The Unstated Ontology of the Business Case Study: Listening for Indigenous Voices in Business School Curricula

Abstract

In this work, we examine how business case studies can support decolonial Indigenization efforts in business schools. Through our inductive analysis of business case studies from top publishers in this area (Harvard Business Publishing and Ivey Publishing), we identify a set of ontological assumptions that undergird the construction of traditional, Western business case studies and ultimately undermine Indigenous ways of knowing and organizing. Specifically, we find that the case studies stem from an uncritical Western ontology, particularly in relation to the construct of “development,” which diminishes the positionality of Indigenous Peoples in our own stories. We demonstrate how case studies can support decolonial Indigenization by crafting them in ways that uphold Indigenous ontologies. Finally, we uncover how a reconsideration of case writer positionality, Indigenous “voice” in business education, and Indigenous conceptions of development can enable case crafting in service of decolonial Indigenization.

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