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Performance Management Case Study: Fossil Group

Jocelyn Stange

Jocelyn Stange

February 4, 2021 | 2 minute read

Performance Management Case Study: Fossil Group

In this blog, we'll share how Fossil Group evolved its performance management process and 3 simple steps.

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The Evolution of Fossil's Performance Management Process

Fossil Group was using a complex, 100% paper process for performance reviews and check-ins for more than 15,000 global employees. They wanted to move toward a digital performance management strategy, but knew they needed to simplify the process first.

Fossil Group set up four traditional components that were stretched across three strategic touch points throughout the year. These touch points were supplemented with ongoing performance conversations that could be initiated by any employee, at any time.

Fossil Touch Points

As Fossil Group evolved its company-wide performance appro a ch , they were happy to see immediate progress.

92% of employees were participating in goal-setting reviews, setting an average of six goals per employee.

However, when they dug into the data, they found that 35% of individual goals created were misaligned or did not have an impact on the organization and its strategic priorities. They knew they needed to get better at goal alignment if they wanted to meet important business objectives.

Explore the three ways Fossil Group simplified performance management.

1. They scheduled ongoing performance conversations and continuous feedback.

Although the three formal performance touch points in place were working, Fossil Group knew teams needed to have goal conversations more frequently. They implemented informal “check-ins” that could be launched by any employee at any time.

To ensure  adequate time was made for important performance conversations and other performance related activities, Fossil Group implemented "Performance Days" — days strictly dedicated to employee performance. On these days, n o task-related meetings are scheduled, and all work is set aside for the day. Conversations between managers, employees, and teams are all centered on performance.

2. They created intuitive goal conversation templates.

Fossil Group recognized that simply having more performance conversations wasn’t enough — the conversations needed to include healthy dialogue, debate, and collaboration from managers and employees. They created 1-on-1 templates to help guide managers and employees through an effective and productive goal conversation.

Check-in templates could be customized to the needs and work of individual teams and team members. The templates helped ensure conversations were focused on creating clear, aligned, and motivating goals. 

3. They used recognition to keep performance conversations fresh.

Fossil Group wanted to bring performance conversations full circle by recognizing employee performance daily. They created recognition toolkits for managers including fun notecards, gift cards, and employee recognition tips. They  also  launched an online, peer-to-peer recognition program that generated an average of 140 recognition stories each week.

By  taking time to uncover the needs of its employees, and delegating time for managers to focus on perf ormance,  Fossil Group  was able to listen and act on employee voices and evolve their performance strategy f or  succes s .

Download our latest ebook: Making Time for Performance Management to get more tips for simplifying your performance management process.

Making Time for Performance Management

Published February 4, 2021 | Written By Jocelyn Stange

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Performance Management Case Studies: Revolutionaries and Trail Blazers

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Five com­pa­nies that have led the way in set­ting new per­for­mance man­age­ment trends

Note: This blog post was updat­ed in July 2019 for accuracy.

Per­for­mance man­age­ment is an ever-evolv­ing field. The more we learn, the bet­ter we can adapt our per­for­mance man­age­ment sys­tems to make our com­pa­nies health­i­er, more moti­va­tion­al places to work. This is why it is so impor­tant to keep up with the lat­est per­for­mance man­age­ment trends . Com­pa­nies who fall behind lose out to their com­peti­tors. They also run the risk of los­ing their best per­form­ers along the way.

Since 2012 , com­pa­nies all over the world have been mov­ing away from old-fash­ioned annu­al appraisals and towards con­tin­u­ous per­for­mance man­age­ment . More than ever before, human resources exec­u­tives and line man­agers alike under­stand the human need for reg­u­lar feed­back, effec­tive coach­ing and human interaction.

A num­ber of rev­o­lu­tion­ary com­pa­nies have led the way in dra­mat­ic changes to how organ­i­sa­tions — both For­tune 500 multi­na­tion­als and SMEs — con­duct their per­for­mance reviews and moti­vate their employ­ees. In their wake, com­pa­nies the world over are adapt­ing their per­for­mance man­age­ment prac­tices and read­just­ing their once-fir­m­­ly held beliefs regard­ing per­for­mance rat­ings and annu­al per­for­mance appraisals. Here at Clear Review, we have helped over 200 organ­i­sa­tions effort­less­ly shift away from tra­di­tion­al annu­al appraisals.

Below, we have col­lat­ed five notable per­for­mance man­age­ment case stud­ies. These organ­i­sa­tions have shak­en up their exist­ing process­es and have reaped sig­nif­i­cant ben­e­fits in terms of pro­duc­tiv­i­ty, employ­ee engage­ment, morale and performance.

1 . Adobe Intro­duced Con­tin­u­ous per­for­mance Man­age­ment in Place of Per­for­mance Appraisals

Adobe was the fore­run­ner of change when they aban­doned annu­al per­for­mance appraisals back in 2012 . They felt that while they were forg­ing ahead and evolv­ing as a com­pa­ny, their per­for­mance man­age­ment sys­tem was archa­ic and inef­fec­tive. It was a waste of time and had, ulti­mate­ly become a box-tick­ing exer­cise. Adobe esti­mat­ed annu­al appraisals con­sumed 80 , 000 man­age­ment hours each year . This was the equiv­a­lent of near­ly forty full-time employ­ees work­ing year-round. Clear­ly, a change was needed.

Adobe replaced annu­al appraisals with reg­u­lar one-on-one check-ins , sup­port­ed by fre­quent feed­back  — both pos­i­tive and con­struc­tive. There are no per­for­mance rat­ings or rank­ings and they allow dif­fer­ent parts of the organ­i­sa­tion to deter­mine how fre­quent­ly they should hold check-in con­ver­sa­tions, based on their work cycles. Now that forced rank­ing has been abol­ished, employ­ees at Adobe are assessed based on how well they meet their goals . Man­agers are also trained on the nuances of giv­ing and receiv­ing feedback.

The result has been a marked increase in employ­ee engage­ment, with vol­un­tary turnover decreas­ing by 30 % since check-ins were intro­duced. This makes Adobe a per­for­mance man­age­ment case study we should all be aware of.

Take a Tour of Our Con­tin­u­ous Per­for­mance Man­age­ment Soft­ware .

2 . Deloitte Saved 2  Mil­lion Work­ing Hours per Year with Week­ly Employ­ee Check-Ins

In 2015 , Deloitte was the first big name to announce it was scrap­ping once-a-year per­for­mance reviews, 360 -degree feed­back and objec­tive cas­cad­ing. This change occurred after the com­pa­ny cal­cu­lat­ed these process­es were con­sum­ing a remark­able two mil­lion hours a year across the organisation.

