# Competitive Strategy

## Core idea

Assess substitutes, rivalry, bargaining forces, and defensible choices before marketing execution.

## Figures

- `michael-porter`

## Use when

- The decision matches the mechanism this school is designed to explain.
- The school can materially change diagnosis, choice, or measurement.

## Applied theories

- `five-forces`
- `competitive-advantage`

## Boundaries

- Treat this school as one lens, not a universal operating doctrine.
- Compare with counterweights when growth horizon, category maturity, economics, or evidence point elsewhere.