop creative solutions to problems? Yes, although some of the best ideas emerge when humans and machines work together, according to research by Jacqueline Ng Lane, Karim Lakhani, Miaomiao Zhang, and colleagues.

• 22 Aug 2024

Reading the Financial Crisis Warning Signs: Credit Markets and the 'Red-Zone'

While fears about slowing economic growth have roiled stock markets in recent weeks, credit markets remain stable and bullish, and a recession hasn't materialized as some analysts predicted. Robin Greenwood discusses the market conditions that are buoying the economy—and risk signals to watch.

• 20 Aug 2024

Angel City Football Club: A New Business Model for Women’s Sports

Angel City Football Club (ACFC) was founded in 2020 by venture capitalist Kara Nortman, entrepreneur Julie Uhrman, and actor and activist Natalie Portman. As outsiders to professional sports, the all-female founding team had rewritten the playbook for how to build a sports franchise by applying lessons from the tech and entertainment industries. Unlike typical sports franchises that built their teams and track records over many years before extending their brand beyond a local base, ACFC had inverted the model, generating both global and local interest in the club during its first three years. The club’s early success was reflected in its market valuation of $250 million as of its sale in July 2024 — the highest in the National Women’s Soccer League. Equally important, ACFC had started to bend the curve toward greater pay equity in women’s sports — the club’s ultimate goal. But the founders knew there was much more to do to capitalize on the club’s momentum. As they developed ACFC’s first three-year strategic plan in 2024, they weighed the most effective ways to build value for the franchise. Was it better to allocate the incremental budget to investments in digital brand building or to investments in the on-field product? Senior Lecturer Jeffrey Rayport is joined by case co-author Nicole Keller and club co-founder Kara Nortman to discuss the case, “Angel City Football Club: Scoring a New Model.”

Why Competing With Tech Giants Requires Finding Your Own Edge

In the new book Smart Rivals, Feng Zhu and Bonnie Yining Cao show business leaders how to create competitive advantages by uncovering their hidden strengths and leveraging their individual capabilities.

• 16 Aug 2024
• In Practice

Election 2024: What's at Stake for Business and the Workplace?

Immigration, climate change, health care, and personal freedoms are just a few of the issues that US presidential candidates—and voters—will spar over. Harvard Business School faculty members discuss the potential implications of these issues on businesses, and provide advice for maintaining civility at work.

• 15 Aug 2024

Post-CrowdStrike, Six Questions to Test Your Company's Operational Resilience

Companies unprepared for disasters risk not only their competitive advantage but their very existence. Hise Gibson and Anita Lynch break down what a company needs to build its operational resilience, starting with its people, processes, and technology.

• 14 Aug 2024

Bonus episode: Introducing HBS's latest podcast, Think Big, Buy Small

Joe Fuller talks to his Harvard Business School faculty colleague Rick Ruback about Rick and HBS professor Royce Yudkoff’s podcast Think Big, Buy Small. The show is based on Rick and Royce’s popular HBS course “Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition”. The show combines personal stories from entrepreneurs and other key players with expert perspective and advice.

Drawdown Fund: Scaling the Impact of Climate Technology

Erik Snyder, Founder and CEO of Drawdown Fund discusses financing climate tech startups through growth equity. He describes how he started the Drawdown Fund with Paul Hawken, editor of the New York Times best-selling book on climate solutions called Drawdown, and the strategic choices that set their fund operations apart from others. He also describes some of the fund’s portfolio companies: from sustainable packaging, community solar to decarbonizing mass-transit with AI.

• 13 Aug 2024

Why Companies Shouldn't Delay Software Updates—Even After CrowdStrike's Flaw

The CrowdStrike outage created a new sense of urgency for companies to protect their tech systems. A study by Shane Greenstein and colleagues illustrates just how many companies are vulnerable to cyberattacks and other threats simply because they put off updating their software.

Can AI Save Physicians from Burnout?

With many physicians suffering from burnout, artificial intelligence could be a potential solution. Yet if health care payment models continue to push doctors to treat as many patients as possible, AI may inadvertently exacerbate the patient volume problem, say Susanna Gallani, Lidia Moura, and Katie Sonnefeldt.

