Strategic Thinking at Scale — Without the McKinsey Bill

<task>Conduct a rigorous SWOT analysis for [business/situation]</task> <context> - Business: [describe] - Market: [describe] - Timeframe: [horizon] - Strategic question: [what decision does this inform] </context> <output> - Strengths (5-7 with specifics, not vague claims) - Weaknesses (5-7 honest assessments) - Opportunities (ranked by impact × feasibility) - Threats (ranked by likelihood × severity) - SWOT-to-TOWS matrix showing strategic intersections - Top 3 strategic implications with reasoning - Biggest blind spots in this analysis </output>

<task>Apply Porter's Five Forces to [industry/market]</task> <industry>[describe]</industry> <company_perspective>[describe who I am in this market]</company_perspective> <output> For each force: 1. Threat of new entrants (barriers to entry, capital requirements, network effects) 2. Bargaining power of suppliers (concentration, switching costs) 3. Bargaining power of buyers (price sensitivity, alternatives) 4. Threat of substitutes (adjacent solutions to same job) 5. Competitive rivalry (market growth, differentiation, exit barriers) For each: (a) strength rating 1-5, (b) reasoning with specific evidence, (c) trend (strengthening/weakening), (d) strategic implication for me. Then: overall industry attractiveness score + my recommended posture (attack, defend, pivot, exit).

<task>Apply Jobs-to-be-Done framework to [product/market]</task> <inputs> - Product: [describe] - Customers: [describe segments] - Current positioning: [describe] </inputs> <output> 1. Functional jobs (what customer is trying to get done) 2. Emotional jobs (how they want to feel) 3. Social jobs (how they want to be perceived) 4. Current workarounds / competitors hired for this job 5. Forces of progress (push + pull + anxiety + habit) 6. Where we're under-serving the job 7. Strategic implications for positioning + product </output>

<task>Build a Business Model Canvas for [business]</task> <business>[describe]</business> <output> Complete each of 9 blocks with specifics: 1. Customer Segments 2. Value Propositions 3. Channels 4. Customer Relationships 5. Revenue Streams 6. Key Resources 7. Key Activities 8. Key Partnerships 9. Cost Structure For each: (a) current state, (b) biggest assumption being made, (c) weakest block. Then: top 3 experiments to validate the weakest assumptions.

<task>Apply Blue Ocean Strategy to [market]</task> <current_state>[describe the red ocean we're in or next to]</current_state> <output> 1. Current industry factors everyone competes on (identify 6-10) 2. Four Actions Framework: - ELIMINATE: which factors should we eliminate that the industry takes for granted? - REDUCE: which factors should we reduce well below industry standard? - RAISE: which factors should we raise above industry standard? - CREATE: which factors should we create that industry has never offered? 3. Proposed new value curve vs competitors 4. Target non-customer segments (people not buying from anyone) 5. Positioning statement for the blue ocean </output>

<task>Build a market entry strategy for [market/geography]</task> <context> - Our product: [describe] - Target market: [describe] - Current position: [describe if any] - Resources available: [describe] </context> <output> 1. Market sizing (TAM, SAM, SOM with methodology) 2. Entry mode options (direct, partnership, acquisition, license) 3. For each: pros, cons, capital required, time to value 4. Local competitive landscape 5. Key barriers (regulatory, cultural, financial) 6. Recommended entry sequence (6, 12, 24 months) 7. Success metrics and kill criteria </output>

<task>Build a competitive response playbook for [competitor action]</task> <situation> - Competitor: [describe] - Their move: [describe] - Our current position: [describe] - What we know about their motivation: [describe] </situation> <output> 1. Likely underlying strategy behind their move 2. 4 response options: (a) match, (b) differentiate, (c) ignore, (d) disrupt 3. For each: reasoning, resource requirements, 2nd-order consequences 4. Recommended response with step-by-step plan 5. Messaging to customers about our response 6. What signals would change our response </output>

