2. PROBLEMS These are merely the list of those events, situations, actions or behaviours that are not appropriate to the organization at the time of the case in the context of

the decision that the analyst is required to make. Relevance to the problem is crucial, as there are always aspects of the organization that appear sub-optimal but are not helpful in the present situation if addressed to the exclusion of other problems. You should group these problems into different categories so you can see the most relevant problem areas more easily. Typically, problems are drawn directly from case fact. This is a wholly objective task. Identifying causal linkages between certain problems by using words like "because" or "as a result of" are inappropriate at this stage. That occurs in the next section. 3. CAUSES Goodman School of Business |Qualitative Method of Case Analysis - F19 2 Causes are the contextualization of the problems in terms of theory. Theory will uncover the chronic conditions that exist which have allowed the acute problems to surface./nProblem Analysis 15% 1.Identifies symptoms clearly, with no confusion between symptoms and problems. 2.Related substantial problems faced by the company's decision-makers are identified, and stated in terms that are actionable by the company's leadership. 3. Problems should be stated in terms that are actionable by the decision-maker for the analysis. 4. A good problem definition keeps the case analysis tightly structured because everything discussed after this point must be related to the problem(s) stated in this section. 5. Causes: Why has this happened? 6. Significance and Urgency