Someone recently raised a very interesting point regarding the age (and relevance) of any given case study. For a recent class we read an interesting case about contact lenses for the poultry industry that was written in 1975 (and revised in 1999). Based on the animated discussion that took place during class, I thought that this was quite relevant.
As a class, how do we feel about using material that is "older"? Should our materials be relevant to our current business practices? Or are these case study exercises more about understanding the underlying concepts? What about the opposite, in other words, learning from material that is still happening/playing itself out right now and using that information on a more real-time basis, like using an article in last week's Wall Street Journal like JB did? A combination of both? What are the pros and cons? What are your thoughts on this?
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I guess the answer is - 'it depends'. If the case study highlights som ething that has not changed much with time then it is OK to use even if the case came from years ago. ODI and B&D are good examples. ODI case was about, what to do if you have a promising (??) product with no experience and importantly no distribution channel. Although the case was old, it highlighted this aspect well. The most important thing is the moderator's (professor's) ability to engage the class in the discussion and highlight all issues/questions involved.
On the other hand, I would agree with the argument that the class would relate well with a newer topic such as how did Amazon build its channels?
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