<task>Build a competitive intelligence brief on [competitor]</task> <inputs>[paste public info — website, product pages, pricing, press releases, reviews, funding news]</inputs> <output> 1. Company snapshot (size, funding, trajectory) 2. Product positioning + target customer 3. Pricing + packaging strategy 4. Go-to-market channels 5. Organizational structure (if inferable) 6. Strengths vs us 7. Weaknesses vs us 8. Strategic vulnerabilities we could exploit 9. What they're likely to do in next 12 months 10. Our optimal counter-strategy </output>

<task>Segment our customer base strategically</task> <inputs> - Product: [describe] - Current customer data: [describe or paste] - Revenue distribution: [describe] </inputs> <output> 1. 3-5 distinct segments with clear criteria (not demographics — behavior, pain, value) 2. For each: size estimate, profitability, acquisition cost, churn risk 3. Which segment drives 80% of profit 4. Which segments to focus on vs deprioritize vs fire 5. Product/message/pricing differentiation per segment 6. Risks of serving too broadly </output>

<task>Create a positioning map for [market]</task> <market>[describe]</market> <axes_to_consider>[suggest 3-4 axes that matter in this market]</axes_to_consider> <output> 1. Best 2 axes for a positioning map (with reasoning) 2. Map with competitors placed + justified 3. Empty quadrants (unoccupied positioning) 4. For each empty quadrant: (a) size of opportunity, (b) reason it's empty, (c) feasibility of occupying 5. Our recommended position with reasoning 6. 2-year move plan to occupy and defend </output>

<task>Build a pricing strategy for [product]</task> <inputs> - Product: [describe] - Target customer: [describe] - Competitors' pricing: [list] - Cost structure: [describe] - Current pricing pain: [describe] </inputs> <output> 1. Value-based pricing analysis (what outcome does the customer get × what % of that value should we capture) 2. Competitor-relative pricing (premium, mid, low, new category) 3. Psychological pricing tactics (anchors, tiers, decoys) 4. Price tier structure recommendation (3 tiers + rationale) 5. Discount policy + guardrails 6. Price increase strategy (when + how) 7. Risks and mitigations </output>

<task>Design a pricing experiment</task> <current_pricing>[describe]</current_pricing> <hypothesis>[what you believe is true about pricing]</hypothesis> <output> 1. The specific experiment (variant A vs variant B) 2. Customer segment to test on (new customers only, usually) 3. Sample size needed for statistical confidence 4. KPIs to track (not just conversion — also churn, LTV, support volume) 5. Duration 6. What would confirm vs refute the hypothesis 7. Risks (brand perception, fairness complaints) 8. What to do if results are ambiguous </output>

<task>Design product packaging (tier structure) for [product]</task> <inputs> - Features list: [paste] - Customer segments: [describe] - Current packaging: [describe if any] </inputs> <output> 1. 3-tier structure (Good/Better/Best) with feature assignments 2. Reasoning for each feature's tier placement 3. Which features to bundle vs sell as add-ons 4. Free tier / trial strategy (pros/cons) 5. Enterprise tier considerations 6. Migration path — how to get customers moving up 7. Common packaging mistakes to avoid </output>

<task>Build a CLV model for [business]</task> <inputs> - ARPU: [describe] - Retention curve: [monthly/annual retention] - Margin: [describe] - Expansion rate: [describe] </inputs> <output> 1. Expected CLV calculation with formula breakdown 2. Segment-level CLV (different customer types) 3. Sensitivity analysis (how CLV changes with retention + ARPU + expansion) 4. Maximum CAC (what we can spend to acquire, given our CLV) 5. Biggest CLV levers (retention, expansion, pricing) 6. 3 experiments to increase CLV over next quarter </output>

<task>Plan revenue diversification for [business]</task> <current_state> - Primary revenue source: [describe + %] - Customer concentration: [top customers as % of revenue] - Product concentration: [top products as % of revenue] </current_state> <output> 1. Concentration risks ranked by severity 2. 3 diversification paths (product, channel, segment, geography) 3. For each: feasibility, capital needed, time to meaningful revenue 4. Recommended sequence 5. Metrics to track diversification progress 6. Protection strategies for the primary revenue source while diversifying </output>