Deloitte’s new per­for­mance man­age­ment process requires every team leader to check in with each team mem­ber once a week to dis­cuss near-term SMART goals and pri­or­i­ties, com­ment on recent work and pro­vide coach­ing. The check-ins are ini­ti­at­ed by the team mem­bers, rather than the team lead­ers to ensure these check-ins take place fre­quent­ly. This also serves to give employ­ees a sense of own­er­ship over their work, role and time.

These week­ly employ­ee check-ins are sup­port­ed by quar­ter­ly reviews when team lead­ers are asked to respond to four future-focused state­ments about each team mem­ber. Rather than ask­ing team lead­ers what they think of the team mem­ber — which is what tra­di­tion­al per­for­mance rat­ings do — they ask what the team leader would do with the team member.

3 . Gen­er­al Elec­tric ( GE ) Put an End to​Forced Rank­ing per­for­mance Management

Under the reign of its for­mer CEO , Jack Welsh, Gen­er­al Elec­tric was the most well-known pro­po­nent of annu­al per­for­mance rat­ings and forced dis­tri­b­u­tion curves. 

For decades, GE oper­at­ed a ​ “ rank and yank ” sys­tem, where­by employ­ees were appraised and rat­ed once a year. After­wards, the bot­tom 10 % were fired. Not exact­ly a recipe for employ­ee engage­ment! Such an envi­ron­ment is a breed­ing ground for unhealthy com­pe­ti­tion, reduced team­work and employ­ee burnout.

In 2015 , under CEO Jeff Immelt, GE announced it was replac­ing this approach with fre­quent feed­back and reg­u­lar con­ver­sa­tions called​” touch­points ” to review progress against agreed near-term goals. This new approach was sup­port­ed by an online and mobile app, sim­i­lar to our own Clear Review per­for­mance man­age­ment tool , which enables employ­ees to cap­ture progress against their goals, give their peers feed­back and also request feedback.

Man­agers will still have an annu­al sum­ma­ry with employ­ees, look­ing back at the year and set­ting goals. But this con­ver­sa­tion is more about stand­ing back and dis­cussing achieve­ments and learn­ings, and much less fraught than annu­al reviews.

4 . Accen­ture Aban­doned Rat­ings for per­for­mance Development

As of Sep­tem­ber 2015 , Accen­ture, one of the largest com­pa­nies in the world, dis­band­ed its for­mer rank­ing and once-a-year eval­u­a­tion process . Like GE , Accen­ture has decid­ed to put fre­quent feed­back and con­ver­sa­tions at the heart of its new process and focus on per­for­mance devel­op­ment, rather than per­for­mance rating.

As Accenture’s CEO , Pierre Nan­terme, stat­ed at the time ​ “ It’s huge, we’re going to get rid of prob­a­bly 90 per cent of what we did in the past.”

As Ellyn Shook, Chief HR Offi­cer at Accen­ture , stat­ed:​“Rather than tak­ing a ret­ro­spec­tive view, our peo­ple will engage in future-focused con­ver­sa­tions about their aspi­ra­tions, lead­ing to actions to help them grow and progress their careers.”

5 . Cargill Intro­duced Coach­ing Con­ver­sa­tions in Place of Annu­al Appraisals

Like Adobe, Cargill, the US food pro­duc­er and dis­trib­u­tor, start­ed to trans­form its tra­di­tion­al per­for­mance man­age­ment process­es back in 2012 , when it intro­duced ​ “ Every­day Per­for­mance Man­age­ment ”.

Cargill removed per­for­mance rat­ings and annu­al review forms and instead focused on man­agers hav­ing fre­quent, on-the-job con­ver­sa­tions and giv­ing reg­u­lar, con­struc­tive feed­back. They have made this work by:

  • Reg­u­lar­ly reward­ing and recog­nis­ing man­agers who demon­strate good day-to-day per­for­mance man­age­ment practices.
  • Shar­ing the expe­ri­ences and tips of their suc­cess­ful managers.
  • Hold­ing teams account­able for prac­tis­ing day-to-day per­for­mance management.
  • Build­ing the skills need­ed to suc­ceed at Every­day Per­for­mance Man­age­ment, includ­ing effec­tive two-way com­mu­ni­ca­tion, giv­ing feed­back, and coaching.

The out­come has been impres­sive, with 70 % of Cargill employ­ees now say­ing they feel val­ued as a result of their ongo­ing per­for­mance dis­cus­sions with their manager.

Per­for­mance Man­age­ment Lessons to Be Learned from These Per­for­mance Man­age­ment Case Studies

When we look at what these five organ­i­sa­tions have imple­ment­ed, we can see some evi­dent trends emerg­ing, which are like­ly to form the basis of per­for­mance man­age­ment for the years to come. These trends are:

  • Reg­u­lar one-to-one per­for­mance con­ver­sa­tions, or ​ “ check-ins ”, ini­ti­at­ed by the employee.
  • Fre­quent, in-the-moment, pos­i­tive and con­struc­tive feed­back from peers and man­agers Near-term objec­tives rather than annu­al objec­tives. Set­ting and review­ing objec­tives reg­u­lar­ly, rather than once a year.
  • For­ward-look­ing per­for­mance reviews, focus­ing more on devel­op­ment and coach­ing and less on assessment.
  • Drop­ping per­for­mance rat­ings .
  • Per­for­mance process­es sup­port­ed by mobile-friend­­ly, online per­for­mance man­age­ment soft­ware .

Move away from annu­al appraisals to con­tin­u­ous per­for­mance management

Find out how our sim­ple, effec­tive per­for­mance man­age­ment soft­ware can help you move away from annu­al per­for­mance appraisals towards a more agile, intu­itive per­for­mance man­age­ment sys­tem. Book a free demo of Clear Review where our expert team will take you through the platform. 

Book a free demo of Clear Review

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MBA Case Studies - Solved Examples

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Case i: chemco case.

  • ChemCo is a quality leader in the U.K. car batteries market.
  • Customer battery purchases in the automobile market are highly seasonal.
  • The fork-lift business was added to utilize idle capacity during periods of inactivity.
  • This is a low-growth industry (1% annual growth over the last two years)
  • Large customers are sophisticated and buy based on price and quality. Smaller customers buy solely on price.
  • There is a Spanish competitor in the market who offers low priced batteries of inferior quality.