• 07 Aug 2024

EY’s Trent Henry on how AI can extend white-collar careers

The consulting giant’s global talent lead explains how the firm is bringing mass customization and accountability to skills building and integrating human and ‘synthetic’ skills. Also, the bottom-line benefit of promoting employee health and wellness.

• 06 Aug 2024

What the World Could Learn from America's Immigration Backlash—100 Years Ago

Immigration concerns are shaping elections around the world, but these fears have been around for centuries. Mining data from US history, Marco Tabellini explores how immigration has actually changed communities, and offers advice for policymakers trying to move forward.

How EdTech Firm Coursera Is Incorporating GenAI into Its Products and Services

In early 2023, Jeff Maggioncalda, CEO of Coursera, started developing the EdTech firm’s strategy for incorporating GenAI into their offerings. By early 2024, the firm had made significant progress in bringing four key capabilities to market, but GenAI was evolving quickly and Coursera needed to continuously improve its offerings. While the firm had been an early mover, competitors were adapting fast. Was Coursera taking full advantage of the opportunities presented by the technology? What more could it do to remain competitive?

• 05 Aug 2024

Watching for the Next Economic Downturn? Follow Corporate Debt

Rising household debt alone isn't enough to predict looming economic crises. Research by Victoria Ivashina examines the role of corporate debt in fiscal crashes since 1940.

• 02 Aug 2024

How a Mission to Cut Food Waste Launched a Multimillion-Dollar Venture

Josh Domingues put purpose before profit when he created the Flashfood app to sell less-than-perfect groceries at discounted prices. A case study by Reza Satchu explores Domingues' successes and failures, and what other social entrepreneurs can learn.

The Case Study Handbook: A Student's Guide

William ellet.

Revision includes study guides and new insight for students

The business case study is a powerful learning tool. This practical guide provides students with a potent approach to:

• Recognize case situations and apply appropriate tools to solve problems, make decisions, or develop evaluations
• Quickly establish a base of knowledge about a case
• Write persuasive case-based essays
• Talk about cases effectively in class

The Case Study Handbook comes with downloadable study guides for analyzing and writing about different types of cases, whether they require a decision, an evaluation, or problem diagnosis.

Individual chapters are available in PDF for purchase or to assign in a class.

Downloadable Study Guides

About the Author

William Ellet has worked with MBA students for over thirty years. He has taught at Harvard Business School, Brandeis University, George Washington University, and the University of Miami. He has facilitated case teaching seminars for Harvard Business Publishing and as a consultant in China, Saudi Arabia, the United States, Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, Colombia, Peru, Chile, and Brazil. His publications include an online course (Management Communication), this book, cases, and a video, all published by Harvard Business School or Harvard Business Publishing.

