case studies and ethics
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I did hear a lot about them, in fact a lot lot about them. But knew what they were exactly, once I arrived at a B school. Am sure not many will question the fact that this was one B school which followed the case study methodology to develop the skill in the future managers.
A little about the B school first, IBS a
A week in to the curriculum and we had our first case study in our hands. It was to do about IT systems in retail chains in some European country. But what the case was about is not the contention of this blog, the issue is how we went about it. The ‘WE’ here refers to my group.
A week later we had spent endless nights debating the pros and cons of what the six inches between our ears, could come up with. We had obviously referred to our best friend, WWW, to help us resolve the simple question that the case posed.
It was a night before the presentation that we ran our finger on the key board again, just to shock ourselves with the results which, probably one of the best search engines threw up.
A 53 page document which, in the next 8 hrs that we had, before having to present our selves would answer all issues, questions and problems. But sooner did we realize that it was actually the beginning of all our issues, questions and problems
Suddenly though the excitement of having found evaporated, leaving behind a question mark on our face. To refer to it or not…
“NOTHING” is unavailable on the internet. But then what should we ask for and not ask for is the question. And here is where comes in the need for ethics.. Ethics say that a student should look at the broader context of any issue. Here was a document which could easily wash out all the efforts that we had put in, but it also had the capability to leave us with a solution which none could dare question.
The need for such a blog to be put in place was to bring to sight a seemingly invisible fact of where the line is to be drawn. There is no doubt that any question and every question that we ask for will be answered by our virtual friend. But where, when to ask and how much to ask for help, is an onus which has been and will always be on us. We are responsible of what we make of ourselves. Any case study for that mattered can be replied to with minimal or no questions to be asked. But then we need to realize that this inability to ask questions is where everything just drops dead. A case is handed over to us to develop our own analytical skills. It intends to put us in that situation and make us think what we would have done had we been in that place.
What happens once we refer to the internet is that we get influenced by what is found it and ultimately we fail to develop or hone our own thought process. Burning the mid night oil, the brain storming session, in fact the whole process of working on a case study goes futile and is safe enough to be called a waste. Yes, it is true that today we find all the answers for the questions that we want but what I need to remind you is that tomorrow there will be a new questions, questions which in utmost certainity might not be answered. And then we dare not say that our friend ditched us.
It’s always been a personal opinion and so shall it remain once you turn this page. I wasn’t here to enforce my opinion on to any one. All I was trying to do was state a fact that we need to realize. And some realizations need to be initiated. I just hope this blog acts as stimulus to it
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When a case is given to study, it's given to do just that...STUDY.
Using INTERNET would've given us the answer that OTHERS have found. That would surely help us in synchronising our thinking to what THEY think. But the question here is "Will it do any good to us?" ... I don't think it will. What it will do is that it will remove strain from our mind. But in the long run, it will not prepare us for the practical situation which is the core focus of a case study.
Go ahead buddy...waitin for more such stuff frm u.
hey..
i agree to t fact that lot of us depend on internet for everything and when there is a time constraint,v use it as an easy way out to solve our problems (better known as assignments). V tend to forget the fact that internet is only to "assist" us with info that can help us analyse situations and not a solution to those situations. good that u initiated this process of realisation,esp among us students coz this is the time when v need to work on our thought process. way to go!!
Its true a case study methodology is aimed at developing your own tactics and helps you bring in contact with the situations one might face in your career as a manager but having a unique solution to every problem is not possible. Innovation does not always work, rather experience and already tried methods have a much better chance of meeting with success. What i am trying to say is referring to the net not only gives you a wider perspective of the problem solving but also gives you a chance to analyse your own shortcomings. And that is exatcly what we are here for, learn from our mistakes. Being a succesful manager is not about acquiring information,coz everyone is at the same platform with the net being around,its about how to use whatever information you have,and that is where your thot process will develop. Research is an integral part of learning, and to be very frank its an art(especially on the net).
Ethics .. The most touted and abused word in Corporate . As regards usage of the Internet, it depends on how you perceive it. If you look at it as a means to justify your ends.. your thought process sufers. But if you look at it as an ocean of knowledge in which you can pick up diverse and boundless concepts, you would be enriched...
Trust me...these things hardly matter once you leave the B-School. ....4Ps, 7Cs et al are nowhere to be seen outside..
The real thing is far more challenging than finding solutions to "literary assignments" as I would like to call all case studies, (Though I even developed quite a few in ICFAI CDC).
So..Just get through your courses, with our without "ethical" solutions to the "literary assignments" to take up the challenge outside.
All the best!!!
Tafzeel Nazki
Batch of 2005, IBS Hyderabad