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  • High quality product, but low end customers care more about price than quality
  • Mismanaged product diversification in a price sensitive market
  • Alternative 1: Establish an Off-Brand for the fork-lift business
  • Alternative 2: Educate the customer market about product quality
  • Alternative 3: Exit the fork-lift battery business
  • Establishing the firm's quality image
  • Increase in market share
  • Increase in sales
  • Cost of the product
  • Protect firm's quality image in the automobile industry
  • Redesigned product to reduce the cost of manufacture
  • Low price to enable it to compete with Spanish producer
  • Make use of the quality leadership in car batteries market
  • Offer reliability testing, extended warranties etc. to promote quality image
  • Set higher prices to extract surplus from these advantages
  • A passive strategy, not proactive
  • Recommendations: Alternative 1 is recommended in this case. Since the firm operates in an industry which has low growth, hence it can expand market share and sales only by taking the customers from other players. Hence, it needs to tackle the Spanish competitor head-on by aggressively pricing its product. At the same time, launching a low-priced product under the same brand name erodes the high quality image in the car batteries market. Hence, the best option is to go for an off-brand to target the fork-lift customers who are increasingly becoming price sensitive. This will enable the company to ward off the threat in short-term and build its position strongly in the long-term.

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Case II: NAKAMURA LACQUER COMPANY

  • The Nakamura Lacquer Company: The Nakamura Lacquer Company based in Kyoto, Japan was one of the many small handicraft shops making lacquerware for the daily table use of the Japanese people.
  • Mr. Nakamura- the personality: In 1948, a young Mr. Nakamura took over his family business. He saw an opportunity to cater to a new market of America, i.e. GI's of the Occupation Army who had begun to buy lacquer ware as souvenirs. However, he realized that the traditional handicraft methods were inadequate. He was an innovator and introduced simple methods of processing and inspection using machines. Four years later, when the Occupation Army left in 1952, Nakamura employed several thousand men, and produced 500,000 pieces of lacquers tableware each year for the Japanese mass consumer market. The profit from operations was $250,000.
  • The Brand: Nakamura named his brand “Chrysanthemum” after the national flower of Japan, which showed his patriotic fervor. The brand became Japan's best known and best selling brand, being synonymous with good quality, middle class and dependability.
  • The Market: The market for lacquerware in Japan seems to have matured, with the production steady at 500,000 pieces a year. Nakamura did practically no business outside of Japan. However, early in 1960, when the American interest in Japanese products began to grow, Nakamura received two offers
  • The Rose and Crown offer: The first offer was from Mr. Phil Rose, V.P Marketing at the National China Company. They were the largest manufacturer of good quality dinnerware in the U.S., with their “Rose and Crown” brand accounting for almost 30% of total sales. They were willing to give a firm order for three eyes for annual purchases of 400,000 sets of lacquer dinnerware, delivered in Japan and at 5% more than what the Japanese jobbers paid. However, Nakamura would have to forego the Chrysanthemum trademark to “Rose and Crown” and also undertaken to sell lacquer ware to anyone else the U.S. The offer promised returns of $720,000 over three years (with net returns of $83,000), but with little potential for the U.S. market on the Chrysanthemum brand beyond that period.
  • The Semmelback offer: The second offer was from Mr. Walter Sammelback of Sammelback, Sammelback and Whittacker, Chicago, the largest supplier of hotel and restaurant supplies in the U.S. They perceived a U.S. market of 600,000 sets a year, expecting it to go up to 2 million in around 5 years. Since the Japanese government did not allow overseas investment, Sammelback was willing to budget $1.5 million. Although the offer implied negative returns of $467,000 over the first five years, the offer had the potential to give a $1 million profit if sales picked up as anticipated.
  • Meeting the order: To meet the numbers requirement of the orders, Nakamura would either have to expand capacity or cut down on the domestic market. If he chose to expand capacity, the danger was of idle capacity in case the U.S. market did not respond. If he cut down on the domestic market, the danger was of losing out on a well-established market. Nakamura could also source part of the supply from other vendors. However, this option would not find favor with either of the American buyers since they had approached only Nakamura, realizing that he was the best person to meet the order.
  • Decision problem: Whether to accept any of the two offers and if yes, which one of the two and under what terms of conditions?
  • To expand into the U.S. market.
  • To maintain and build upon their reputation of the “Chrysanthemum” brand
  • To increase profit volumes by tapping the U.S. market and as a result, increasing scale of operations.
  • To increase its share in the U.S. lacquerware market.
  • Profit Maximization criterion: The most important criterion in the long run is profit maximization.
  • Risk criterion: Since the demand in the U.S. market is not as much as in Japan.
  • Brand identity criterion: Nakamura has painstakingly built up a brand name in Japan. It is desirable for him to compete in the U.S. market under the same brand name
  • Flexibility criterion: The chosen option should offer Nakamura flexibility in maneuvering the terms and conditions to his advantage. Additionally, Nakamura should have bargaining power at the time of renewal of the contract.
  • Short term returns: Nakamura should receive some returns on the investment he makes on the new offers. However, this criterion may be compromised in favor of profit maximization in the long run.?
  • Reject both: React both the offers and concentrate on the domestic market
  • Accept RC offer: Accept the Rose and Crown offer and supply the offer by cutting down on supplies to the domestic market or through capacity expansion or both
  • Accept SSW: offer; accept the SSW offer and meet it through cutting down on supply to the domestic market or through capacity expansion or both. Negotiate term of supply.
  • Reject both: This option would not meet the primary criterion of profit maximization. Further, the objective of growth would also not be met. Hence, this option is rejected.
  • Accept RC offer: The RC offer would assure net returns of $283,000 over the next three yeas. It also assures regular returns of $240,000 per year. However, Nakamura would have no presence in the U.S. with its Chrysanthemum brand name The RC offer would entail capacity expansion, as it would not be possible to siphon of 275,000 pieces from the domestic market over three years without adversely affecting operations there. At the end of three years, Nakamura would have little bargaining power with RC as it would have an excess capacity of 275,000 pieces and excess labor which it would want to utilize. In this sense the offer is risky. Further, the offer is not flexible. Long-term profit maximization is uncertain in this case a condition that can be controlled in the SSW offer. Hence, this offer is rejected.
  • Accept SSW offer: The SSW offer does not assure a firm order or any returns for the period of contract. Although, in its present form the offer is risky if the market in the U.S. does not pick up as expected, the offer is flexible. If Nakamura were to exhibit caution initially by supplying only 300,000 instead of the anticipated 600,000 pieces, it could siphon off the 175,000 required from the domestic market. If demand exists in the U.S., the capacity can be expanded. With this offer, risk is minimized. Further, it would be competing on its own brand name. Distribution would be taken care of and long-term profit maximization criterion would be satisfied as this option has the potential of $1 million in profits per year. At the time of renewal of the contract, Nakamura would have immense bargaining power.
  • Negotiate terms of offer with SSW: The terms would be that NLC would supply 300,000 pieces in the first year. If market demand exists, NLC should expand capacity to provide the expected demand.
  • Action Plan: In the first phase, NLC would supply SSW with 300,000 pieces. 125,000 of these would be obtained by utilizing excess capacity, while the remaining would be obtained from the domestic market. If the expected demand for lacquer ware exists in the U.S., NLC would expand capacity to meet the expected demand. The debt incurred would be paid off by the fifth year.
  • Contingency Plan:  In case the demand is not as expected in the first year, NLC should not service the U.S. market and instead concentrate on increasing penetration in the domestic market.

