The Case Centre Impact Index 2023: No. 15

For more than sixty years, IESE Business School has been at the forefront of management education and a leading light in promoting a more human way of doing business. One where enduring human values like empathy, authenticity and humility are emphasized, and which understands that organizations thrive when their members grow and flourish as individuals.

The school recognizes the importance of discussion-based learning, such as the case method, to achieving their aim of educating leaders to whom we can entrust the future of business and society.

The case method is the principal learning methodology used in IESE programs. Since the school was founded in Barcelona in 1958, over 55,000 people have studied at IESE´s campuses in Barcelona, Madrid, Munich, New York and Sao Paulo and experienced for themselves the case method and IESE´s dynamic, discussion-based learning. In addition, the school has produced more than 4,500 original cases.

Unlike lectures in which students passively receive knowledge taught by their professors, at IESE professors act more like conductors, guiding class discussions where students actively contribute ideas and grapple with challenging business decisions rooted in real-world problems. This reflects IESE´s firm belief that the best way to learn to make better professional business decisions is by making decisions surrounded by people with other points of view in a safe, academic environment.

IESE Publishing, which forms part of IESE Business School, is also a leading distributor of teaching materials related to global management and business leadership, typically publishing around 100 new IESE cases each year. They are the largest distributor of their kind in the Spanish-speaking world. The products in their extensive catalog include business cases, technical notes, articles, book chapters and other teaching materials, developed by professors at IESE and other universities. They offer a growing number of cases and other materials in innovative digital formats.

IESE’s cases also have a distinct international perspective, reflecting the diversity of the school, faculty and students. While many assume most case studies just focus on big North American companies, at IESE their cases cover not only big-name companies like YouTube and Spotify but also companies in emerging countries and young start-ups. In addition, they have one of the largest collections in the world of Spanish-language cases.

Since 2022, The Case Centre has received 30 new cases for distribution from IESE authors. In total the collection available through The Case Centre numbers 580 cases, many with accompanying instructor materials, software and videos. 15 of those are prize-winning cases.