Case study

Faculty 101: Case Studies

Copyright © 2011 Accenture All Rights Reserved. Accenture, its logo, and High Performance Delivered are trademarks of Accenture.

Logistics & Setup
• Logistics:
– The session relies on printed materials that are provided to the attendees:
• Pack 1: Interviews with Nigel, Anne and Michelle
• Pack 2: Interviews with Nigel, Ed and Rajesh
– Divide your session into groups of 5-6. Each group should then be split in two, with each
section getting 1 set of materials (and every group having both Packs 1 and 2 between them)
– These materials need to be printed beforehand in sufficient quantities
– Post-it notes are useful for capturing objectives that you can refer to later on
– Consider the room layout – how will you promote teamwork between the groups?
• If you don’t have time then you may want to skip the presentations, or only run a
couple of them
– There’s a randomizer to help you pick a group at random
– Have a think about where they will present
– You may be able to split the faculty so multiple groups can present at the same time
• Above all, prepare:
– Brief any other presenters on the session contents and how you want to run it
– Use the notes in this presentation and trainer notes to familiarise yourself with key
messages / content

© 2011 Accenture All Rights Reserved. 2

Introduction to Case Studies

Copyright © 2011 Accenture All Rights Reserved. Accenture, its logo, and High Performance Delivered are trademarks of Accenture.

Introduction

Name:

Academics:

Joined Accenture:

Location:

Grade:

Deployed to:

Recent clients:

4

Introductions

Name:

Academics:

Joined Accenture:

Location:

Grade:

Deployed to:

Recent clients:


Case Studies come in many different flavours…

Individual
(used
within a 1 to
1 interview)
Group
Exercises

SME
Numbers- knowledge
based
based (experienced
hires)

Prioritisati
on / Inbox Creative or
exercises unstructured
(minimal
material)


This session is focused on case studies applicable to a
full-service consultancy
• Supply Chain Management which helps companies, design, build and run superior supply
chains
Operations • Process Optimisation, Operating Model Strategy which helps companies understand how to get
more from their organisations
Management

Talent & Organisation
Consulting

• Develops new ways to manage human resources and improve the performance of employees
Performance (T&OP)

• Creates a superior experience for our clients’ customers
Customer Relationship
Management (CRM) • Enhances the value of their customer relationships
Operations

• Develops finance organisation and risk management strategies
Finance • Gives clients new performance management capabilities and business insights
Consulting

• Identifies and delivers innovative solutions to our clients using technology
Technology
• Works in collaboration with other specialists on all business areas
IT

• Brings together technologies and applications to support business processes
Systems Integration (SI)
• Automates key tasks to improve internal efficiency
Outsourcing
Business
Process

• Takes key business processes from clients to manage on their behalf
Business Process • Delivers cost and organisational improvements, allowing the client to focus on their core
Outsourcing strengths


What kind of work could you be doing?

• Role varies depending on the type of
company you work for and their types of
clients and projects. Typical work includes:
• Market research
• Development of proposals/business
cases
• Requirements gathering
• Analysis and evaluation of
data/processes/ technology/people
• Design and implementation of IT solutions
• Testing
• Training
• Project Management.


Agenda
• Your objectives
• Why do employers do Case Studies?
• Introduction to the case study – a worked example
• Hints and Tips

2

Your objectives for this session

3

What employers want to see…

11
© 2011 Accenture All Rights Reserved.

You can improve your performance in case studies!

They have their own language
• Get familiar with the kinds of
information used in business
• Think about how to analyse the
materials provided

Collaboration is often required
• Think about how you can contribute to
the team
• Interpersonal skills are an opportunity
to shine

Good results come with practice
• Do example questions
• Try to make practice relevant to your
target industry


Case Study – UK Petroleum

Designed to represent a typical Accenture engagement

© 2011 Accenture © 2011 Accenture All Rights Reserved. Accenture, its logo, and High Performance Delivered are trademarks of Accenture.
Copyright All Rights Reserved. 13

UK Petroleum – The candidate brief

You are part of a team of consultants working for a client called UK Petroleum. The
project team has been in place for a couple of weeks, during which time you have
conducted three interviews to gather information about the client.

You met with:

Nigel Senior VP Retail UK Petroleum
Ed IT Lead Petroleum Retail
Rajesh Marketing Lead

Your project manager is meeting with the client tomorrow, and would like you to brief
him/her on:

• What you think the 3 main challenges facing UK Petroleum are

• You will have 15 minutes to discuss in your teams


You have your instructions….

What are your first
steps?

How will you work as a
group?


Reflection on the analysis phase

What went well?

What went badly?

Was there any information that was more difficult to understand?

What would improve the way you used the data and time provided?


UK Petroleum – Considerations and
Themes


Strategy
Things to consider:
• Has the client identified their way to win?

• Is it clear and achievable?

• Are the leadership team aligned?

• How are they managing / meeting
shareholder expectations?


People / Organisation
Things to consider:
• How is the organisation (departments,
responsibilities) set up?
• Are staff up to speed with the latest skills /
changes?
• How are the staff told about changes in the
organisation?
• Do they buy into the changes being
implemented?
• How do different parts of the organisation treat
each other?
• How is personal performance being measured
and managed?


Processes
• Is there consistency across the
organisation?
• How is success being measured (e.g.
customer satisfaction)?
• Are the processes sufficient to deliver
the organisation’s strategic objectives?
• Are there any bottlenecks / pain points
in the current processes?
• Is anything slowing down or impeding
the customer experience?
• Is there anything being done that is
redundant or being ignored?


Technology
• Is the technology performing?
– Performance
– Reliability
• Are all the systems talking to one another?
• Is the client getting the most from it’s data
(e.g. customer data)
• Are there data quality issues? Why?
• Is the client making the most of new
technology?
• Are there any steps in the processes that
could be automated / improved using
technology?


Case Study Conclusions


Group Exercise 2

The client has invited your team to present ideas for their turnaround
planning meeting
You will have 15 minutes to prepare a 3 minute presentation for:

- The client CEO
- His senior project manager (who will implement any ideas you have)
- The Accenture partner managing the relationship with the client

Use only the notes you have taken on the case study
Working in your groups, agree the top 3 challenges facing this client
What solutions would you suggest?


Presentation Time!


Hints & Tips

1. There may be many possible answers
– Be open to questions and challenges
– If stuck, consider a different angle entirely
– If you have open questions, acknowledge them
2. Don’t get hung up on theory – use the information
presented
3. Think about housekeeping / logistics:
– Timekeeping
– Taking notes / summarising
4. In a group, think as a team and not just yourself
5. Think of examples of organisations you know – can you
apply any real world examples?

Qualities we look for at Accenture

• Minimum 340 UCAS points (or equivalent)
+ predicted / obtained 2:1 degree result

• Confidence and initiative

• Good communication skills / team player

• Flexible and mobile

• Mature and professional manner

• Career focus

• Problem-solving and analytical skills

• Interest in business and IT (no IT skills
required)

• NO SPECIFIC BACKGROUND OR
DEGREE REQUIRED- JUST
DEMONSTRATE YOU HAVE THE ABOVE
SKILLS!

Accenture graduate package

• Minimum 340 UCAS points (or equivalent)
+ predicted / obtained 2:1 degree result

• Starting salary £31,500 per annum

• Sign-on bonus £10,000 during first 2 years

• 30 days annual vacation

• Laptop & corporate Amex card

• Contributory pension scheme

• Employee share purchase plan

• 3 days charity leave

• Subsidised gym membership

• Private healthcare


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