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12 Case Studies of Companies that Revised How They Compensate Employees

A person is handing a check to another person.

S HRM has partnered with ChiefExecutive.net to bring you relevant articles on key HR topics and strategies.

Higher compensation is part of the ransom for dealing with the pandemic for most American companies and industries. So salaries, wages, benefits and perks will cost them more—perhaps a lot more—in the year ahead.

The way CEOs and CHROs can make sure the Great Raise works to their companies' advantage is to be proactive, creative and equitable about it. Yet they also must weigh strategically the demands of the moment with their long-term compensation strategy.

"This is a time for real balance when it comes to how you deal with retention and attraction," said Paul Knopp, chair and CEO of KPMG US. "We all have to make sure we meet the market when it comes to base compensation, but the market has changed in a way that you also have to look at those benefits that are most attractive to employees for their careers."

While median full-time earnings of $1,001 per week in the third quarter of 2021 were nearly 9% higher than two years earlier, according to the Labor Department, expectations for 2022 remain frothy given the tight market for talent, the free-agent ethos encouraged by remote work, the geographic reshuffling of workers and decades-high inflation. U.S. wages will increase by 3.9 percent in 2022, according to the Conference Board, the highest rate since 2008.

The compensation surge is occurring at the high end, at a low end that's getting higher and everywhere in between. Goldman Sachs, for example, is offering paid leave for pregnancy loss and expanding the amount of time employees can take for bereavement leave while also boosting its retirement-fund matching contributions for U.S. employees to 6% of total compensation, or 8% for those making $125,000 a year or less.

Meanwhile, at Tyson Foods' chicken-processing plant in New Holland, Pa., the company has started offering a three-day workweek, plus pay for a fourth day that retains employees' status as full-time workers. Just for good measure, Tyson has created a $3,000 sign-on bonus for new hires.

"We're in a bidding war for talent that will go on for a long time," said Alan Beaulieu, president of ITR Economics.

For CEOs and CHROs, several new factors demand their attention along with the overall spike in compensation. They include:

  • The end of retention. The "idea of a long-term commitment to one employer has been dead for a while, but it's really dead now," said Dave Roberson, CEO of the RoseRyan financial consulting firm. "You must have a stream of people. Assume you're going to be replacing people. So how do you keep the people you have, if you can, but also bring the next group in?"
  • High-balling. A deal to recruit someone may not really be a deal these days. "You've made an offer and you think you've got a hire, and then they're asking for $5,000 or $10,000 more," said David Lewis, CEO of OperationsInc, an HR consulting firm. "Now you have to ask yourself what makes more sense strategically: say no and hold the line and lose the candidate and restart the process, not knowing how that will work out? Blow up your compensation structure? Or as a Band-Aid, give that person a sign-on bonus in hopes that the package will get them in the door?"
  • Need for equalization. Recruiting with higher compensation also requires boosting pay and benefits for retention. "You need to be mindful of what you're paying others in the organization and understand the detrimental impact it will have when you bring someone in alongside a tenured employee," Lewis said. "Operate on the idea that everyone's salary is basically posted on the pantry door in your office."
  • A focus on mental health. The pandemic, anti-contagion measures and the takeover of remote work has left many Americans isolated, confused, lonely—or at least disjointed. And they expect their employers to help them cope and adjust.

"Mental health is a real thing, regardless of how [a previous generation of leaders] feel and what we did," said Jeffrey Immelt, former CEO of General Electric. "Particularly post-Covid, it's something worth your time to try to understand."

Many Fortune 500 companies already offered mental-health benefits, but by now "mental health is just a place setter: You've got to have it in place to be competitive in the market today, across the board," said Richard Chaifetz, founder and CEO of ComPsych, a large provider of employee-assistance programs. "Companies understand the importance of keeping their people functioning at the highest level."

Codility, for example, has begun supplying all employees with 27 days of paid time off per year plus four mental-health days, which don't have to be approved. "We're offering these days in addition to personal-time-off days to recognize and bring to light the importance of mental health," said Natalia Panowicz, CEO of the platform that evaluates the skills of software engineers, with its U.S. hub in San Francisco.

CHRO360.com asked a dozen CEOs, CHROs and other top executives about their compensation strategies and practices for 2022. Here are some of their ideas:

Let Them Name Their Salary

Chris kovalik, ceo, rushdown revolt, a video-game maker in new york city.

We started as 12 part-timers, mostly people who were giving me their moonlight hours. That's not a lot different from now, except now we have 75 people. The magic of what we do is that we don't recruit anybody. We're just a magnet. We let people come to us.

When it comes to compensation, some say they wanted to volunteer, that they weren't expecting compensation. But we never, ever allow people to volunteer their time for us. So we say our company minimum wage is $15 an hour, and if you insist, we can pay you that per hour.

But generally people come to us with an expectation of compensation because they see that we're making money. When compensation came up, we'd say, "I don't know what your skill set is. I've never hired you before. How much do you think you're worth, and how much do you need?"

If every hour we're compensating them for the amount of money they want and need, if someone is part-time and only giving me 10 hours a week, I'd argue that they're giving me their best 10 hours. Because they're getting paid what they want and doing things that they want to be attached to and be part of.

There's no pattern to the compensation requests. If their number is too low, we'll say, "Are you sure? Are you just giving me a low-ball number I'll say yes to?" If it's high, I don't talk them down, but I ask them to justify it, and if the justification isn't adequate, what I say is, "How long do you think you'll need to prove that justification? Two to three weeks? Then let's pay you two-third to three-quarters of what you asked, and if you prove it, we'll go up to whatever you said."

Tailor Package for Youth Appeal

Ronald hall jr., ceo, bridgewater interiors, an auto-seat maker in detroit.

We enjoyed very low turnover pre-Covid, but during the last two years we have had to replace probably one-third of our workforce at our largest facility, about the same number from termination as voluntary. So we've had to work harder than ever to recruit.

Our most-tenured employees, who are the most highly trained, have had to pick up the slack, working record amounts of overtime and less-predictable production schedules.

