Finding Business Case Studies

Case studies provide examples for learning how theory is put into practice. Business case studies may be found in print and online.  Professors might use this guide to locate appropriate cases for their coursework, and students might use it to locate cases on specific companies they are researching or to gain insight on specific business issues they are studying.

Case Studies in Books -

In the CLICnet library catalog, conduct a keyword search for "business case studies." To narrow your search, combine a term describing your topic (e.g. Marketing) with the phrase "business case studies." 

Cases in Journals

Harvard Business Review Article case studies - HBR publishes one case study per issue.  The easiest way to find them is to conduct a database search.  Full-text HBR articles are available online from Business Source Premier, from 1922 to the present. (See the later entry on "Fee-based Online Cases" for information on ordering other Harvard Business cases).

The Asian Case Research Journal - Provides a selection of cases on Asian companies and multi-national corporations operating in the Asia-Pacific; cases available through the Business Source Premier database, from June 2001 to the present.

Management Case Study Journal - A biannually published online journal, containing cases regarding management education in the Asia Pacific context. Full text views of cases in the current issue are readily available.  To view the past issues archive, you must register for password access; this process is free and simple.  When you register, use University of St. Thomas in the company field.

Free Online Cases

eMarket Services Cases & Reports - Publishes cases and reports on their website about companies using electronic marketplaces to do business. To locate cases and reports, you may search by industry, region, date, or headline.

Monash University Case Studies and Surveys Database - Publishes cases covering the Asia-Pacific. Before you search for cases, you must agree to the site's conditions of use. The site supports keyword and advanced search options.

EnergyIdeas Clearinghouse - Provides resources related to energy efficiency and business in the Pacific Northwest; To locate cases, click on the sitemap link at the bottom of the homepage. Under the section Browse By Content Types, select the Case Study link. You may narrow your results, by isolating your search to a specific topic, or you may browse through the list of over seventy studies.

Pacific Northwest Pollution Prevention Resource Center - To locate environmental case studies, type "case studies" into the search box located in the top right corner of the homepage.

Sunday Times Enterprise Network Case Studies - Case studies on middle market companies are published weekly. To locate cases, click on the Case Studies tab on the navigation bar.  Only the most recent case studies are available to non-registered users; however, web registration is free and will grant you access to the archived case studies.

The Times 100 Case Studies - Written for secondary level students in the United Kingdom; provides case studies for major companies (e.g. Kellogg's and Shell).  Use the pull down menu on the homepage to select a case study by company name.

CasePlace - Cases that pose social and environmental challenges within traditional business problems.  Full text for some cases on this site are free; in all other instances, you may receive a copy of a case by contacting the source.  Source contact information is found in the "How to Obtain This Case" box at the top right of each case page.

Fee-Based Online Cases

Harvard Business School Cases - Order cases in hard copy, online, or purchase permission to duplicate for classes.  Search and browse by topic.  Faculty members can contact the UST Bookstore to arrange for printed copies of cases to be available for student purchase.

European Case Clearing House - Search for cases by country, company, management discipline, topic or date; view on-line inspection copies before you order.  

Best-Practice.com - Offers over 350 individual case studies of private sector companies and public organizations, across a broad range of industries and countries.

Darden Business Publishing - Topical organization of cases; abstracts provided.  Cost to access cases is nominal. 

Other Online Resources

Business Ethics  - A browsable directory of business case studies websites; includes brief descriptions and hyperlinks to over twenty different sites; directory created and maintained by Sharon Stoerger, a University of Illinois librarian. 

INFOMINE - A virtual library of Internet sources; to locate business case studies websites, click on the Business and Economics link, and enter "case studies" in the search box.  INFOMINE provides a brief description and hyperlink for each site, and a graphic icon that denotes the nature of the site (e.g. $ = fee-based site).