Write Product Strategy Skill

Create comprehensive product strategy using a 7-component framework. Connects vision to execution.

Quick Start

Tell me: "I need a product strategy for [product/initiative]"
I will check thoughts/shared/pm/frameworks/, thoughts/shared/pm/context/business-info-template.md, and thoughts/shared/pm/research/ for existing context
I will ask about scope (company vs product), horizon (6mo/1yr/3yr), audience, and whether we are building on or replacing existing strategy
We work through the 7 components: Objective, Users, Superpowers, Vision, Pillars, Impact, Roadmap
Output goes to thoughts/shared/pm/analyses/strategy-[product]-[date].md

Output length: A complete 7-component strategy doc should be 2,000-3,000 words with an executive summary of 200-300 words. If you want a shorter version, ask for a "1-page strategy brief" and I will generate only: Objective, Target Users, Strategic Pillars, and Key Metrics.

Context Routing Logic (Internal - for Claude)

Automatic Context Checks: When this skill is invoked, immediately check:

Source	Files/Folders	Search Terms	What to Extract
Existing Strategy	`thoughts/shared/pm/frameworks/*.md`	company strategy, vision, roadmap	Current strategy to build on or update
Business Model	`thoughts/shared/pm/context/business-info-template.md`	TAM, revenue model, metrics	Objective anchor and North Star
User Research	`thoughts/shared/pm/research/*.md`	user segments, JTBD, pain points	Users section and strategic fit
Competitive Analysis	`thoughts/shared/pm/research/competitive-*.md`	competitor positioning	Superpowers and differentiation
Historical PRDs	`thoughts/shared/pm/prds/*.md`	strategic features, decisions	Precedent for feature strategy alignment
Meetings	`thoughts/shared/product/meeting-notes/*.md`	strategy discussion, OKRs, board feedback	Stakeholder input and constraints

Context Priority:

Business model and company objectives FIRST
User research and strategic direction SECOND
Competitive positioning THIRD
Existing feature decisions FOURTH

Cross-Skill Links:

If defining North Star → Link to /define-north-star
If analyzing user needs → Link to /user-research-synthesis and /journey-map
If evaluating features → Link to /impact-sizing for driver trees
If creating PRDs → Ensure they reference strategic pillars from here

Step 0: Understanding Your Strategic Context

Before writing strategy, let me understand where you are...

Checking:

thoughts/shared/pm/frameworks/ for existing strategy docs
thoughts/shared/pm/context/business-info-template.md for business model
thoughts/shared/pm/research/ for user and competitive insights
thoughts/shared/product/meeting-notes/ for stakeholder input and OKRs

Based on what I find, I'll show you:

Current Strategic State

Existing Strategy:

[If you have one: what's your current strategy, when was it last updated?]
[Key strategic pillars: what are you focusing on?]
[Are we refreshing, evolving, or starting from scratch?]

Business Context:

[North Star metric: what measures success?]
[Growth stage: early product, scaling, or maturing?]
[Revenue model: how do you make money?]

User & Competitive Landscape:

[Primary user segments: who are you building for?]
[Competitive position: what makes you different?]
[Unmet needs: what gaps exist in the market?]

PM-Specific Diagnosis Questions

Scope: Company-level strategy or product-line strategy?
Horizon: 6 months, 1 year, or 3 years out?
Constraints: Resource limitations, market conditions, organizational changes?
Stakeholder Input: What does leadership expect? What are investor priorities?
Current Momentum: What's working well? What's not working?

When to Use This Skill

Annual/quarterly strategy planning
New product launch planning
Investor/board presentations
Cross-functional alignment on direction
When leadership asks "what's the strategy?"

The 7-Component Framework

A complete product strategy answers:

Objective - What are we trying to achieve and how will we measure it?
Users - Who are we serving and what jobs do they need done?
Superpowers - What unique advantages do we have?
Vision - What does the future look like if we succeed?
Pillars - What are our 2-4 strategic focus areas?
Impact - What value will we create (users + business)?
Roadmap - What's the plan to get there?

Workflow

Step 1: Gather Context

Ask the PM:

Strategy Scope:
- Company or product strategy?
- Timeframe: 6 months / 1 year / 3 years?
- Audience: Team / Exec / Board / Investors?
- Current strategy exists? (building on or replacing?)