In our upcoming negotiations with the United Auto Workers, we're trying to emphasize short-term bonuses rather than wage increases that get baked into our costs. But we have continued health insurance through the pandemic as well as our tuition-reimbursement program, and many employees have thanked me for that.

What I am hearing from new employees is that they're not as interested in benefits but rather in higher cash wages. We've long touted benefits like our generous 401(k) matching and better medical coverage versus our peers, but we're finding that doesn't resonate as readily now as it did a decade ago. So I've asked my team: Should we be looking at some kind of hybrid model of offering higher wages to people who want those and move those dollars from the benefits side to the wages side?

We've also looked at providing childcare in a partnering arrangement where there could be a center developed near our facilities, and we would arrange for some sort of company subsidy or guarantee some level of attendance. The challenge with that is the auto industry runs around the clock, and you'd need a daycare provider who'd be committed to opening around the clock and provide legal, regulated, benchmark-standard levels of care to all those children in the off hours.

Equalize as You Acquire

Diane dooley, chro, world insurance, a business and personal insurer in tinton falls, n.j..

We onboarded about 800 employees in 2021 through acquisitions of small agencies and organic growth, but there had been no compensation modeling. Now we're building out our compensation philosophy with commission plans, incentives and bonuses, centralizing components and ensuring we have the right framework.

When we do an acquisition, we might retain their compensation model for a year or two years then slowly migrate, but make sure employees aren't taking a cut in pay. We are also capitalizing commissions into base compensation—identifying what commissions would have been and what they will be, and recognizing roles that are moving away from a commission base.

Some agencies we acquire are smaller and may be below-market for total compensation. Now we're addressing those concerns. They need to be more front and center. We must do everything to retain our employee population. If they're woefully underpaid, or not at market, we risk losing people, and we don't want to do that.

Educating the owners of some of the agencies [we acquire] is a piece of this. As we partner with them, we are evaluating them and asking, "Did you give people an increase this year?" We're not telling them what to do but providing guidance about what to do.

We're also modifying and increasing our benefits, such as giving employees pet insurance. And making counteroffers is a critical piece today, usually for high-end employees. They work better than they used to because not a lot of people really want to make a move in this environment.

Innovate for the New World

Jason medley, chief people officer, codility, a provider of skill-evaluation software in london.

We really have to step back and be innovative and force ourselves to change. The companies that are going to win are going to be more progressive early and not fighting what's happening.

One thing we've done is change our outdated compensation models that give higher pay to employees living in tech hubs like San Francisco and New York and lower compensation for areas inside the coasts. Now, we've created a United States-wide salary band, so no matter where you live, the compensation is based on the role, not the location. You can go live and work wherever you want to.

We decided to approach compensation through a very human lens. People have seasonality in life, and maybe they are caregivers at different moments and want to live in different places. We want to be as flexible as possible, and this country band gives us that flexibility.

We are starting to see the same thing in Europe, where we have our headquarters in London and offices in Berlin and Warsaw, and employees all over, especially in Poland. People are wanting to live in the countryside of Spain but demanding a London salary. So we are transitioning to one European Union band and saying, "Here is your rate—live where you want to."

We are also seeing that with global warming, it's harder to get work done for people on the west coast of the U.S. and in Europe, because they didn't build homes with air conditioning. If you're sitting in a house at 90 degrees with no air conditioning, there's no way your performance is the same as someone with AC. Supplementing air conditioning isn't something we thought about before, but now we're very much having to look at those things.

Stay Ahead of Expectations

Traci tapani, ceo, wyoming machine, a sheet-metal fabricator in stacy, minn..

Our wages have gone up by about 20% for the typical worker. When I found people I could hire, I knew they were being brought in at an hourly rate that was too high for what I was paying my incumbent workers.

My strategy has been to be proactive about that and not wait for [existing] employees to say something about it or give them a reason to look for another job. We're proactively making wage adjustments to make sure our incumbent workers are in line.

Employees will leave for more money, so they're very appreciative of it. But in my shop, I also know that people like working here, and I know they don't want to leave. I don't want to give them a reason. If they can get an increase in pay that's substantial, I know that I can cut them off at the pass. Retaining my workforce is my No. 1 strategy. They're already here, and I'm going to do everything I can to keep them.

For that reason, we've also been more generous as time has gone on with paid time off, offering it sooner than we once would have, especially for new workers. We recognize that it's healthy for people to be away from work and also, in the pandemic, people need to be away from work. Knowing they have some paid time off makes it easier for them.

Leverage Benefits for DE&I

Mark newman, ceo, chemours, a chemical manufacturer in wilmington, del..

In general our company hasn't seen the Great Resignation. And in fact, we continue to believe our focus on being a great place to work is serving us well, along with appropriate benchmarking on compensation issues.

Chemours  is  a great place to work. We survey our employees every year, to improve our working environment from a compensation and benefits perspective. Also, from the [diversity, equity and inclusion] perspective, we're trying to make sure we tap into the full breadth of talent in our industry.

That means, for instance, we are helping people more with college loans. We are offering same-sex [marriage] benefits. We are providing more family leave for people who have kids. There is clearly an aspect of our benefits package that is evolving to be consistent with our strategy of making Chemours a great place to work.

Overall, we view compensation as something where we want to be either in the median or upper quartile. It's something we're very focused on from both a wage as well as benefit level. From Covid, there's been no fundamental change as it relates to us wanting to be in the median to top quartile.

We've had to make some local adjustments where the labor market is more super-charged. For example, we see a lot of that in the Gulf Coast region, especially with oil prices coming back, and petrochemicals and refining. But it's very much a regional factor. So if industries are moving to a certain region, like the South, you have to make sure you stay current with local benchmarks.

Offer Skin in the Game

Cesar herrera, ceo, yuvo health, a healthcare administrator in new york city.

We're a year-old company that provides tech-enabled administrative solutions for community health centers across the U.S. that are specifically focused on providing primary-care services for low-income individuals. We have a team of about 10 people right now, and we have a number of open roles and positions where we're likely going to be tripling the size of our team in 2022.

Google can compensate well above the market rate. We don't have that since we're an early-stage organization. What we do have as levers aren't up-front financial compensation but equity, support in your role and a relatively flat organization where you can have significant autonomy.

A lot of individuals are going to be driven by the mission; that's the case with the entire founding team. We've made sacrifices to create this organization. So you can come in at a meaningful position with a lot of decision-making.

But one of the biggest carrots we can give is, if you accept the lower pay and the risk that comes with an early-stage organization, you can have meaningful equity in the company. We have an options pool which is not to exceed 10% ownership of the organization, and as we grow and scale, we increase that options pool. For senior-level leaders, we do expect to be able to distribute up to 10% of the company to them.