With cases, you need to change how you read and, ultimately, how you think. Cases are a jigsaw puzzle with the pieces arranged in a confusing pattern. You need to take the pieces and fit them into a pattern that helps you understand the main issue and think about the optimal ways to address it. You need to be comfortable with less than perfect information and an irreducible level of uncertainty. You need to be able to filter the noise of irrelevant or relatively unimportant information. You need to focus on key tasks that allow you to put pieces together in a meaningful pattern, which in turn will give you a better understanding of the main issue and put you in a position to make impactful recommendations. The Case Reading Process Read the first and last sections of the case. What do they tell you about the core scenario of the case? These sections typically give you the clues needed to identify the core scenario. Take a quick look at the other sections and the exhibits to determine what information the case contains. The purpose is to learn what information is in the case and where. Avoid reading sections slowly and trying to memorize the content. Stop! Now is the time to think rather than read. What is the core scenario of the case? What does the main character have to do? What is the major uncertainty? Identify the core scenario by asking the 2 questions. Once you are reasonably certain of the core scenario—decision, evaluation, or problem diagnosis—you can use the relevant framework to ask the questions in the next step. Those questions will give you a specific agenda for productively exploring the case. What do you need to know to accomplish what the main character has to do or to resolve the major uncertainty? List the things you need to know about the situation. Don’t worry about being wrong. This is probably the most important step of the entire process. If you don’t know what you’re looking for in the case, you won’t find it. The right core scenario framework will prompt you to list things that you need to explore. For example, for a decision scenario case, you should think about the best criteria the main character can use to make the decision. To determine criteria, think about quantitative and qualitative tools you’ve learned that can help you. Go through the case, skim sections, and mark places or takes notes about where you find information that corresponds to the list of things you need to know. You’re ready for a deep dive into the case. Carefully read and analyze the information you’ve identified that is relevant to the things you need to know. As you proceed in your analysis, ask, How does what I’m learning help me understand the main issue? The most efficient and least confusing way to read and analyze is to peel the onion—to study one issue at a time. For instance, let’s say that a decision has financial and marketing criteria. Analyzing the financial issues separately from marketing is far less confusing than trying to switch back and forth. As your analysis moves from issue to issue, you may discover gaps in your knowledge and have to add items to your list of what you need to know. Your ultimate goal is to arrive at a position or conclusion about the case’s main issue, backed by evidence from the case. Remember, there are usually no objectively right answers to a case. The best answer is the one with the strongest evidence backing it. As you learn more, ask, How does what I know help me understand the main issue? When you are preparing a case for class discussion, consider alternative positions. Finally, take some time to think about actions that support your position. What actions does your position support or require? In the real world, analysis is often followed by action. A decision obviously has to be implemented. Usually the entire point of a problem diagnosis is to target action that will solve the problem. And even evaluation has an important action component: sustaining the strengths and shoring up the weaknesses that it has revealed.

About the Case Method

Harvard Business School pioneered the case method of teaching in the 1920s as a way of bringing management lessons to life in the classroom. The HBS case method presents real-life situations that executives have faced and asks readers to consider how they would respond. Today the vast majority of HBS classes are built on the case method. Our exhibit, From Inquiry to Action: Harvard Business School & the Case Method , provides an in-depth look at the teaching practice.

Requesting Cases from the Library

Baker Library provides active HBS cases to students currently enrolled in an HBS MBA or doctoral course only.

Baker Library's HBS Archives also maintains a collection of approximately 45,000 retired (inactive) cases available to all users for their research.

Please use the forms below to request cases.

Individuals not currently enrolled in an HBS MBA or Doctoral course may purchase cases from the Harvard Business Review Store . Educators may visit Harvard Business School Publishing for Educators to purchase cases for teaching.

Request Active HBS Cases

Request retired hbs cases, requesting cases (general public).

Educators: Please visit Harvard Business School Publishing for Educators to search for and purchase cases for teaching.

Non-Educators may purchase HBS cases from the Harvard Business Review Store .

Register now for Free Access to Case Studies from Harvard and Other Renowned Institutions

Your free harvard business publishing educator account includes.

- Access to over 50,000 learning materials - Latest ideas from Harvard Business Review - Digital access to teaching guides & resources - Simulations with real-world choices and outcomes

Our catalog includes a variety of learning topics such as

• General Management
• Business Ethics
• Finance & Accounting
• Operations Management
• Organizational Behavior
• Information Technology
• Entrepreneurship
• HR Management
• International Business

What are Other Business Educators Saying about Our Collection?

“I can’t imagine a more versatile resource than Harvard Business Publishing - everything from cases, videos to simulations are available. The advantage of teaching with HBP materials is twofold: ease of mind for the faculty and credibility for the students.”

“After 35 years as an academic, I have come to the conclusion that there is a magic in the way Harvard cases are written. Cases go from specific to general, to show students that business situations are amenable to hardheaded analysis that then generalize to larger theoretical insights. The students love it!”

“For almost 25 years, I’ve used HBP’s cases, articles and simulations in my MBA classes. The material is always updated, so that new company stories are featured alongside some of the most classic articles.”

We offer access to learning materials from 50+ partners including:

What is the Case Study Method?

Simply put, the case method is a discussion of real-life situations that business executives have faced.

On average, you'll attend three to four different classes a day, for a total of about six hours of class time (schedules vary). To prepare, you'll work through problems with your peers.

