Case Forum 2025 - programme

Muhammad Mohsin Hakeem Professor NUCB Business School

As Gen AI reshapes how students access and process information, traditional lecture-based teaching faces growing limitations. Case-based learning offers a dynamic solution by fostering reflective judgment, strategic thinking, and the application of theoretical knowledge to real-world contexts. However, for many educators, particularly in conventional academic settings, structural barriers and cultural resistance can make adopting the case method seem daunting. This session will share proven strategies for integrating case studies successfully, even without institutional support or dedicated infrastructure, drawing from diverse educational experiences. We will also explore how Gen AI can enhance the case method, transforming passive learning into active, strategic exploration and equipping students to thrive in an AI-driven world.

Key takeaways

• Practical strategies for incorporating case-based learning in traditional, lecture-heavy classrooms, even without institutional support.
• How to customise cases to suit traditional, lecture-based environments.
• Techniques for building student buy-in and gradually shifting classroom culture.
• Methods for using AI tools to enhance, rather than replace, case discussions.
• How to transform classroom dynamics without waiting for top-down institutional reforms.

	Claire Beswick Case Centre Manager University of the Witwatersrand Graduate Schools of Business Administration (Wits Business School)
	Reitumetse Mokotedi Researcher University of the Witwatersrand Graduate Schools of Business Administration (Wits Business School)

Although case studies have long been shown to be an excellent teaching tool in management education, case use globally is not as widespread as its efficacy suggests it should be. What factors encourage faculty and institutions to make use of case studies in their teaching? This presentation will focus on the initial results of research that the Wits Business School Case Centre is conducting to understand these factors amongst its faculty members.

Key takeaways

• Explore what drives case adoption – gain insight into the factors that influence faculty decisions to use case studies in their teaching.
• Examine the role of institutional context – consider how support structures and resources impact the uptake of the case method.
• Understand faculty perspectives – learn how educators’ backgrounds, experiences, and teaching preferences shape their engagement with cases.

Sigrun Wagner Professor of International Business and Sustainability Royal Holloway, University of London

This presentation explores the benefits of a pioneering, industry-based sabbatical designed to support case study writing. Drawing on my experience of a year-long contractual sabbatical taken after a major leadership role, I aimed to complement my academic expertise in sustainability with hands-on industry insight – both to enrich my teaching and to provide a foundation for writing new cases. During the year, I collaborated with three different companies across three countries and industries. The session will detail how I secured these placements, the work I undertook with each organisation, and how these experiences translated into valuable case studies for the classroom.

Key takeaways

• Discover the value of industry-based sabbaticals – understand how time spent in industry can enhance case writing and teaching impact.
• Gain practical guidance on securing placements – learn effective strategies for arranging industry experiences.
• Reflect on professional and personal growth – explore how sabbaticals can support educator development beyond the classroom.

Nuno Fernandes Professor of Finance  IESE Business School

This session will explore how a traditional M&A case was transformed into an engaging, multi-stage simulation where participants tackle strategic, financial, and governance challenges in real-time. Using the Big Beer: Inbev vs Anheuser Busch case, the exercise replicates real-world complexity through live negotiations, role-playing, and staged content delivery. Participants (MBAs and executives) gain not only a deeper understanding of finance and deal-making but also stronger integration across business disciplines and improved decision-making capabilities. The methodology is adaptable to other areas, offering faculty a framework to create dynamic, experiential learning experiences across business topics.

Key takeaways

• Experience a proven executive education tool used by top business schools and corporate programmes to energise teams, build strategic alignment, and enhance decision-making under pressure.
• Learn to transform static case studies into dynamic simulations that reflect real-world complexity, increasing executive engagement and improving learning retention more effectively than traditional classroom methods.
• Discover how this methodology fosters cross-functional collaboration by bringing together finance, strategy, leadership, and governance.
• See how staged content release and role-playing can enhance engagement, retention, and learning outcomes.
• Leave with a proven, high-impact approach praised by MBA and executive participants as course-defining.