Pay Extra for Continuity

Corey stowell, vice president of human resources, webasto americas, a maker of automotive sunroofs in auburn hills, mich..

We had to recruit for several hundred new openings at a brand-new facility right at the beginning of the pandemic. So we instituted an attendance bonus. For those who worked all their hours in a week, we paid an additional $3 an hour. We really had to keep it short-term, so we paid it weekly. If you wanted to pay it every month, you couldn't do it, because people needed that instant gratification.

Otherwise they could get it on unemployment. With our pay rate, they could earn more to stay at home and collect unemployment, a significant amount more than they could earn than working for us. So we also had to increase our wages, and we increased them by more than 20% in some classifications [in the summer of 2020].

We've filled all of our positions, but it's still a challenging market. We've had to increase all our wages, with the lowest for a position being $17 an hour, on up to $30 an hour.

We also have offered stay bonuses of $500 a month for three consecutive months, up to $1,500. And for hourly employees we've instituted a different attendance policy, where they can earn two hours of paid personal time for so many hours that they work consecutively with no attendance issues.

The key is the schedule—we can prepare and get someone to cover. That's easier to do than just managing whoever's going to come in today. In this environment, that really has changed with our workforce, and it's tough to rely on our current workforce.

Give Them the Keys

Elliott rodgers, chief people officer, project44, a freight-tracking software provider in chicago.

We have equipped and subsidized a van that we call Romeo, which employees can use to combine work with personal uses like family road trips. We cover the cost of the rental. It's a luxury van that comes equipped with a bed, a toilet and shower, Wi-Fi, device charging and a desktop workspace. And it's pet friendly.

We started it as a pilot project and reservations were full within 10 minutes of when we posted it internally. Then we extended it into 2022. By the end of 2021, more than 20 unique team members completed or nearly completed reservations. They've ventured out to places spanning Mount Rushmore and the Badlands; Rocky Mountain National Park; Salem, Mass.; and Pennsylvania. A pretty broad number of places.

It's something we're really proud of. It allows our team members the opportunity to work in a lot of different places while still being connected to us. And they've appreciated the opportunities to stay connected, but also be connected in other ways with nature and other places in the world. They can maintain their perspective while also continuing to contribute to their role in a productive way.

When you place a team member at the center of what they'd want in an experience like that, the value of it answers itself. It creates a comfort level where it provides the necessities for you to be able to continue to work, and you can work from anywhere. It's the best of both worlds. It's one thing to find that on your own but another to have that accessible to you via work, but done in a way that caters to you.

Help Them Come, Go—and Stay

Aamir paul, country president - u.s., schneider electric, a maker of electrical distribution and control products in andover, mass..

With our knowledge workforce, it's been about intentional flexibility. So, for instance, we launched a "returnship" program for women who'd left the workforce but might want to come back even at reduced hours. That means 20, 30, up to 40 hours a week, and we're finding some incredibly talented people who haven't been in the workforce.

This program is available to men as well. If there's a field engineer who's been in the electrical industry for 35 years and he's now retiring, but he's five years from getting his medical benefits, we say: Don't retire. Go on the program. Work 20 hours a week. Work from home. We'll reduce your pay proportionally, but we will couple you with three university hires, and they will call you on Microsoft Teams and show you what's happening on the job site, and you're going to walk them through it. Work just three days a week. We'll cover your benefits.

We've also expanded the parental leave policy, which already was one of the best in the industrial sector. And we created a way for people to buy more time off without having to leave their positions. They apply for more unpaid time off and we allow them to retain their position and seniority and allow them to work through whatever life event it is.

We landed on six weeks for the maximum. In the most intense industries—such as a fighter pilot or a surgeon—they've found that six weeks of being out of the rotation allows them to re-set. So that's what we did. Before, the limit was two weeks.

Give Sway to Local Management

Tom salmon, ceo, berry global, a maker of plastic packaging in evansville, ind..

We've got to be competitive in all the geographies we serve. We have 295 sites around the world and manage our employees in those sites geographically. Every geography will be a different labor environment. There are different criteria that employees are looking for. It's not just about wages but taking everything into consideration.

We let local management handle things with their insight about wages and competition. They're hearing directly from employees about what they like and don't like, what they want more of and less of. It's a site-by-site discussion.

For example, at some sites, it may be important for employees to be able to access the internet at lunch; at other sites, they may not value that as much. Some want a more advanced locker facility, with different shower facilities. That includes the southwestern United States, where the temperatures are warmer; but in New England, some might not want that.

In any event, if you treat these things locally, you're going to be able to affect that local population and address the need of that geography. If you blanket something across our entire plant population, you may provide something that's not desired or needed.

We depend on our local management to respond to the different demands in terms of compensation and benefits at their sites. The better the front-line leadership is, and the more satisfied their team is, the higher our retention rate and productivity and safety performance. So these leaders participate in profit-sharing plans for those respective sites, because they have a great influence on the success of a given facility.

Focus Benefits on Flexibility

Paul knopp, chair and ceo, kpmg us, a financial consulting firm in new york.

We announced a new package of enhancements to our benefits and compensation, tied to mental, physical, social and financial well-being. These increases are the biggest in the history of the company. You have to make sure your base compensation meets the market, but you also must have attractive benefits.

For example, we cut healthcare premiums by 10% for 2022 with no change in benefit levels, and we introduced healthcare advocacy services. We are replacing our current 401(k) match and pension programs with a single, automatic company-funded contribution within the plan that's equal to 6% to 8% of eligible pay.

As part of this, we're focusing on the crucial element of ensuring that employees know you're watching out for them. They also are looking for flexibility—you don't want to under-index on how important that is. So we also are providing up to three weeks additional caregiver leave, separate and apart from PTO. And all parents will receive 12 weeks of paid parental leave, in addition to disability leave for employees who give birth, allowing some up to 22 weeks of paid leave. We also have expanded our holiday calendar to now include Juneteenth.

Dale Buss is a long-time contributor to Chief Executive, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal and other business publications. He lives in Michigan.

This article is adapted from www.ChiefExecutive.net with permission from Chief Executive. C 2022. All rights reserved.

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How to write a case study — examples, templates, and tools

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It’s a marketer’s job to communicate the effectiveness of a product or service to potential and current customers to convince them to buy and keep business moving. One of the best methods for doing this is to share success stories that are relatable to prospects and customers based on their pain points, experiences, and overall needs.

That’s where case studies come in. Case studies are an essential part of a content marketing plan. These in-depth stories of customer experiences are some of the most effective at demonstrating the value of a product or service. Yet many marketers don’t use them, whether because of their regimented formats or the process of customer involvement and approval.