How the Case Method Creates Value

Often, executives are surprised to discover that the objective of the case study is not to reach consensus, but to understand how different people use the same information to arrive at diverse conclusions. When you begin to understand the context, you can appreciate the reasons why those decisions were made. You can prepare for case discussions in several ways.

Case Discussion Preparation Details

In self-reflection.

The time you spend here is deeply introspective. You're not only working with case materials and assignments, but also taking on the role of the case protagonist—the person who's supposed to make those tough decisions. How would you react in those situations? We put people in a variety of contexts, and they start by addressing that specific problem.

In a small group setting

The discussion group is a critical component of the HBS experience. You're working in close quarters with a group of seven or eight very accomplished peers in diverse functions, industries, and geographies. Because they bring unique experience to play you begin to see that there are many different ways to wrestle with a problem—and that’s very enriching.

In the classroom

The faculty guides you in examining and resolving the issues—but the beauty here is that they don't provide you with the answers. You're interacting in the classroom with other executives—debating the issue, presenting new viewpoints, countering positions, and building on one another's ideas. And that leads to the next stage of learning.

Beyond the classroom

Once you leave the classroom, the learning continues and amplifies as you get to know people in different settings—over meals, at social gatherings, in the fitness center, or as you are walking to class. You begin to distill the takeaways that you want to bring back and apply in your organization to ensure that the decisions you make will create more value for your firm.

How Cases Unfold In the Classroom

Pioneered by HBS faculty, the case method puts you in the role of the chief decision maker as you explore the challenges facing leading companies across the globe. Learning to think fast on your feet with limited information sharpens your analytical skills and empowers you to make critical decisions in real time.

To get the most out of each case, it's important to read and reflect, and then meet with your discussion group to share your insights. You and your peers will explore the underlying issues, compare alternatives, and suggest various ways of resolving the problem.

How to Prepare for Case Discussions

There's more than one way to prepare for a case discussion, but these general guidelines can help you develop a method that works for you.

Preparation Guidelines

Read the professor's assignment or discussion questions.

The assignment and discussion questions help you focus on the key aspects of the case. Ask yourself: What are the most important issues being raised?

Read the first few paragraphs and then skim the case

Each case begins with a text description followed by exhibits. Ask yourself: What is the case generally about, and what information do I need to analyze?

Reread the case, underline text, and make margin notes

Put yourself in the shoes of the case protagonist, and own that person's problems. Ask yourself: What basic problem is this executive trying to resolve?

Note the key problems on a pad of paper and go through the case again

Sort out relevant considerations and do the quantitative or qualitative analysis. Ask yourself: What recommendations should I make based on my case data analysis?

Case Study Best Practices

The key to being an active listener and participant in case discussions—and to getting the most out of the learning experience—is thorough individual preparation.

We've set aside formal time for you to discuss the case with your group. These sessions will help you to become more confident about sharing your views in the classroom discussion.

Participate

Actively express your views and challenge others. Don't be afraid to share related "war stories" that will heighten the relevance and enrich the discussion.

If the content doesn't seem to relate to your business, don't tune out. You can learn a lot about marketing insurance from a case on marketing razor blades!

Actively apply what you're learning to your own specific management situations, both past and future. This will magnify the relevance to your business.

People with diverse backgrounds, experiences, skills, and styles will take away different things. Be sure to note what resonates with you, not your peers.

Being exposed to so many different approaches to a given situation will put you in a better position to enhance your management style.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can i expect on the first day, what happens in class if nobody talks, does everyone take part in "role-playing".

• Business Essentials
• Leadership & Management
• Credential of Leadership, Impact, and Management in Business (CLIMB)
• Entrepreneurship & Innovation
• Digital Transformation
• Finance & Accounting
• Business in Society
• For Organizations
• Support Portal
• Media Coverage
• Founding Donors
• Leadership Team

• Harvard Business School →
• HBS Online →
• Business Insights →

Business Insights

Harvard Business School Online's Business Insights Blog provides the career insights you need to achieve your goals and gain confidence in your business skills.

