How Can Teaching Cases Improve IS Theory and Practice?

Abstract

Teaching cases are helpful pedagogical products. Here, we propose they also support some scholars’ theorizing, through their discussion. Inclusion of teaching cases in a scholar’s portfolio might indicate the scholar values both discussion-based learning and discussion-based theorizing. Inclusion of the same case-specific companies and situations in the scholar’s teaching cases, practitioner papers and scholarly papers might indicate that their practical and scholarly theorizing was informed by discussing teaching cases with MBA students, executives, and/or colleagues. We report on a six-case study, examining the career journeys (their work practices and outputs) of three systematically-selected double-impact management scholars (Sumantra Ghoshal, Kathleen Eisenhardt and Michael Tushman) and three systematically-selected double-impact IS scholars (Mark Keil, Jeanne Ross, and Rajiv Sabherwal). The findings indicate that inclusion of teaching cases in one’s portfolio, and discussing them with executives helps some double-impact scholars achieve efficiency of effort, impactful theorizing, and useful practitioner guidance. After discussing strengths and limitations of this exploratory multiple-case study, we call for further research to investigate whether and how teaching cases – particularly those designed to elicit both rational and emotional reader/discussant responses -- positively influence IS scholars’ theorizing and impacts.