A case study is a powerful tool for showcasing your hard work and the success your customer achieved. But writing a great case study can be difficult if you’ve never done it before or if it’s been a while. This guide will show you how to write an effective case study and provide real-world examples and templates that will keep readers engaged and support your business.

In this article, you’ll learn:

What is a case study?

How to write a case study, case study templates, case study examples, case study tools.

A case study is the detailed story of a customer’s experience with a product or service that demonstrates their success and often includes measurable outcomes. Case studies are used in a range of fields and for various reasons, from business to academic research. They’re especially impactful in marketing as brands work to convince and convert consumers with relatable, real-world stories of actual customer experiences.

The best case studies tell the story of a customer’s success, including the steps they took, the results they achieved, and the support they received from a brand along the way. To write a great case study, you need to:

  • Celebrate the customer and make them — not a product or service — the star of the story.
  • Craft the story with specific audiences or target segments in mind so that the story of one customer will be viewed as relatable and actionable for another customer.
  • Write copy that is easy to read and engaging so that readers will gain the insights and messages intended.
  • Follow a standardized format that includes all of the essentials a potential customer would find interesting and useful.
  • Support all of the claims for success made in the story with data in the forms of hard numbers and customer statements.

Case studies are a type of review but more in depth, aiming to show — rather than just tell — the positive experiences that customers have with a brand. Notably, 89% of consumers read reviews before deciding to buy, and 79% view case study content as part of their purchasing process. When it comes to B2B sales, 52% of buyers rank case studies as an important part of their evaluation process.

Telling a brand story through the experience of a tried-and-true customer matters. The story is relatable to potential new customers as they imagine themselves in the shoes of the company or individual featured in the case study. Showcasing previous customers can help new ones see themselves engaging with your brand in the ways that are most meaningful to them.

Besides sharing the perspective of another customer, case studies stand out from other content marketing forms because they are based on evidence. Whether pulling from client testimonials or data-driven results, case studies tend to have more impact on new business because the story contains information that is both objective (data) and subjective (customer experience) — and the brand doesn’t sound too self-promotional.

89% of consumers read reviews before buying, 79% view case studies, and 52% of B2B buyers prioritize case studies in the evaluation process.

Case studies are unique in that there’s a fairly standardized format for telling a customer’s story. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for creativity. It’s all about making sure that teams are clear on the goals for the case study — along with strategies for supporting content and channels — and understanding how the story fits within the framework of the company’s overall marketing goals.

Here are the basic steps to writing a good case study.

1. Identify your goal

Start by defining exactly who your case study will be designed to help. Case studies are about specific instances where a company works with a customer to achieve a goal. Identify which customers are likely to have these goals, as well as other needs the story should cover to appeal to them.

The answer is often found in one of the buyer personas that have been constructed as part of your larger marketing strategy. This can include anything from new leads generated by the marketing team to long-term customers that are being pressed for cross-sell opportunities. In all of these cases, demonstrating value through a relatable customer success story can be part of the solution to conversion.

2. Choose your client or subject

Who you highlight matters. Case studies tie brands together that might otherwise not cross paths. A writer will want to ensure that the highlighted customer aligns with their own company’s brand identity and offerings. Look for a customer with positive name recognition who has had great success with a product or service and is willing to be an advocate.

The client should also match up with the identified target audience. Whichever company or individual is selected should be a reflection of other potential customers who can see themselves in similar circumstances, having the same problems and possible solutions.

Some of the most compelling case studies feature customers who:

  • Switch from one product or service to another while naming competitors that missed the mark.
  • Experience measurable results that are relatable to others in a specific industry.
  • Represent well-known brands and recognizable names that are likely to compel action.
  • Advocate for a product or service as a champion and are well-versed in its advantages.

Whoever or whatever customer is selected, marketers must ensure they have the permission of the company involved before getting started. Some brands have strict review and approval procedures for any official marketing or promotional materials that include their name. Acquiring those approvals in advance will prevent any miscommunication or wasted effort if there is an issue with their legal or compliance teams.

3. Conduct research and compile data

Substantiating the claims made in a case study — either by the marketing team or customers themselves — adds validity to the story. To do this, include data and feedback from the client that defines what success looks like. This can be anything from demonstrating return on investment (ROI) to a specific metric the customer was striving to improve. Case studies should prove how an outcome was achieved and show tangible results that indicate to the customer that your solution is the right one.

This step could also include customer interviews. Make sure that the people being interviewed are key stakeholders in the purchase decision or deployment and use of the product or service that is being highlighted. Content writers should work off a set list of questions prepared in advance. It can be helpful to share these with the interviewees beforehand so they have time to consider and craft their responses. One of the best interview tactics to keep in mind is to ask questions where yes and no are not natural answers. This way, your subject will provide more open-ended responses that produce more meaningful content.

4. Choose the right format

There are a number of different ways to format a case study. Depending on what you hope to achieve, one style will be better than another. However, there are some common elements to include, such as:

  • An engaging headline
  • A subject and customer introduction
  • The unique challenge or challenges the customer faced
  • The solution the customer used to solve the problem
  • The results achieved
  • Data and statistics to back up claims of success
  • A strong call to action (CTA) to engage with the vendor

It’s also important to note that while case studies are traditionally written as stories, they don’t have to be in a written format. Some companies choose to get more creative with their case studies and produce multimedia content, depending on their audience and objectives. Case study formats can include traditional print stories, interactive web or social content, data-heavy infographics, professionally shot videos, podcasts, and more.

5. Write your case study

We’ll go into more detail later about how exactly to write a case study, including templates and examples. Generally speaking, though, there are a few things to keep in mind when writing your case study.

  • Be clear and concise. Readers want to get to the point of the story quickly and easily, and they’ll be looking to see themselves reflected in the story right from the start.
  • Provide a big picture. Always make sure to explain who the client is, their goals, and how they achieved success in a short introduction to engage the reader.
  • Construct a clear narrative. Stick to the story from the perspective of the customer and what they needed to solve instead of just listing product features or benefits.
  • Leverage graphics. Incorporating infographics, charts, and sidebars can be a more engaging and eye-catching way to share key statistics and data in readable ways.
  • Offer the right amount of detail. Most case studies are one or two pages with clear sections that a reader can skim to find the information most important to them.
  • Include data to support claims. Show real results — both facts and figures and customer quotes — to demonstrate credibility and prove the solution works.

6. Promote your story

Marketers have a number of options for distribution of a freshly minted case study. Many brands choose to publish case studies on their website and post them on social media. This can help support SEO and organic content strategies while also boosting company credibility and trust as visitors see that other businesses have used the product or service.

Marketers are always looking for quality content they can use for lead generation. Consider offering a case study as gated content behind a form on a landing page or as an offer in an email message. One great way to do this is to summarize the content and tease the full story available for download after the user takes an action.

