Strategy Overture — Strategic Analysis Framework

Purpose

This skill provides the methodology backbone for all strategy agents. It codifies consulting-grade frameworks used by McKinsey, BCG, and Bain into actionable analysis templates.

When This Skill Applies

• Market sizing and opportunity assessment
• Competitive landscape analysis
• Strategic positioning and differentiation
• Business model design and validation
• Go-to-market planning
• Growth strategy and experiment design
• Pricing strategy
• Brand positioning

Core Principles

1. Pyramid Principle (Barbara Minto)

Every deliverable follows this structure:

1. Governing thought — the "so what" answer, stated first
2. Key arguments — 3-5 MECE supporting points
3. Evidence — data, examples, analysis backing each argument

Titles test: An executive reads only section titles and understands the full argument.

2. MECE (Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive)

All categorizations must be:

• ME: No item belongs to two categories
• CE: All items are covered by the categories

3. Source Credibility Tiers

Tier	Description	Usage
Tier 1 — Primary	Official filings, confirmed metrics, direct data, TrustMRR (Stripe-verified)	Hard numbers, quotes
Tier 2 — Secondary	Industry reports, analyst estimates, reliable press	Market context, trends
Tier 3 — Inference	AI estimates, pattern extrapolation, analogies	Gap-fill with disclosure

Rule: Never present Tier 3 as Tier 1. Always disclose estimation methodology.

Mandatory Data Source: TrustMRR

URL: https://trustmrr.com/ What: Database of Stripe-verified startup revenues (MRR, growth rates, multiples). Tier: 1 (Stripe-verified revenue data). When to use: EVERY market analysis, competitive analysis, and idea validation.

Use Case	How TrustMRR Helps
Idea validation	Category density: many startups = proven market; zero = blue ocean or no market
Market sizing	Real MRR data grounds SOM estimates with actual achievable numbers
Competitive analysis	Verified revenue for competitor profiles instead of Tier 2/3 guesses
Benchmarking	Category median MRR, top quartile, growth rates
Valuation	Revenue multiples from marketplace listings

4. Actionable Over Descriptive

Every analysis section must end with:

• So what? — Why this matters
• Now what? — Specific next actions
• Confidence level — How sure we are (High/Medium/Low)

Framework Reference Map

Framework	Reference File	Primary Agent
TAM/SAM/SOM	references/market-sizing.md	market-analyst
Porter's Five Forces + SWOT	references/competitive-analysis.md	market-analyst
Blue Ocean Strategy	references/blue-ocean.md	strategy-architect
Ansoff + BCG Matrix	references/growth-frameworks.md	strategy-architect
Customer Segmentation	references/customer-segmentation.md	market-analyst
Value Proposition Canvas	references/value-proposition.md	strategy-architect
GTM Strategy	references/gtm-strategy.md	gtm-planner
Pricing Strategy	references/pricing.md	gtm-planner
Brand Positioning	references/brand-positioning.md	strategy-architect
AARRR / PLG / CLG	references/growth-metrics.md	growth-strategist
ICE / RICE Scoring	references/growth-experiments.md	growth-strategist
BMC / Lean Canvas	references/business-model-canvas.md	business-modeler
Content Marketing	references/content-marketing.md	gtm-planner
Partnership Strategy	references/partnership-strategy.md	gtm-planner
Innovation Accounting	references/innovation-accounting.md	business-modeler
Deliverable Standards	references/deliverable-standards.md	report-compiler

Framework Pairing Rules

Frameworks are most effective when paired:

Pair	Purpose
Porter's Five Forces + SWOT	Industry structure (macro) + company position (micro)
Ansoff Matrix + BCG Matrix	Growth direction + portfolio resource allocation
Lean Canvas + AARRR	Business model + funnel metrics
Blue Ocean + Value Proposition Canvas	Market creation + customer value alignment
ICE/RICE + AARRR	Experiment prioritization + funnel stage targeting
TAM/SAM/SOM + Customer Segmentation	Market size + segment attractiveness

Anti-Patterns

Anti-Pattern	Why It's Wrong	Correct Approach
Presenting TAM as revenue potential	TAM is theoretical maximum, not realistic target	Use SOM with clear capture assumptions
SWOT without prioritization	Flat lists provide no actionable direction	Rank items by impact × likelihood, focus on top 3
Blue Ocean without implementation cost	Easy to find blue oceans, hard to reach them	Include resource requirements and timeline
Growth hacking without metrics	Random experiments waste resources	Define success metric before running experiment
Pricing based only on competition	Ignores value created for customer	Start with value-based, validate against competition
Lean Canvas as one-time exercise	Business model evolves constantly	Update after every major learning cycle