Context to review:
- Company mission/vision
- Current OKRs
- User research
- Competitive landscape
- Market trends
- Past strategy docs (if any)

Step 2: Component 1 - Objective

Objective = Mission + Measure

Mission: What problem are we solving? Measure: How will we know if we're winning?

## Objective

### Mission
[One-sentence statement of what we're trying to accomplish]

Example: "Help product teams ship better features faster by reducing the time from idea to launch"

### North Star Metric
[The one metric that best captures value delivered]

Metric: [Metric name]
Current: [Baseline value]
Target: [Goal value by when]

Why this metric:
- Captures value for users: [Explanation]
- Drives business outcomes: [Explanation]
- Team can influence it: [Explanation]

### Supporting Metrics
1. [Metric 1]: [Current] → [Target]
2. [Metric 2]: [Current] → [Target]
3. [Metric 3]: [Current] → [Target]

### Guardrails
Metrics we won't sacrifice for growth:
- [Guardrail 1: e.g., "User satisfaction score stays above 4.0"]
- [Guardrail 2: e.g., "Response time under 200ms"]

Step 3: Component 2 - Users

Users = JTBD + Journey Map

Who are we serving and what do they need?

## Users

### Primary User Segments

**Segment 1: [Name]**
- Who: [Description - role, company size, industry]
- Size: [TAM - how many of these users exist]
- Pain: [Primary pain point]
- Job to be done: [What they're trying to accomplish]

**Segment 2: [Name]**
- Who: [Description]
- Size: [TAM]
- Pain: [Primary pain point]
- Job to be done: [What they're trying to accomplish]

### Jobs to Be Done Canvas

For primary segment:

**Job Statement:**
When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [expected outcome].

Example: "When I'm planning my product roadmap, I want to quickly prioritize features based on impact, so I can focus the team on what matters most."

**Current Alternatives:**
- [Alt 1]: [What they use today + why it's insufficient]
- [Alt 2]: [What they use today + why it's insufficient]

**Success Criteria:**
- Speed: [How fast does it need to be?]
- Quality: [How good does the outcome need to be?]
- Cost: [What's their budget?]
- Ease: [How simple must it be?]

### User Journey

[Reference existing journey map or create simplified version]

Key stages:
1. [Stage 1]: [User goal] → [Current pain point]
2. [Stage 2]: [User goal] → [Current pain point]
3. [Stage 3]: [User goal] → [Current pain point]

Biggest friction points:
- [Friction 1]: Causes [X% drop-off or Y time waste]
- [Friction 2]: Causes [impact]

Step 4: Component 3 - Superpowers

Superpowers = 7 Powers Framework

What unique advantages do we have?

## Superpowers

Our durable competitive advantages:

**Power 1: [Name]** ([Type from 7 Powers])

[Description of advantage]

Why it's durable:
- [Reason 1: Why competitors can't easily copy]
- [Reason 2: How it compounds over time]

Evidence:
- [Data point or example]

**Power 2: [Name]** ([Type from 7 Powers])

[Description]

Why it's durable:
- [Reason]

Evidence:
- [Data/example]

### 7 Powers Reference:

1. **Scale Economies** - Unit costs decline as volume increases
2. **Network Effects** - Value increases as users increase
3. **Counter-Positioning** - Business model incumbents can't copy
4. **Switching Costs** - Value loss when switching to alternative
5. **Branding** - Durable attribution of higher value to objectively identical offering
6. **Cornered Resource** - Preferential access to coveted asset
7. **Process Power** - Embedded company organization/activity set

Step 5: Component 4 - Vision

Vision = Visiontype + Prototype

What does the future look like if we succeed?

## Vision

### Vision Statement (3-5 Years Out)

[Paragraph describing the future state]

Example: "In 3 years, product teams using our platform ship features 10x faster than industry average. Instead of spending months in planning, teams validate ideas in days using AI-powered prototyping and instant user feedback loops. The default workflow becomes: idea → prototype → test → ship, all within a single week. Our platform becomes the nervous system of product development."