Sales teams can also leverage case studies, so be sure they are aware that the assets exist once they’re published. Especially when it comes to larger B2B sales, companies often ask for examples of similar customer challenges that have been solved.

Now that you’ve learned a bit about case studies and what they should include, you may be wondering how to start creating great customer story content. Here are a couple of templates you can use to structure your case study.

Template 1 — Challenge-solution-result format

  • Start with an engaging title. This should be fewer than 70 characters long for SEO best practices. One of the best ways to approach the title is to include the customer’s name and a hint at the challenge they overcame in the end.
  • Create an introduction. Lead with an explanation as to who the customer is, the need they had, and the opportunity they found with a specific product or solution. Writers can also suggest the success the customer experienced with the solution they chose.
  • Present the challenge. This should be several paragraphs long and explain the problem the customer faced and the issues they were trying to solve. Details should tie into the company’s products and services naturally. This section needs to be the most relatable to the reader so they can picture themselves in a similar situation.
  • Share the solution. Explain which product or service offered was the ideal fit for the customer and why. Feel free to delve into their experience setting up, purchasing, and onboarding the solution.
  • Explain the results. Demonstrate the impact of the solution they chose by backing up their positive experience with data. Fill in with customer quotes and tangible, measurable results that show the effect of their choice.
  • Ask for action. Include a CTA at the end of the case study that invites readers to reach out for more information, try a demo, or learn more — to nurture them further in the marketing pipeline. What you ask of the reader should tie directly into the goals that were established for the case study in the first place.

Template 2 — Data-driven format

  • Start with an engaging title. Be sure to include a statistic or data point in the first 70 characters. Again, it’s best to include the customer’s name as part of the title.
  • Create an overview. Share the customer’s background and a short version of the challenge they faced. Present the reason a particular product or service was chosen, and feel free to include quotes from the customer about their selection process.
  • Present data point 1. Isolate the first metric that the customer used to define success and explain how the product or solution helped to achieve this goal. Provide data points and quotes to substantiate the claim that success was achieved.
  • Present data point 2. Isolate the second metric that the customer used to define success and explain what the product or solution did to achieve this goal. Provide data points and quotes to substantiate the claim that success was achieved.
  • Present data point 3. Isolate the final metric that the customer used to define success and explain what the product or solution did to achieve this goal. Provide data points and quotes to substantiate the claim that success was achieved.
  • Summarize the results. Reiterate the fact that the customer was able to achieve success thanks to a specific product or service. Include quotes and statements that reflect customer satisfaction and suggest they plan to continue using the solution.
  • Ask for action. Include a CTA at the end of the case study that asks readers to reach out for more information, try a demo, or learn more — to further nurture them in the marketing pipeline. Again, remember that this is where marketers can look to convert their content into action with the customer.

While templates are helpful, seeing a case study in action can also be a great way to learn. Here are some examples of how Adobe customers have experienced success.

Juniper Networks

One example is the Adobe and Juniper Networks case study , which puts the reader in the customer’s shoes. The beginning of the story quickly orients the reader so that they know exactly who the article is about and what they were trying to achieve. Solutions are outlined in a way that shows Adobe Experience Manager is the best choice and a natural fit for the customer. Along the way, quotes from the client are incorporated to help add validity to the statements. The results in the case study are conveyed with clear evidence of scale and volume using tangible data.

A Lenovo case study showing statistics, a pull quote and featured headshot, the headline "The customer is king.," and Adobe product links.

The story of Lenovo’s journey with Adobe is one that spans years of planning, implementation, and rollout. The Lenovo case study does a great job of consolidating all of this into a relatable journey that other enterprise organizations can see themselves taking, despite the project size. This case study also features descriptive headers and compelling visual elements that engage the reader and strengthen the content.

Tata Consulting

When it comes to using data to show customer results, this case study does an excellent job of conveying details and numbers in an easy-to-digest manner. Bullet points at the start break up the content while also helping the reader understand exactly what the case study will be about. Tata Consulting used Adobe to deliver elevated, engaging content experiences for a large telecommunications client of its own — an objective that’s relatable for a lot of companies.

Case studies are a vital tool for any marketing team as they enable you to demonstrate the value of your company’s products and services to others. They help marketers do their job and add credibility to a brand trying to promote its solutions by using the experiences and stories of real customers.

When you’re ready to get started with a case study:

  • Think about a few goals you’d like to accomplish with your content.
  • Make a list of successful clients that would be strong candidates for a case study.
  • Reach out to the client to get their approval and conduct an interview.
  • Gather the data to present an engaging and effective customer story.

Adobe can help

There are several Adobe products that can help you craft compelling case studies. Adobe Experience Platform helps you collect data and deliver great customer experiences across every channel. Once you’ve created your case studies, Experience Platform will help you deliver the right information to the right customer at the right time for maximum impact.

To learn more, watch the Adobe Experience Platform story .

Keep in mind that the best case studies are backed by data. That’s where Adobe Real-Time Customer Data Platform and Adobe Analytics come into play. With Real-Time CDP, you can gather the data you need to build a great case study and target specific customers to deliver the content to the right audience at the perfect moment.

Watch the Real-Time CDP overview video to learn more.

Finally, Adobe Analytics turns real-time data into real-time insights. It helps your business collect and synthesize data from multiple platforms to make more informed decisions and create the best case study possible.

Request a demo to learn more about Adobe Analytics.

https://business.adobe.com/blog/perspectives/b2b-ecommerce-10-case-studies-inspire-you

https://business.adobe.com/blog/basics/business-case

https://business.adobe.com/blog/basics/what-is-real-time-analytics

How to write a case study — examples, templates, and tools card image

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  1. Park Bank

    Case Study. Park Bank's HR team collaborates with managers across the organisation to evaluate job roles across multiple locations. The HR department worked closely with line managers to match pay to role responsibilities. Park Bank has thrived with their new tool and within 9 months have evaluated 80 roles across the business, leaving them ...

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  9. Case Study Method: A Step-by-Step Guide for Business Researchers

    Although case studies have been discussed extensively in the literature, little has been written about the specific steps one may use to conduct case study research effectively (Gagnon, 2010; Hancock & Algozzine, 2016).Baskarada (2014) also emphasized the need to have a succinct guideline that can be practically followed as it is actually tough to execute a case study well in practice.

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  19. How to write a case study

    Case study examples. While templates are helpful, seeing a case study in action can also be a great way to learn. Here are some examples of how Adobe customers have experienced success. Juniper Networks. One example is the Adobe and Juniper Networks case study, which puts the reader in the customer's shoes.

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