Writing a Case study for IPMA Publications
IPMA Publications case studies are intended to address specific project management issues, based on real-life situations, as means to accommodate learning and good practice sharing for and among practitioners, academics, and all project management experts.
The writing style can be informal and story-telling narrative.
The following guidelines are advised to be followed for case developers.
| Title and opening | Title should be descriptive and „catching”. Title should be followed by 2-3 “setting the stage“ or otherwise engaging sentences for the prospect audience (e.g., PM practitioners, academics) |
| Main body | What?
The main body of the case presented should be divided in 3-6 sections. Main body should include background/history, objective, facts about the project (e.g., scope, budget, duration), problem, origin, significance, societal involvement/impact, uniqueness and complexity, stakeholders (change of). The main purpose of the case is to demonstrate how the project intent unfolded into reality and understand how the undesired/unexpected deviations from the plan were handled. The main story line, in a reflective manner, should provide a learning opportunity for the reader. How? The main body should be written in clear and engaging for the reader manner. If less common terminology is used, concise explanation should follow. Visuals, drawings, photos, sketches, and diversity in presentation of main body are encouraged. E.g., providing facts about the project in a sperate column. |
| Epilogue | The concluding part of the case in concise manner should provide answers to the following questions: – What are take-aways, lessons learned, insights, how it can be generalized and applied on other projects? – What were the old, well-known repetitive mistakes that repeated themselves again? – What unique problems / mistakes emerged on this specific project, what caused it and could it have been prevented. – What does it |
| Formal requirements |
Length of the prepared document 3-5 pages. Please provide proof-read text. |
