Page 115 - CL How to Read a Case Study

• Is the company growing? [Growth]

• Is its workforce unionized? [HR]

• Does it outsource its operations? [Production]

• Is its debt load greater than its peer group? [Finance]

• Does it rely on online e-commerce/Web?

[Sales/Marketing]

• Is it showing online research activity? [Market Research]

• Does it do business in Europe/China/Brazil?

[Geography]

… many more predictive questions may be added to this list.

To unearth hidden and perhaps critical problems compare

organization's performance on profitability, marketing,

production etc. with performance levels that would normally

be expected from a healthy company within the industry

e.g.,

Marketing problems might be

- limited distribution

- lack of branding

- inadequate advertising

Finance

- low profit on sales