### Future User Experience

**A day in the life** (future state):

[Narrative of how a user will experience your product]

Example:
"Sarah, a PM at a fast-growing startup, has an idea for a new feature at 9am. By 9:15am, she's used our AI to generate three prototype variants. By 10am, she's running an A/B test with 1,000 users. By 3pm, she has statistically significant results. By 5pm, engineering has the winning design and technical spec. What used to take 6 weeks now takes 8 hours."

### Visiontype (Prototype of Vision)

[If possible, create visual representation:]
- Mockup of future product state
- Diagram of ecosystem
- User flow in future state
- Before/after comparison

[Or generate using `/generate-ai-prototype` or `/napkin-sketch`]

### What Changes?

| Today | Future (Vision State) |
|-------|----------------------|
| [Current state 1] | [Future state 1] |
| [Current state 2] | [Future state 2] |
| [Current state 3] | [Future state 3] |

Step 6: Component 5 - Pillars

Pillars = 2-4 Strategic Focus Areas

Where will we concentrate our efforts?

## Strategic Pillars

The 2-4 areas where we'll focus investment and energy:

### Pillar 1: [Name]

**What:** [Description of this focus area]

**Why:** [Why this is strategically important]

**How we'll win:**
- [Approach 1]
- [Approach 2]
- [Approach 3]

**Key initiatives:**
- [Initiative 1]: [Brief description]
- [Initiative 2]: [Brief description]

**Success looks like:**
- [Metric/outcome 1]
- [Metric/outcome 2]

### Pillar 2: [Name]

[Same structure as Pillar 1]

### Pillar 3: [Name]

[Same structure as Pillar 1]

### What We're NOT Doing

Explicit non-goals for this strategy period:
- ❌ [Non-goal 1]: [Why we're explicitly not doing this]
- ❌ [Non-goal 2]: [Reason]
- ❌ [Non-goal 3]: [Reason]

Step 7: Component 6 - Impact

Impact = Value Estimation with Driver Trees

What value will we create?

## Impact

### User Impact

**Users affected:** [Number or percentage]

**Pain severity:** [Critical / High / Medium]

**Value delivered:**
- [Benefit 1]: [Quantified if possible]
- [Benefit 2]: [Quantified if possible]
- [Benefit 3]: [Quantified if possible]

**Workaround cost eliminated:**
- Time saved: [X hours per user per week]
- Money saved: [$ per user per year]
- Frustration reduced: [Qualitative description + quotes]

### Business Impact

**Driver Tree: Feature → Metric → Revenue/Profit**

Strategy Success ↓ North Star Metric: [Metric name] increases by [X%] ↓ ├─→ Driver 1: [Leading indicator] increases by [Y%] │ ↓ │ ├─→ Initiative A contributes [Z%] │ └─→ Initiative B contributes [W%] │ └─→ Driver 2: [Leading indicator] increases by [Y%] ↓ └─→ Initiative C contributes [Z%]


**Revenue Impact:**
- New revenue: [$ from new customers/use cases]
- Retained revenue: [$ from reduced churn]
- Expansion revenue: [$ from upsells/cross-sells]

**Total projected impact:** $[X]M ARR by [Date]

**Cost to execute:**
- Engineering: [FTE or $]
- Design: [FTE or $]
- Other: [FTE or $]

**ROI:** [Revenue impact / Cost] = [X]x

### Strategic Value

Beyond numbers:

**OKR Alignment:**
- Company OKR 1: [How this strategy supports it]
- Company OKR 2: [How this strategy supports it]

**Competitive Positioning:**
- [How this changes competitive landscape]
- [New moat created or existing moat strengthened]

**Market Opportunity:**
- TAM: $[X]M
- SAM: $[Y]M
- SOM (achievable): $[Z]M over [timeframe]

### Confidence Levels

**Data Quality:**
- High confidence: [What we're certain about]
- Medium confidence: [What we have some data on]
- Low confidence: [What we're assuming]

**Key Risks:**
- [Risk 1]: [Probability × Impact]
- [Risk 2]: [Probability × Impact]
- [Risk 3]: [Probability × Impact]

**How we'll de-risk:**
- [Validation approach for each major assumption]

Step 8: Component 7 - Roadmap

Roadmap = 0-3mo Fixed, 3-6mo Loose, 6+ Exploratory

How will we execute?

