Episode 14: Thinking About Strategy when Case-Solving

This article is written by Cam Welsh, a coach with over two decades of experience guiding successful case-solving teams at the Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary.

This week, I'm excited to delve into the crucial topic of strategic thinking for case-solving teams. It's essential for teams to carefully consider the strategy they propose in their solutions. When crafting a strategy, it's important to grasp some fundamental facts. Firstly, strategy can be defined as a plan of action intended to achieve specific goals. It's not just about proposing a strategy, but also about ensuring the strategy has strong connections to the implementation plan or proposed actions. I will start this discussion by looking at the types of strategies and advice to get you started developing your strategy.

Types of Strategy

I emphasize with my teams that there are three different types of strategies, all of which are prevalent in the cases seen at case-solving competitions. The three types of strategies are:

• Business strategy
• Operational strategy
• Transformational strategy

The text below outlines different types of business strategies:

Business strategy, according to HBS Online , refers to the initiatives pursued by an organisation to create value for the organisation and its stakeholders and to gain a competitive advantage in the market.

Operational strategy, as described by Monday Blog , is the system that an organisation implements to achieve its long-term goals and mission. It involves decisions based on multiple factors, including product management, supply chain, inventory, forecasting, scheduling, quality, and facilities planning and management.

Transformational strategy, according to Professor Kevin Morrell from the Cranfield School of Management , involves steering organisations through change characterized by scale, scope, and speed. This type of change impacts many stakeholders and parts of the business, and happens quickly.

When solving a case, the first step is to decide as a team what type of strategy to propose as the solution. In some instances, it may involve more than one type of strategy. However, it's important to focus on the strategy that is most needed by the organisation due to time limitations imposed by the competition environment.

Strategy Development Advice

In my discussions with Rocco Matteo , based on his experience he has identified three key steps to consider when developing a strategy:

• Involving all stakeholders
• Reviewing and improving all processes
• Maximizing the use of technology

In the competitive world of case solving, carrying out the first two steps can be challenging, as teams are often limited to the case materials provided. While they can conduct outside research, direct communication with the organisation is typically restricted. However, you can accomplish all three steps if you know where to look in the case materials.

When you can't talk to the organisation, involving all stakeholders can be challenging. However, there are a few ways to gather the views of some of the people. First, look at the quotes in the case and use those quotes to support your analysis. You may also be able to get more quotes from research you are allowed to do. Look at customer reviews, news articles, employee forums, and other sources. Second, the history part of the case write-up can help you learn about the company's culture and gain a potential understanding of its stakeholders' needs and concerns.

Reviewing all the processes can be limited by the information provided in the case. Even in a live case where the organisation talks about itself, the information will be focused on what the author or the organisation's representative sees as the problem. If you have the opportunity to ask questions or do additional research, use the questions or time to look at other processes and past experiences with processes and change.

The other parts of the steps of improving all processes and maximizing the use of technology come from how the team develops its strategy. These areas will be discussed in future newsletters and podcasts when they start to appear later this autumn. With technology, the idea is to maximize its use within what makes sense for the organization.

Rocco's Six Elements

In those future episodes and podcasts, I will delve into six key considerations that Rocco discusses when he talks to my students. The key elements must be thought about and included in the plan for the proposed strategy to be successful. I have included my thoughts that I try to communicate to my teams. The six things to Rocco says to keep in mind are:

Prepare the environment: It is crucial to ensure that the organization is fully prepared for the necessary changes and to carefully consider the change management process.

Strengthen the culture: Ensure that both the people and the existing culture are not only open to change but also wholeheartedly embrace it, without undermining the current culture.

Be realistic in your goals: It is essential to critically evaluate whether the proposed change is genuinely achievable.

Raise the bar and empower: After the change, the organization should not only return to its original performance level but must exceed it, empowering its people in the process.

Ongoing communication: Internally brand the change within the organization and give each alternative a compelling name to kickstart the branding process.

Recognition: Plan and allocate resources for celebrating both small and major victories during the implementation process.

The Next Episode

Get ready for the next episode where we will dive deeper into crafting the winning strategy for solving your case. Don't miss out!