Nonprofit

Management

The Case Study Method

Application: North Side Childrens Agency
Case

Case Study Method

Overview
Key Strategic Issues
Analysis
Alternatives
Recommendations
Implementation Plan
Conclusion

Overview and Key Strategic

Issues

Overview:
Very brief (1 paragraph) summary of the
case study or the current situation at hand

Key Strategic Issues(s):

Very brief (use one bullet per key issue)
Indicate what are the top 1-3 key issues or
challenges
Be sure to differentiate between what are
the underlying issues and what are merely
symptoms of the issues

Analysis

This is a major section of the report that

may require between 2-5 pages
(depending on overall length of report)
The analysis should generally include
following elements:
Sector Analysis (relatively brief)
Organizational Analysis (relatively brief)
SWOT Analysis (major)

Where applicable, include other

relevant analysis or calculations (for
example, financial statements and
ratios)

Sector Analysis

Identify the sector the organization is in

For example, social services, ministry, arts
and culture, education, health, advocacy,
etc.

Indicate where the sector is at in terms

of its stage of growth (including the
nature of its competition, new vs.
mature, etc.)
What issues are facing the sector, in
general?

Organizational Analysis

Outline organizations mission, vision, and

values
Mission: Why does organization exist?
Vision: If the organization were wildly
successful in the future, what big results would
we see, what would the organization look like?
Values: What are principles it holds most dear?

Organizational Analysis

Other elements of organizations strategic

plan also include its goals, strategies, and
objectives
While not included at this point in case
study, your recommendations and
implementation plan are essentially
identifying certain aspects of:
Goals: What broad directions do we need to
move toward to address our strategic issues?
Strategies: What approaches do we need to
take to address our key strategic issues and
achieve our goals?
Objectives: What specific, quantified targets do

SWOT Analysis 1

SWOT analysis is a structured strategic

planning approach used to assess an
organizations:
Strengths: capabilities that enable the organization
to perform well (particularly with respect to other
organizations) and that should be taken advantage
of
Weaknesses: characteristics that prevent the
organization from performing well (particularly with
respect to other organizations) and that need to be
addressed
Opportunities: ideas, trends, forces and events
external to the organization that should be
capitalized on
Threats: events or forces that are outside the
control of the organization that could create serious

SWOT Analysis 2

In conducting the SWOT analysis, be sure to

address the organizations stakeholders.
Note: there is no need for a separate
stakeholder analysis section; incorporate
it into your SWOT analysis.
Internal stakeholders: In outlining the internal
SWOT components be sure to include the
organizations relationship with its internal
stakeholders (employees, shareholders, senior
management team). What is the state of these
relationships and are they a strength or a weakness?
External stakeholders: In outlining the external
SWOT components be sure to include the
organizations relationship with its external
stakeholders (suppliers, customers/clients,
competitors, government and regulatory bodies).

Strengths

What advantages does your organization have?

What do you do better than anyone else?

What unique or lowest-cost resources can you
draw upon that others cant?
What do people internal to the organization
(employees, volunteers, board members) see as
your strengths?
What do people in your market (donors, clients,
similar organizations) see as your strengths?
Note: when looking at your strengths, think about them
in relation to similar organizations. For example, if all
organizations provide high quality products or services,
then a high quality production or service delivery
process is not a strength in your sector, it's a necessity.
Source: Mindtools

10

Weaknesses

What could you improve?

What should you avoid?
What factors lose you sales?
What do people internal to the
organization (employees, volunteers,
board members) see as your weaknesses?
What are people in your market (donors,
clients, similar organizations) likely to see
as weaknesses?

Source: Mindtools

11

Opportunities

What good opportunities can you spot?

What interesting trends are you aware?
What changes in technology and markets
can you take advantage of?
What changes in social patterns,
demographics, lifestyle changes can you
take advantage of?
What changes in government policy
(particularly those related to your field)
can you take advantage of?

Source: Mindtools

12

Threats

What external obstacles do you face?

What are similar organizations doing?
What challenging trends are you aware?
What changes in technology and markets
threaten your position?
What changes in social patterns,
demographics, lifestyle changes threaten
your position?
What changes in government policy
(particularly those related to your field)
threaten your position?
Source: Mindtools

13

SWOT Analysis 2

Please ensure that you explicitly identify any

assumptions you are making, particularly with
respect to information not identified in the
case study material
If you decide to provide any supporting tables,
charts, financial statements, etc., these can be
included as appendices at the back of the
report. Note: these will not be counted toward
your overall page count.
Any external sources used in your report
should be properly referenced (using the MLA
or APA writing style) using in-text citations and
a Works Cited section.

Alternatives

This is another key section that may

require 2-4 pages of your report
(depending on the overall length of the
report)
This section will describe 2-3 alternatives
that address/resolve the key issues, as well
as provide an evaluation of these
alternatives
This evaluation (including pros and cons)
should draw upon the insight gained from
your analysis (particularly with respect to
the SWOT analysis)

Recommendations

Relatively brief (less than one page)

Identify which of the alternatives you
are recommending (including your
rationale)
Ensure that you explain how your
recommendations help to address or
resolve your key issues or the major
elements identified via your SWOT
analysis
If you so choose, this section may be
combined with the
Implementation/Action Plan section

Implementation Plan

Relatively brief (less than one page)

unless combined with your
recommendations
Outline and briefly describe the major
steps (ensure these elements are noted
sequentially) that will be required to
implement your recommendation
If appropriate, this may also include the
timeframe, any additional financial or
human resources that are required

Conclusion

A very brief (1-2 paragraphs) wrap-up

of the case study
This section should outline how your
recommendations will address the key
issues

Works Cited

As noted earlier, any external sources

used in your report should be properly
referenced (using the MLA or APA
writing style)
Please be also sure to utilize in-text
citations