• Career Development
• Communication
• Decision-Making
• Earning Your MBA
• Negotiation
• News & Events
• Productivity
• Staff Spotlight
• Student Profiles
• Work-Life Balance
• AI Essentials for Business
• Alternative Investments
• Business Analytics
• Business Strategy
• Business and Climate Change
• Creating Brand Value
• Design Thinking and Innovation
• Digital Marketing Strategy
• Disruptive Strategy
• Economics for Managers
• Entrepreneurship Essentials
• Financial Accounting
• Global Business
• Launching Tech Ventures
• Leadership Principles
• Leadership, Ethics, and Corporate Accountability
• Leading Change and Organizational Renewal
• Leading with Finance
• Management Essentials
• Negotiation Mastery
• Organizational Leadership
• Power and Influence for Positive Impact
• Strategy Execution
• Sustainable Business Strategy
• Sustainable Investing
• Winning with Digital Platforms

The HBS Case Study Goes Digital with HBX

• 08 Aug 2017

HBX was developed by HBS faculty as a way to bring the renowned HBS case study method to a digital platform. As one would expect, not everything can be easily translated into the digital world, but the online space does have its advantages.

As Professor Bharat Anand said, “What the case method and online education have in common is that they are both centered on each individual student.”

From that perspective, HBX found itself in familiar waters when trying to translate the HBS learning model into an online platform. Just like in an HBS classroom, there are no long faculty-led lectures or passive learning time - the courses rely heavily on peer interaction and experiential learning to help students master the topics that are discussed.

But, because of the asynchronous nature of HBX programs and the larger, more global scale, the intimate atmosphere and close connections you'd make in a more traditional HBS MBA classroom were more difficult to recreate.

Nonetheless, HBX was able to harness many of the central elements of the case method within their course structure and platform design, ensuring an active, social, and case-based learning experience.

Some of these hallmarks of the case method include:

1. Expert Insights

First, instead of reading a dossier about a company, HBX courses incorporate short, well-produced videos with actual managers and business owners from a variety of industries within nearly every lesson. These leaders provide background on their companies, discuss real business challenges that tie into the course concepts, and share valuable insights. Then, the student is asked to put themselves in the manager's shoes and explain what choices they would make in a given situation and why.

2. Interactive, Experiential Learning

Just like at HBS, students at HBX have to pay careful attention because their skills and knowledge can be put to the test at any moment. Throughout the courses, students encounter interactive learning exercises, polls, and “cold calls” which help them remain alert and focused on the material.

3. Social Learning and Peer-Based Discussions

Last, but not least, HBX makes sure the critical peer-learning element of the case method is still present. This is not an easy feat for an online course, especially one with students working on courses at all times of day from all over the world.

The course platform features a global map that shows where other people are currently learning from, offers a “peer help” function, allowing you to debate and ask or answer questions about the content, gives you the opportunity to read and comment on classmates’ responses to in-course exercises, and encourages you to contribute to the community.

Beyond that, HBX also offers private Facebook groups for each cohort to encourage additional conversations—many students take it upon themselves to organize study groups or social meet ups in cities around the world.

These social learning aspects of the case method allow students to engage, learn from each other, debate, and, through this process, deepen their knowledge of course concepts and broaden their viewpoints.

About the Author

• Harvard Business School →
• Faculty & Research →
• January 2023
• HBS Case Collection

Autonomous Vehicles in 2022

• Format: Print
• | Language: English
• | Pages: 17

About The Authors

Christopher T. Stanton

William R. Kerr

More from the authors.

• Faculty Research

Freelancer, Ltd.

• Journal of Urban Economics

JUE Insight: Infrastructure and Finance: Evidence from India's GQ Highway Network

• Management Science

Information Spillovers in Experience Goods Competition

• Freelancer, Ltd.  By: Christopher Stanton, Karim R. Lakhani, Jin Hyun Paik and Nina Cohodes
• JUE Insight: Infrastructure and Finance: Evidence from India's GQ Highway Network  By: Abhiman Das, Ejaz Ghani, Arti Grover, William Kerr and Ramana Nanda
• Information Spillovers in Experience Goods Competition  By: Zhuoqiong Charlie Chen, Christopher Stanton and Catherine Thomas