Conducting the Case Study

Fieldwork for this study was conducted during late 2013, both in London, UK, and in Ilero, in Oyo state of Nigeria. The question as to the required number of interviews required for a case study arose, and it should be noted that, according to Patton (2002), there is no rule on this, with the number of interviews subject to the amount of time available, the resources available and the purpose of the study.

Based on the nature and purpose of the case study research, it was decided that, to get the best out of this research, interviews should be limited to senior management in the three organisations. It should also be noted that, because of the nature of SMEs, most strategic decisions are made by the owner, who is usually the CEO, or the senior manager acting on behalf of the CEO or in an assigned capacity, and these people hold the key to much of the decision making (Parker et al., 2009).

The researcher decided that 20 people, in total, would be interviewed, which translated to six or seven people from each organisation. It was also decided that involving employees with no designated responsibility might distort the data collected, because they have no clear

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authority or responsibility. The interviews were scheduled to take place at the premises of the case study organisations, at a time convenient for the interviewees. Conducting the interviews in the organisations’ premises provided the opportunity for the researcher to gain access to some documents that might be used to buttress interviewees’ responses. Below is a table summarising details of the respondents and their designation:

Table 9. Interviewee Categories from the Three Case Study Organisations

TITLE OF RESPONDENT NO. OF RESPONDENTS

ADES BMC NFA TOTAL YEARS OF

EXPERIENCE

CEO 1 1 1 3 15 - 20

DEPARTMENTAL HEADS 5 5 5 15 5 - 8

OTHERS* 1 1 0 2 4 - 12

*Held strategic positions in the organisation (Assistant Heads)

The CEOs of the three organisations had been in business for 15 to 20 years, and were supported by heads of department who were professionals in their field. Some departmental heads had assistants, who were also professionals in their respective discipline. The decision to limit the interviews to CEOs, departmental heads and their assistants has already been mentioned, above.

ADE

The CEO of ADE started his business 15 years ago. He was supported by the following personnel:

Marketing Managers - This role was fulfilled by two individuals, one responsible for domestic markets and the other responsible for international markets. They both handled all advertising and customer relationships, and were also responsible for communication between the organisation and other stakeholders. They held a strategic position in the organisation because they were part of the management team. They were supported by an assistant who had been with the organisation for seven years.

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Production Managers - This position was also filled by two individuals. The production managers were responsible for managing different lines of products of the organisation. They managed all the resources within the production units. Both worked closely with other managers.

The Quality Control Manager - This manager worked closely with the Production Unit and other managers, and was responsible for testing the final product and its compliance with relevant standards. The Quality Control Manager also worked closely with other units, and was part of the management team.

BMC

The CEO of BMC started his business 20 years ago, in North London, UK. He was assisted by his son, the Chief Operating Officer, and they were supported by the following:

Operations Manager - This person was responsible for all production and the management of suppliers, also doubling as the Quality Control Director. He held a very important position in this organisation, being a member of the management group and managing staff recruitment.

Sales Manager - The Sales Manager handled all sales and marketing operations, and worked closely with the CEO and other managers. He had been working in the organisation for the past six years, and, at the time of the interview, he was supported by an assistant.

Stock Controllers - There were two stock controllers. They were both responsible for safeguarding all goods, (both work in progress and final products), and worked closely with the Operations and Sales Departments. They had been in the organisation for eight years.

NFA

The CEO of NFA started his business 18 years ago, in Lagos, Nigeria. He managed all the marketing himself, and was supported by the following functional heads:

Farm Managers - Two Farm Managers were responsible for coordinating activities at the farm sites, and were also responsible for the recruitment of labourers. They were also responsible for working with other research organisations in introducing new crop species.

Transport and Logistics Managers - The two managers in this department were responsible for managing the movement of raw materials from the farms to the factories, and of finished

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goods to the distributors and end consumers. They were responsible for timely and accurate dispatch to both domestic and UK customers, and for determining the best packaging that would reduce waste in transportation.

Quality Control and Research Manager - This person was responsible for ensuring compliance with standards, by making sure that the required tests were performed on goods before they were dispatched to their various destinations. This manager also worked with research organisations in introducing hybrid crops and seeds. He had eight years of experience.