## Roadmap

### Now (0-3 Months) - Fixed Commitments

**Q[X] [Year]:**

| Initiative | Pillar | Impact | Team | Status |
|-----------|--------|--------|------|--------|
| [Initiative 1] | [Pillar name] | [Metric target] | [Team] | [Status] |
| [Initiative 2] | [Pillar name] | [Metric target] | [Team] | [Status] |
| [Initiative 3] | [Pillar name] | [Metric target] | [Team] | [Status] |

**Milestones:**
- [Month 1]: [Milestone]
- [Month 2]: [Milestone]
- [Month 3]: [Milestone]

### Next (3-6 Months) - Directional Plan

**Q[X+1] [Year]:**

Focus areas (subject to change based on learnings):
- [Focus area 1]: [General direction]
- [Focus area 2]: [General direction]

Potential initiatives (not committed):
- [Potential initiative 1]
- [Potential initiative 2]

Decision points:
- [Month 4]: Decide on [Key decision]
- [Month 5]: Decide on [Key decision]

### Later (6+ Months) - Exploratory

**Q[X+2] [Year] and beyond:**

Strategic bets to explore:
- [Exploratory bet 1]: [What we need to learn]
- [Exploratory bet 2]: [What we need to learn]

Research questions:
- [Question 1]
- [Question 2]

Open questions:
- [Question 1]
- [Question 2]

### Trade-Offs Made

What we're NOT doing (and why):

- **[Alternative path 1]:**
  - Why we considered: [Reason]
  - Why we chose not to: [Trade-off]

- **[Alternative path 2]:**
  - Why we considered: [Reason]
  - Why we chose not to: [Trade-off]

Complete Output Format

# [Product Name] Strategy

## [Timeframe: e.g., 2026 Annual Strategy]

**Author:** [Name]
**Date:** [Date]
**Status:** [Draft / Review / Approved]
**Audience:** [Who this is for]

---

## Executive Summary

[2-3 paragraph summary of entire strategy]

**TL;DR:**

- Objective: [One sentence]
- Target: [North Star Metric goal]
- Approach: [Strategic pillars in one sentence]
- Impact: [Business outcome]

---

## 1. Objective

### Mission

[What we're trying to accomplish]

### North Star Metric

[Metric + target]

### Supporting Metrics

[List of 3-5 metrics]

---

## 2. Users

### Primary Segments

[Description of who we serve]

### Jobs to Be Done

[JTBD canvas]

### User Journey

[Key stages + friction points]

---

## 3. Superpowers

[2-3 durable competitive advantages from 7 Powers]

---

## 4. Vision

### Vision Statement

[Future state description]

### Visiontype

[Prototype or mockup of vision]

---

## 5. Strategic Pillars

### Pillar 1: [Name]

[Details]

### Pillar 2: [Name]

[Details]

### Pillar 3: [Name]

[Details]

### Non-Goals

[What we're NOT doing]

---

## 6. Impact

### User Impact

[Value to users]

### Business Impact

[Revenue/profit driver tree]

### Strategic Value

[OKR alignment, competitive positioning]

### Confidence & Risks

[What we're certain/uncertain about]

---

## 7. Roadmap

### Now (0-3mo)

[Fixed commitments]

### Next (3-6mo)

[Directional plan]

### Later (6+mo)

[Exploratory bets]

### Trade-Offs

[What we chose not to do]

---

## Appendix

### References

- [PRD links]
- [Research docs]
- [Competitive analysis]
- [Market data]

### Feedback & Iteration

- Last updated: [Date]
- Feedback from: [Stakeholders]
- Next review: [Date]

Pro Tips

Start with Objective: North Star Metric anchors everything
Users before solutions: Understand JTBD before defining strategy
Be specific: "Improve UX" is not a pillar, "Reduce time-to-first-value by 50%" is
Quantify impact: Use driver trees to connect strategy to revenue
Say no explicitly: Non-goals matter as much as goals
Visual visiontype: Show, don't just tell
Update quarterly: Strategy is living document, not set-and-forget

Common Mistakes to Avoid

❌ Vague objectives ("be the best") ✅ Measurable targets ("reduce churn from 5% to 2% by Q4")

