IFIP WG 8.3 Task force onLearning from Case Studies in Decision Making

and Decision Support

Designing case studies for teaching: complexity in small doses

Fergal Carton, UCC

Thursday, 2nd April, 2009

Designing case studies for teaching

• Understanding decision processes in practice• But reality of business is complex • Case studies offer experiential learning• Action oriented cases with student participation• Students learn to appreciate complexity• Blending of practice with teaching case • Customisation to purpose is vital

• Learning to live with uncertainty

Objective: understand importance of information to business

• Decision making relies on data• Difficulty perceiving value of data (boring!)• Set-up teaching case (Hans, Cucina, …)• Aim: build prototype system on seed data• Use mentors to add detail• Groups assimilate detail differently• Present prototype to mentors (2-way learning)

• Blending teaching case with practice

Learning through participation

• As system architects, students must understand impact of business context on underlying data

• Key is understanding business complexity

• Learning is enacted with building the system

Building the case

• Developed around existing business– Knowledge of business, products, customers– Contact with Arbutus breads and market

leader (Cuisine de France)– Key competitive strategy: accurate invoicing– Simplified information flows (# products,

prices, inventory, …)– Real data used (products, customers, …)

• Kicked off and ended with mentor input

Arbutus Breads, Cork

• Quality products, no additives, traditional ingredients and methods

• Fighting “breakfast-roll” Ireland

• Fighting Cuisine de France pseudo bread

• Quality fresh bread as convenience food

• In-store bakeries for par-baked products

Visit from Declan Ryan, 4th Feb 09• Cost of sales / distribution

– €50 per day per vehicle• Use slack capacity for par-baked products (blast frozen, then deep freeze)

– distributed by Odeus Foods Dublin– sold in Roscommon!

• Giving the health inspector the “willies”• Top-up and tweak orders during the day• Make to order, no surplus, • Big customer on sale or return basis, allows some flexibility for rush orders• Country markets key to business (Mahon, Midleton)

– Cash flow– Talk to customers, educate them– Revenue weather dependent

• Health aspect key selling point• Using 2 tonnes of flour a week, keep 0.25 tonne in reserve per week• Supplier orders passed manually, 3 calls a week• 25% of costs are labour (Ireland average is 11%)• Good Food Ireland co-op

Cucina Ltd

• Artisan business baking Italian bread

• Local distribution network

• Service station is rapidly growing sector

• Competing on quality and efficiency

• Accuracy of invoicing is seen as critical

Requirements from case

• Students asked to develop a prototype :– Purchases– Sales– Inventory– Production scheduling– Management reporting eg. aged debt report

• Mix of accounting and IS skills required

Students given

• Case study

• Data

• Kick-off from Arbutus Breads

• Fortnightly meetings with Cucina board

• Access to expert advice

Seed data based on real business

Material Unit Inventory 31/12/08Supplier Cost per UnitFlour Kg 40 Farino Fratelli 0.65Olive Oil L 30 Farino Fratelli 9.45Salt Kg 5 Musgrave's 1.25Sugar Kg 6 Musgrave's 1.10Yeast Kg 5 Musgrave's 32.00

ID Name Address 1 Address 2666803 Topaz Blackrock Castle Filling Station Blackrock 821638 Topaz Riverstick Dunkettle Road Riverstick671102 Topaz Marina Marina Service Station Center Park Road495450 Topaz Straight Road O'Reilly's Carrigrohane Road917750 Topaz Lady's Well O'Reilly's Service Station Leitrim Street299088 Topaz Wilton Wilton Motors Wilton

Code Description Unit weight (g)CIA200 Ciabatta (200g) 200CIA200-P Ciabatta Panino (200g) 200CIA300 Ciabatta (300g) 300CIA300-WW Ciabatta Whole Wheat (300g) 300CIA300-M Ciabatta Marjoram (300g) 300CIA300-L Ciabatta Latte (300g) 300FOC190 Focaccia (190g) 190FOC240 Focaccia (240g) 240FOC85 Baby Focaccia (85g) 85FOC80-G 5"Garlic Focaccia (80g) 80FOC80-CO 5"Cheese & Onion Focaccia (80g) 80FOC80-TH 5"Tomato & Herb Focaccia (80g) 80FOC300-TH 8"Tomato & Herb Focaccia (300g) 300

CustomersRecipe

MaterialsProducts

Dynamic data extrapolated

Date Customer Product Qty (cases)01/11/2008 Topaz Douglas Ciabatta (200g) 3

(weekly order, every Sat) Ciabatta Panino (200g) 2Ciabatta Whole Wheat (300g) 1Ciabatta Latte (300g) 1Focaccia (190g) 4Focaccia (240g) 2Baby Focaccia (85g) 15"Garlic Focaccia (80g) 1

Sales orders

Project deliverables

• Analysis and design documentation – Process flow diagrams – Data dictionaries – Reports

• Prototypes (two draft, one final)

• Project documentation

• Commercial presentation (20th March)

Trading off detail for creativity

• Production planning: manual • Inventory managed by system• Interface to accounting package• Rush orders• Commit date for customers (real-time check)

• Assumptions link data to decisions

Examples of over simplification

• No drop down box for customers• No auto-numbers on invoices / orders• No link from sales order to invoice• …

• Students learn what is needed by making mistakes

Decision support for SME’s

• Customer views of information separate• Integration to A/C’s package, VAT returns• Pricing: invoice price and real price!• Material cost change: margin impact• Distribution cost: uneconomic business• Large multiple business: breakeven point

• Living with complexity, no simple answers

Feedback from student

• This project made us adopt a “can do” attitude which motivated us to see new things as challenges and go beyond the notions described in lectures. It points out that learning through projects is much more effective, motivating and useful rather than other types of testing. It encouraged us to learn much more than we were asked to, put it into practice and, finally, test it.

Conclusions

• Case studies can be action oriented

• Mentors adds real life complexity

• Fictional case allows tweaking of purpose

• Trade off between assumptions and detail

• Role play circumvents lack of experience

• Case study can be a forum for learning