Frameworks Library
34 battle-tested frameworks · each with a summary, key sections, and a clear "when to use" trigger.
Showing 34 of 34 frameworks
Market Entry Framework
Evaluate new market opportunities: market size, competitive dynamics, entry barriers, and go-to-market strategy.
When to use
Cases asking 'Should Company X enter Market Y?' — new geography, new category, new segment.
Key sections
Profitability Framework
Diagnose profit decline: Revenue = Volume × Price, Costs = Fixed + Variable. Drill down by segment, product, geography.
When to use
Cases where profits, margins, or revenue have declined. The most common case archetype.
Key sections
Pricing Strategy
Three lenses: Cost-based, Competitor-based, and Value-based. Choose based on product maturity and competitive position.
When to use
Pricing a new product, repricing an existing line, or optimizing across SKUs.
Key sections
Go-To-Market Framework
Product-market fit, channel strategy, positioning, pricing, and launch sequencing for new product/market entry.
When to use
Launching a new product, expanding to a new segment, or repositioning a brand.
Key sections
Supply Chain Optimization
End-to-end supply chain analysis: procurement, manufacturing, logistics, inventory, and distribution network design.
When to use
Cases on operational efficiency, stockouts, lead times, or inventory bloat.
Key sections
Turnaround Strategy
Stabilize bleeding, diagnose root cause, implement quick wins, rebuild for sustainable growth.
When to use
A loss-making division, falling revenues, or restructuring scenarios.
Key sections
Porter's Five Forces
Industry attractiveness analysis: rivalry, buyer power, supplier power, substitutes, new entrants.
When to use
Industry attractiveness assessment, particularly when evaluating entry or competitive positioning.
Key sections
Ansoff Matrix
Growth strategy: Market Penetration, Market Development, Product Development, Diversification.
When to use
Growth strategy cases — choosing between expanding existing offers vs. new categories.
Key sections
SWOT Analysis
Internal Strengths & Weaknesses + External Opportunities & Threats. Quick orientation tool, not a recommendation engine.
When to use
Quick situational analysis. Don't lead with SWOT in interviews — pair with a sharper framework.
Key sections
PESTEL Analysis
External macro-environment scan: Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, Legal.
When to use
Cross-border expansion, regulated industries, ESG-driven decisions.
Key sections
Marketing Mix (4Ps)
Product, Price, Place, Promotion — extended to 7Ps for services (People, Process, Physical Evidence).
When to use
Operational marketing decisions — campaign planning, channel choices, packaging refresh.
Key sections
STP: Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning
Segment the market, choose target segments, craft a positioning statement that wins them.
When to use
New product launches, brand repositioning, or whenever the question is 'who do we sell to?'
Key sections
5Cs Situational Analysis
Company, Customers, Competitors, Collaborators, Context. The most comprehensive situational lens.
When to use
Marketing strategy or any case requiring a full situational scan before recommending action.
Key sections
AIDA Marketing Funnel
Attention → Interest → Desire → Action. Classic conversion funnel for advertising and campaign design.
When to use
Designing communication campaigns, especially for brand-building or DTC product launches.
Key sections
Porter's Value Chain
Primary activities (inbound, ops, outbound, marketing, service) and support activities. Identify where value is created — and lost.
When to use
Cost analysis, vertical integration decisions, or finding sustainable competitive advantage.
Key sections
BCG Growth-Share Matrix
Portfolio analysis: Stars (high growth, high share), Cash Cows (low growth, high share), Question Marks, Dogs.
When to use
Conglomerate or multi-product portfolio rationalization — Tata, ABG, ITC type cases.
Key sections
Blue Ocean Strategy (ERRC)
Create uncontested market space. Eliminate, Reduce, Raise, Create — break the value-cost trade-off.
When to use
Innovation, disruption, or breaking out of commodified red-ocean competition.
Key sections
Jobs To Be Done (JTBD)
Customers 'hire' products to do a job. Focus on functional, emotional, and social jobs — not demographics.
When to use
Product cases, especially when classic segmentation isn't revealing the real demand driver.
Key sections
McKinsey 7S
Strategy, Structure, Systems, Shared Values, Skills, Style, Staff. Diagnose org alignment and change readiness.
When to use
Org restructure, post-M&A integration, or culture-driven transformation cases.
Key sections
VRIO Resource Analysis
Is a resource Valuable, Rare, Inimitable, Organized? Maps directly to sustainable competitive advantage.
When to use
Identifying defensible moats, especially in M&A and competitive strategy cases.
Key sections
5 Whys / Issue Tree
MECE issue tree — break a problem into mutually exclusive, collectively exhaustive branches. Drill down with 'why'.
When to use
Almost every consulting case starts here. Master this before everything else.
Key sections
Kotter's 8-Step Change Model
Drive organizational change: urgency, coalition, vision, communication, action, wins, momentum, anchoring.
When to use
Transformation, change management, or post-acquisition integration cases.
Key sections
McKinsey 3 Horizons of Growth
Horizon 1 (defend core), Horizon 2 (build emerging), Horizon 3 (create new). Balance short and long-term bets.
When to use
Innovation portfolio strategy, R&D allocation, or long-range planning.
Key sections
Lean Canvas
Ash Maurya's startup-focused canvas: Problem, Solution, Key Metrics, UVP, Channels, Customer Segments, Cost, Revenue, Unfair Advantage.
When to use
Startup, B-Plan, or innovation case competitions where you're designing a business from scratch.
Key sections
DuPont Analysis
Decompose ROE = Net Margin × Asset Turnover × Equity Multiplier. Pinpoints where returns come from.
When to use
Finance cases on profitability, capital allocation, or comparing peer companies.
Key sections
TAM / SAM / SOM Market Sizing
Total Addressable, Serviceable Addressable, Serviceable Obtainable. The market-sizing math judges actually expect.
When to use
Any new market entry or product launch case. Show both top-down and bottom-up.
Key sections
RACI Matrix
For every activity: who is Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed. Forces ownership clarity.
When to use
Implementation plans, project execution slides, post-recommendation 'how do we deliver this'.
Key sections
Customer Journey Mapping
Awareness → Consideration → Purchase → Onboarding → Retention → Advocacy. Find drop-off points and unmet needs.
When to use
DTC, subscription, or service cases — anywhere drop-off and lifecycle matter.
Key sections
AARRR (Pirate Metrics)
Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Referral, Revenue. The startup-growth funnel that runs every product-growth case.
When to use
Product, growth, and consumer-internet cases. Especially relevant for Swiggy/Zomato/Flipkart-type comps.
Key sections
Christensen's Disruptive Innovation
Low-end vs. new-market disruption. Incumbents over-serve while disruptors capture under-served segments.
When to use
Disruption case studies — fintech vs. banks, EVs vs. ICE, DTC vs. legacy retail.
Key sections
Stakeholder Mapping (Power-Interest)
Plot stakeholders by power and interest. Manage closely / keep satisfied / keep informed / monitor.
When to use
Change management, public-sector cases, complex multi-stakeholder rollouts.
Key sections
NPS & Customer Loyalty Loops
Net Promoter Score = % Promoters − % Detractors. Pair with cause analysis and a closed-loop feedback system.
When to use
Customer experience, loyalty, and retention-driven cases.
Key sections
Value Proposition Canvas
Map customer jobs/pains/gains against your product's pain relievers/gain creators. Fit > sizing.
When to use
Product cases where you need to prove product-market fit rigorously.
Key sections
Balanced Scorecard
Measure strategy execution across 4 lenses: Financial, Customer, Internal Process, Learning & Growth.
When to use
Implementation slides, performance management cases, or KPI design questions.
Key sections