Euvin Naidoo Distinguished Professor of Practice of Global Accounting, Risk and Agility Thunderbird School of Global Management, Arizona State University (ASU)

Agility and the Art of Case Writing and Storytelling is Thunderbird’s innovative summer flagship course designed to equip management students with the skills to craft compelling business cases alongside expert faculty. Blending agility with storytelling, the programme enhances students’ analytical, communication, and problem-solving abilities through real-world case development and skillsets. Participants gain hands-on experience, with the potential to graduate with a published case – an impressive credential for any resume. Beyond academics, the course fosters lifelong skills in strategic thinking and storytelling that are critical for navigating today’s dynamic business landscape, especially in the Age of AI. Launched in 2023, the course is in high demand and consistently fills quickly.

Key takeaways

• Innovative pedagogy and skill development: the course transforms students from case participants into case creators, teaching them how to craft compelling narratives, identify strategic tension, and ask the right questions – critical skills for future leaders and CxOs.
• Replicable model for experiential learning: Thunderbird’s immersive framework bridges theory and practice and serves as a model for other institutions aiming to embed agile thinking, storytelling, and case writing into their curricula.
• Pipeline for fresh, relevant cases: by empowering students to co-create new cases under faculty mentorship, the programme generates timely, high-quality teaching materials while equipping learners with lifelong problem-solving and storytelling tools.

	Michelle Mielly Professor emlyon Business School
	Catou Faust Associate Professor emlyon Business School

In 2025, intercultural management instructors face challenges amid a widespread DEI backlash and entrenched cultural biases in political debates globally. The Anthropocene underscores the urgent link between environmental and social sustainability through the development of intercultural intelligence and new forms of multicultural solidarity for survival. Intercultural cases can perpetuate national stereotypes or oversimplify complex issues, leading to misinterpretations or misrepretations of cultural values. Gen Z students navigate conflicting narratives, between a management educational curriculum promoting globally inclusive, internationalist ideals, while experiencing online sociopolitical digital environments promoting nationalism, isolationism, or individualism. Effective intercultural cases should grapple with these polarising realities to foster critical thinking and understanding across physical and symbolic borders.

Key takeaways

• Business education in the era of the Anthropocene.
• Intercultural sustainability over management.
• Social and intercultural transformation must accompany the climate crisis.
• Sourcing and creating intercultural cases for the modern classroom.

Stefan Michel Professor of Management, Dean of Faculty and Research International Institute for Management Development (IMD)

Executive education case teaching differs significantly from undergraduate and MBA methods. The primary goal shifts from learning core concepts to fostering reflection among experienced professionals. Executives demand efficient, high-impact input due to time constraints and often skip lengthy pre-reading. Their preference leans towards discussing real-time, relevant scenarios rather than traditional, older cases. Crucially, executive classrooms are rich with participant experience and knowledge, which forms a vital part of the learning exchange, differentiating this environment from those with less experienced students.

Key takeaways

• Writing and selecting relevant cases for executive education.
• Scripting a classroom session that allows for peer exchange and individual reflection.
• Ensure transfer of applicable insights to the daily practice.
• Inviting protagonists, company insiders, or experts to the session.
• Using video interviews with the protagonists to bring the case alive in the classroom and online.

	Louma Atallah Production Manager IESE Business School
	Mireia Las Heras Professor of Managing People in Organizations IESE Business School

IESE Business School began producing and using interactive cases in the classroom some time ago. Over the past year, we have standardised the production process and embraced this new format. It has been a challenging yet exciting journey for both the production team and the professors in the classroom. In this session, each of us will share our unique perspective on the experience with this new format.

Key takeaways

• What makes an interactive case different?
• The impact of interactive cases on teaching and learning.

Ivey Publishing

Circular economy is reshaping business models - but few teaching tools fully capture the cross-functional complexity involved. This session will explore how the case method can bridge that gap, helping students connect strategy, operations, finance, and sustainability in real decision-making.

The presenters will share case writing and teaching strategies - plus a demo of a digital learning experience - to show how interactive, decision-focused learning builds systems thinking and prepares students to lead on sustainability. 

Key takeaways

• How to write and teach cross-functional circular economy cases.
• Facilitation tips to spark rich classroom discussions on trade-offs and innovation.
• A demo of a digital learning experience that enhances engagement and insight.
• Opportunities for new case development in this evolving area.