Do’s and Don’ts for Corporate Finance case study write-ups
Chair of Corporate Finance – University of Mannheim Last Revised: October 30, 2006 Your case study write-ups are a major part of your assessment for the case-seminar. We ask you to adhere to the following guidelines. We have to read and assess a large number of write-ups, so a clear and concise presentation of your work is imperative. We will evaluate your write-ups based on content and the quality of your presentation, and we reserve the right to ignore those parts of your write-up that are not comprehensible. We limit the write ups to a maximum of four (4) DIN A4, 1.5 line spaced computer written pages in 11 (preferably 12) font size with 2cm margins on all sides (give yourself a chance to receive feedback). Use a standard font, like "Times New Roman" and "Arial" or one with a comparable letter size. Also, reducing word spacing and character size in order to squeeze in more text is not acceptable. DO…
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aim for a concise, analytical style. analyse by example and by reference.
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By example: "...there are circumstances where the plan resulted in zero payouts because of one significant event (a zero incentive payout in ’92 because of the loss of a single customer)..." By reference: "The plan is quite complex and subject to change at any time (see the final note on Case Exhibit 6)."
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try to draw inferences from the numbers and exhibits given in the case. It is not enough simply to understand how the case spreadsheets have been created; you need to use them to illustrate and justify your analysis.
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Example: "Computing P/E-ratios for companies X and Z from exhibit 10 and comparing them with industry averages (exhibit 11) allows us to conclude that..."
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use your conceptual knowledge of finance, accounting, economics and other disciplines of management and apply it to the case. The point of this case course is to let you demonstrate your conceptual knowledge by applying it to a...