Study Questions

1. What is a case study?

2. In what fields are case studies used? What purposes do case studies serve in each field?

3. Assume you are a team leader and a conflict is identified between two members of your team. You do not want to take a side, but you do want to discuss this issue with your team. Select a topic that may cause a conflict in software teamwork, and describe a situation in which such a conflict may be raised. How can a case study be useful in such situations?

4. Suggest additional situations in which a team leader might choose a case study as a management tool.

5. In Chapter 5, The Code of Ethics of Software Engineering, we used many case studies to illustrate the essence of the code and its use. In your opinion, why is the topic of ethics appropriate to be discussed using case studies? Suggest additional topics that in your opinion are appropriate to be discussed through case studies.

6. Case studies can be viewed as storytelling. Indeed, storytelling is a management tool. There are those who argue that storytelling will become a key ingredient in management, education, training, and innovation in the twenty-first century ( http://www.creatingthe21stcentury.org/ ). Explore the Web and find information about the use of storytelling as a management tool. Sum up your conclusions.