A case study presents an account of what actually happened to a business or industry over a number of years. It chronicles the events that managers had to deal with, such as changes in the competitive environment, and charts the managers' response. The cases in this class cover a wide range of issues and problems that financial managers have had to confront. Each case is different because each organization is different. The underlying thread in all of the cases, however, is the use of strategic financial management techniques to solve business problems.
Cases prove valuable in studying financial management for several reasons.
First cases provide you with experience of organizational problems that you generally do not have an opportunity to experience first hand. Third, case studies provide you with an opportunity to participate in class and to gain experience in presenting your idea to others. You will be called upon, either as a group or individually, to identify what is going on the case. Through classroom discussion the issues and solutions to the case problem will reveal themselves. This will force you to organize your views and conclusions so that you can present them to class.