The case method is powerful because it allows students to grapple with problems as if they are the decision maker. In the end, they can actually imagine engaging with real solutions as leaders who can make a difference.
Tsedal Neeley; Naylor Fitzhugh Professor of Business Administration, Senior Associate Dean, Chair, MBA Program
Above quote from “The HBS Case Method Defined,” 2021. (1)
In his 1953 essay “Preparation of Case Materials,” HBS Professor Paul R. Lawrence noted: “A good case is the vehicle by which a chunk of reality is brought into the classroom to be worked over by the class and the instructor.” (2) In response to the needs of the curriculum, ideas for cases emerged from business contacts and personal experiences of HBS faculty and staff. Early manuals for writing cases included procedures for undertaking the preliminary study, interviews with the company, preparation of materials, and writing of the case. In order to collect information relating to a company for use in a case study, researchers, or field agents as they were initially known, were knowledgeable in the art of gaining the trust of and listening to managers as well as front-line employees.
Professor Paul R. Lawrence. HBS Archives Photograph Collection.
In some instances, industry reached out to HBS to develop case studies around specific issues in their companies, benefitting both HBS and businesses. In 1922, General Electric established a partnership with HBS to produce case studies about the company. A faculty memorandum explained: “Business problems might be gathered from the various departments and subsidiaries of the G.E. Co. for a period of 2 or 3 years. The problems would extend into all the major fields of study covered by the School, such as Marketing, Accounting, Finance, Foreign Trade, Industrial Management, Advertising and Publicity.” (3) The memorandum noted the cases would also be of value to General Electric for employee training and to those working in public utility fields.
Education for Business Responsibility, Harvard Business School, 1947, page 15. HBS Archives Vertical File Collection (AC 1947.22).
Harvard Business School faculty meeting, July 18, 1922, page 1. Office of the Dean. Secretary to the Faculty Minutes, Volume 1921-1924 (AA 1.5).
Harvard Business School faculty meeting, July 18, 1922, page 2. Office of the Dean. Secretary to the Faculty Minutes, Volume 1921-1924 (AA 1.5).
GE Distribution Transformer, ca. 1933. Industrial Life Photograph Collection (olvwork354978).
Agent’s Instructions, Chart Outlining Steps, 1924. Bureau of Business Research Instructions to Agents on Standard Practice (Arch E 75B.55.83.2).
Education for Business Responsibility, Harvard Business School, 1947, page 14. HBS Archives Vertical File Collection (AC 1947.22).
Harvard Business School faculty meeting, July 18, 1922, page 1. Office of the Dean. Secretary to the Faculty Minutes, Volume 1921-1924 (AA 1.5).
Education for Business Responsibility, Harvard Business School, 1947, page 15. HBS Archives Vertical File Collection (AC 1947.22).
Harvard Business School faculty meeting, July 18, 1922, page 2. Office of the Dean. Secretary to the Faculty Minutes, Volume 1921-1924 (AA 1.5).
GE Distribution Transformer, ca. 1933. Industrial Life Photograph Collection (olvwork354978).
Agent’s Instructions, Chart Outlining Steps, 1924. Bureau of Business Research Instructions to Agents on Standard Practice (Arch E 75B.55.83.2).
Education for Business Responsibility, Harvard Business School, 1947, page 14. HBS Archives Vertical File Collection (AC 1947.22).
Education for Business Responsibility, Harvard Business School, 1947, page 15. HBS Archives Vertical File Collection (AC 1947.22).
Harvard Business School faculty meeting, July 18, 1922, page 1. Office of the Dean. Secretary to the Faculty Minutes, Volume 1921-1924 (AA 1.5).
The Bureau of Business Research produced cases until 1926, when HBS faculty with their research assistants became solely responsible for the development of the School’s case studies. (4) Through its continual ties with industry, HBS has produced case studies that are both grounded in complex, real-world business situations and serve as effective teaching instruments. The development of case studies has in turn enabled faculty to keep informed of current management trends and strategic issues confronting businesses and provided further research opportunities.
Paul R. Lawrence, “Preparation of Case Materials,” in The Case Method of Teaching Human Relations and Administration, ed. Kenneth Andrews (Cambridge: Harvard University Press), 1953, 215-224.
Harvard Business School faculty meeting, July 18, 1922. Office of the Dean. Secretary to the Faculty Minutes, Volume 1921-1924 (AA 1.5).