❌ No user insight ("we'll build features") ✅ JTBD-driven ("users need to X, currently they do Y which wastes Z time")

❌ Copying competitor strategy ✅ Leveraging unique superpowers

❌ Wishful thinking ("we'll 10x revenue") ✅ Driver trees with realistic assumptions

❌ Feature roadmap masquerading as strategy ✅ Outcome-driven pillars with example initiatives

Output Integration

Where Files Go

Strategy documents:

Active work: thoughts/shared/pm/analyses/strategy-[product]-[date].md (living document)
Executive version: Can be adapted for board/investor presentations

Link to Other Work

After writing strategy:

Reference in PRDs - "This feature supports Strategic Pillar [X]" from this document
Roadmap alignment - "Q# roadmap focuses on Pillar [Y]"
Team alignment - Share with cross-functional teams for guidance
Status updates - Track progress against strategic goals in /catalyst-pm-ops:status-update

Cross-Skill Integration

Feeds into:

/prd-draft - All PRDs should reference and support strategic pillars
/catalyst-pm-ops:status-update - Track progress against strategy in weekly updates
Board/investor communications - Strategy is the foundation for pitches
Quarterly planning - Use strategy to guide roadmap prioritization

Pulls from:

/define-north-star - Your North Star becomes the Objective component
/user-research-synthesis - User insights inform Users component
/impact-sizing - Feature impact sizing informs Impact component
/competitor-analysis - Competitive insights inform Superpowers component

Integration with Other Skills

Inputs:

/define-north-star - Component 1: Objective
/journey-map - Component 2: Users
/impact-sizing - Component 6: Impact
/user-research-synthesis - Component 2: User insights

Outputs:

/prd-draft - PRDs align with strategic pillars
/catalyst-pm-ops:status-update - Progress against strategy
Board/investor decks - Executive summary

Questions to Ask Before Writing

Scope: Company-level or product-level strategy?
Horizon: 6 months, 1 year, 3 years?
Current state: Building on existing strategy or creating from scratch?
Data available: User research, market data, competitive intel?
Audience: Who will read and act on this strategy?

Output Length Guidance

Full strategy (default): 2,000-3,000 words covering all 7 components with an executive summary of 200-300 words. This is what you need for quarterly/annual planning, cross-functional alignment, and investor/board communication.

1-page strategy brief (on request): When the PM asks for a shorter version, generate only:

Objective: Mission + North Star Metric + target
Target Users: Primary segment + JTBD (one paragraph)
Strategic Pillars: 2-4 focus areas with one sentence each
Key Metrics: 3-5 metrics with current baseline and targets

This brief should fit on a single page (~500 words). Use it for quick alignment, team kickoffs, or when the full strategy is being drafted elsewhere.

Output Quality Self-Check

Before delivering the strategy document, verify:

Executive summary stands alone: Someone reading only the exec summary understands the objective, approach, and expected impact. Test: cover everything below the summary and ask "do I know what we are doing and why?"
North Star is defined: A specific, measurable North Star metric with baseline and target is stated in the Objective section. Not "grow revenue" but "increase MRR from $250K to $400K by Q4."
Users are real, not abstract: User segments include specific roles, company types, and pain points grounded in research. At least one user quote or data point is referenced if research exists.
Superpowers pass the competitor test: Each superpower explains why competitors cannot easily replicate it. If a competitor could copy it in 6 months, it is not a superpower.
Pillars are outcome-driven: Each pillar describes an outcome to achieve, not a feature to build. "Reduce time-to-first-value by 50%" not "Build onboarding wizard."
Non-goals are real tradeoffs: The non-goals section lists things you actually considered doing but chose not to. "We will not build a spaceship" is not a tradeoff.
Impact is quantified: Revenue impact, user impact, or both are estimated with driver trees or ranges, not just qualitative statements.
Roadmap has three horizons: Now (0-3mo) is fixed, Next (3-6mo) is directional, Later (6+mo) is exploratory. If all three horizons are equally detailed, the roadmap is too speculative.
Length is appropriate: Full strategy: 2,000-3,000 words. Brief: ~500 words. If significantly over, cut redundancy. If significantly under, check for missing components.

Remember: A good strategy is a clear "no" to many things and a committed "yes" to a few. Strategy is about choices, not wishes.