DDBA 8303 Week 5 Case Access Discussion Example

Week 5 Discussion: Access That Fits the Case

The Site That Said Yes and the Site the Case Needs: Weighing an Eager Franchise Owner's Offer of Access Against a Menu Decision That Was Made Two Levels Above Her at the Franchisor

The Offer

My case concerns a decision by a regional fast-casual chain of about 90 restaurants to drop its breakfast menu in 2025 and extend lunch hours instead. The research question asks how the chain's leaders made and carried out that decision. Last month, a franchise owner who runs four of the chain's restaurants in Des Moines offered me full access: interviews with her managers and crews, her sales records before and after the change and time in her kitchens. She is enthusiastic, organized and well respected in the system. It is the most generous offer of access I have had.

Why It Does Not Fit

The decision I am studying was not made in her restaurants. It was made by the franchisor's menu committee and its chief operating officer, two levels above her, and announced to franchisees in a webinar. She carried it out, and she has opinions about it, but she was not in the room. Her records would show what happened to sales at four of ninety restaurants. Her managers could describe how the change landed in their kitchens. None of that addresses how leaders made the decision.

Yin (2018) stresses that the unit of analysis in a case study follows from the research question; here, the unit is a decision made at the franchisor. Taking the access I was offered would quietly change my case into a study of how franchisees implemented a decision, which is a different question. Feldman et al. (2003) observe that researchers often accept the access available and let it reshape their study without noticing; this offer is a clear example of that temptation.

What the Case Actually Needs

The case needs the franchisor's menu committee minutes, its analysis of breakfast sales, interviews with at least two committee members and the chief operating officer and the materials sent to franchisees. I have asked the franchisor's director of operations, whom I met at a regional meeting, for access to those, and I am waiting for a reply. If the franchisor declines, I will need either to change the question to one about implementation, in which case the franchise owner's offer becomes ideal, or to find another chain.

What I Will Do With Her Offer

I will thank her and ask whether she would be willing to be interviewed as one franchisee who received the decision, which would give the case one view of how the decision was communicated. Patton (2015) notes that participants who have a stake in the outcome bring valuable perspective but should be weighed with that stake in mind. Her view would be a small part of the case, not its center.

Question for Classmates

Has anyone been offered access by someone who was eager to help but not close enough to what you were studying? How did you decide?

Reply to Carmen

Carmen, your hospital system offered you access to the finance department for a study of a decision made by the board. Like my case, the people who opened the door were not the people who decided. Would board minutes and one board member's interview be available?

Reply to Ian

Ian, you have the access your question needs, the founder and both partners at the architecture firm. What will you do if the founder wants to review your findings before you share them? Settling that now may be easier than later.

References

Feldman, M. S., Bell, J., & Berger, M. T. (2003). Gaining access: A practical and theoretical guide for qualitative researchers. AltaMira Press.

Patton, M. Q. (2015). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.

Yin, R. K. (2018). Case study research and applications: Design and methods (6th ed.). SAGE Publications.