MBA students may not be aware, but it is a passionate international community of case researchers who work to ensure case studies remain the cornerstone of their business education. Driven by a deep belief in the learning power of the case method, we do this by growing the base of case writers around the world, maintaining rigorous standards for research, innovating around the format of teaching cases, and sharing this work with the community of case researchers, writers, and teachers. In October, the UCT GSB Case Writing Centre had the opportunity to share its latest case innovation with fellow case researchers at the annual North American Case Research Association (NACRA) Conference, held this year in Newport Beach, California.
Launched in 2023, the Doing Business in Africa (DBIA) case collection represents an exciting, fresh approach both to telling business stories, and to engaging students in analysing critical business dilemmas. Incorporating blogs, podcasting, and infographics, the “deconstructed” DBIA cases are designed with a modular format that allows instructors and students to engage with business problems and concepts in different ways. The collection, which currently includes six cases multimedia cases, is open source, available through the UCT GSB CWC website.
Represented by the UCT GSB Case Writing Centre Manager Claire Barnardo and Editor Sarah Boyd, the UCT GSB was invited to showcase the collection as part of the “New Views” seminars held during the conference. "Reimagining African Business Case Formats" took the audience through the DBIA case structure, as well as the design process that reflected the needs of modern African professionals. Although the conference is centred on case research in North America, where the case method originated, NACRA membership includes researchers from around the world, including several emerging and African markets, who bring their unique cases and contexts to the review table.
“It was fantastic to have case researchers from Morocco, India, Lebanon, and South Africa, in the room, as well as from Historically Black Colleges and Universities in America. We could feel their excitement about the collection – the use of podcasting and infographics, in particular. But also that we have made these materials freely available. The presentation also opened the door for potential collaborations on future DBIA cases and helpful feedback about how we might take these cases to the next level,” says Boyd.
Some special African attendees made the day particularly memorable. Chancellor of the University of the Witwatersrand Dr Judy Dlamini was in the crowd, as was the conference’s keynote speaker, Professor Euvin Naidoo, who is currently the Director of the Thunderbird Case Series in Arizona.
“The conference gave us a chance to meet the audience we want to reach with DBIA – which includes other African educators, but also international educators. Our conversations from the weekend inspired us to take this collection to the next level,” says Barnardo.
As Barnardo explained, there are more exciting developments ahead for making the DBIA collection even more user-friendly. Soon, the CWC will be developing teaching manuals for each case, and the collection will be available through one of of the international case platforms. Watch this space in the new year for that announcement.
Until then, stay tuned for our new DBIA case on the South Africa-based independent school Christel House, which drops next week! The full DBIA collection is available here.
