Abstract
‘Case study’ is a term that has been abused and misused in the management academia, resulting in unnecessary confusion and acceptance of works that do not necessarily advance knowledge. For decades now, case studies have been written with the objective of explaining phenomena, rather than that of enriching and contributing to them. This objective led to the requirement for teaching note, that simply elaborates the already known concepts about a specific subject.
The unimaginably exponential disruptions are affecting not only businesses but also societies, economies, ecologies and, of course, individuals. It is almost impossible to predict anything using linear thinking. The changes have thrust upon us opportunities to re-examine case writing from a research point of view. Although case study research is a well-known methodology in research, we cannot discard the pros of teaching cases. South Asian Journal of Business and Management Cases (SAJBMC) has taken the responsibility to bridge this gap between teaching cases and case study research by encouraging case writers to link theory with their cases. Since August 2019, we have refrained from accepting pure teaching cases and have fully discarded the need for teaching notes. Moreover, what SAJBMC looks away from are those cases written on the concepts and theories taught in MBA courses. We cannot emphasize enough how important this decision is. This step has been taken to not just increase the quality of the cases but also increase their relevance in international academia and research. This move has pushed good case writers a step forward to become great case writers, and we can see that our efforts are bearing favourable results.
Phenomenon, Context and Theory
To bridge the gap between case study research and teaching cases, we advocated the simultaneous presence of phenomenon, context and theory in a case study. A phenomenon is a happening of something that is not fully understood. As vague as it may sound, we observe multiple phenomena occurring around us at any given point in time. Discrimination, sustainability, leadership, employee or customer experience, social engineering, mindfulness, job crafting, patient engagement, bullying, talent retention, etc. all are examples of phenomena. In fact, to study a phenomenon, one may not need context, as a phenomenon exists irrespective of the context. However, we insist on the presence of the context, as it demystifies the nuances of a given phenomenon. Context is a specific dimension of a phenomenon that allows the researcher to narrow down their array of study while increasing the process of demystification of the what, how and why of the phenomenon. For instance, Japan is known for its ancient practice of mindfulness, which has helped the country to stay ahead of time. Hence, if one is to study the phenomenon of mindfulness in Japan, it would be said that the context of the study is a region. If one can further narrow down the context by studying mindfulness among the managers in Japan’s automobile sector, the context shrinks to an industry sector. To reduce it to a case, one could study the mindfulness of the managers in a particular organization, for instance, Nissan.
Theory Link
Once the phenomenon, context and case are identified, one can come to the process of theory connection. It is important to note that connecting theory is an iterative process and often mind-boggling, due to the variety of theories available. The best course of identifying an appropriate theory for a case study research would be for the researcher to allow the data set to speak for itself. Theory is often the first thing we researchers try to identify, and this process may work in a positivist approach. However, in a case, we do not generate data. In already-narrowed-down phenomenon and context, the availability of data is restricted to the case is hand. Hence, selecting a theory beforehand is not just illogical but also ignorant of what the data set tries to communicate. For instance, one may find that mindfulness among the managers in Nissan may lead to self-determination, which is a theory of motivation. This result can only be reached once the data has been analysed. Hence, case study research should never be hypothesis-driven; instead, it should be data-driven.
To summarize, SAJBMC is striving to create a case ecosystem that encourages case writers to write ‘piece-of-art’ cases that are a product of the intersection of phenomenon, context, case and theory. With the current issue, we can gladly say that we are headed in the right direction. The current issue presents 12 cases that address different phenomena within specific contexts.
In the first case, Mishra and Sharma link the theory of a humanitarian supply chain with the phenomenon of social welfare in the context of sudden disasters in the case of the non-governmental organization Goonj. They distinctively address how the social welfare supply chain, within the arena of the humanitarian supply chain, can help in handling disasters either natural or man-made.
The next case addresses the phenomenon of employee well-being within positive psychology, in the context of service sector organizations in India, further narrowing it down to middle and senior managers. Using a grounded theory approach, Jaiswal and Arun establish a link between the study and the conservation-of-resources and broaden-and-build theories, suggesting that indulging in gain spirals enhances employee well-being.
Karulkar and Jain, in the next case, study how data analytics in HDFC catalyses the phenomenon of business persistency in the context of the life insurance industry. Using a time-indexed collection of data, they suggest means to predict and forecast variables for business persistency.
Organizational case studies are not always about success; the study of a failure is much more important to understand how success can be achieved. In the next case study, Abraham and Kumar study the phenomenon of organizational decline faced by Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd, in the context of the pharmaceutical industry. They link the study to organizational-decline-and-turnaround models to explicate the company’s downfall and its struggles to survive.
In the next case study, Ashok and Dhingra study the phenomenon of financial planning in the context of retirees in India. They explore the same using the theory of coordinated strategy. They suggest that reverse mortgage should be used in effective financial planning for elderly people.
The following case addresses the need to reduce waste in the context of the manufacturing industry, more specifically in distribution warehouses. Abhishek and Pratap, through their case study, suggest that applying value-stream mapping from the theory of lean-management can help in the elimination of warehouse waste.
Exploring the phenomenon of sustainability, Lehtimäki, Piispanen and Henttonen study how organizations can develop a circular business model to encourage a circular economy while breaking the barriers of path dependency and lock-in.
Nishikawa, in the next case, studies the phenomenon of organizational development and change in a small, family-owned Japanese organization, Nishio Glass and Mirror. The case concludes that using positive organizational scholarship can result in successful organizational change despite all the barriers.
In the following case study, Lämsä and Keränen explore and conceptualize the concept of responsible leadership using a qualitative approach. Their study draws on relational leadership theory in the context of the manager–employee relationship.
In the next case study, the phenomenon of the international expansion of a family business is studied by Koul, Kumar, Kumar and Singla. Their case involves the expansion of Komal International, a home decor family business, using compliance and internationalization theory.
Upadhyay, Purswani and Jain discuss the phenomenon of urban sustainability in the highly polluted and populated Indian metropolitan cities. With the help of three pillars of sustainability, they present the case of Yulu bikes, the affordable and eco-friendly electric bikes that help reduce traffic congestion and pollution.
In the final case, Yiu, Liu, Shi and Zhao study the phenomenon of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the context of contemporary fighting competitions. Using the case of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, they advocate the accommodation of internal stakeholder management in the CRS strategies of organizations.
While reading the cases, one will realize that each of the cases revolves around a phenomenon. Although the cases are context-specific, they cannot be divorced from the phenomenon. We at SAJBMC are looking only for such cases that expand our understanding of a specific phenomenon, since, as we previously mentioned, a case cannot be separated from its context, and the context from a phenomenon.
Limitations of Data from Secondary Sources
Cases are often written with secondary data sources. This is common not just due to their easy availability but also due to the abundance of case studies being written with secondary sources. This a practice we wish to change, not only because it is primitive but also because it hardly furthers our understanding of the phenomenon under question. Cases crafted with secondary sources of data devolves around the context and provide an answer to the ‘what’ question. Such cases fail to study either a behavioural phenomenon or the strategy adopted by the firm. Often, authors use ‘observation of data’ to derive an inference. To further the understanding of a phenomenon, it is important to use appropriate methodologies for data collection and analysis processes. As noted, secondary data can hardly provide enough understanding beyond the context, and hence we advocate and emphasize the use of primary data in case study research.
Here is an example. The turnaround of a firm can be studied with the help of financial ratios drawn from secondary data sources. Whether the turnaround effort was successful or not can also be judged with secondary data. A case with this much analysis may find its use in an MBA course but cannot be included in a case research journal catering to an international audience of accomplished management professors. A case needs to dwell upon how the leadership changed or fresh teams were built or critical talent could be retained. Developing an understanding of such phenomena within the context of a turnaround will enhance the appeal of a case. This is what we need.
As discussed earlier, a case is a small part of a universal phenomenon, and hence its findings cannot be generalized. This brings us to the need for qualitative study, a better approach to case study research. Nevertheless, quantitative techniques have their own advantages, and we do not claim that they cannot be used in case research.
In the end, we would reiterate our initial stance: keep writing cases, but with this new perspective of not only explaining a phenomenon but also expanding and enriching our understanding of the same—cases that are data-driven and are built of primary data sources.