Strategy process

The process is the spine

A strategy process that walks the layers top to bottom. The Strategy Choice Cascade and Rumelt's kernel are both projections of this sequence: neither has an explicit Arena or Advantage step, and both fold Product Strategy and Go-to-Market Strategy into 'capabilities'. Aligning the process with the layers means each step has a place to write its answer.

Step 1 · Layer 1

Diagnose

Arena

What are the relevant conditions at entry?

Rumelt: Diagnosis — name the critical challenge
Martin & Lafley: (implicit) the context against which where-to-play is chosen
Porter: Industry analysis — the Five Forces

Step 2 · Layer 2

Choose

Intent

Where will we play, and how will we win there?

Martin & Lafley: Winning aspiration → Where will we play? → How will we win?
Rumelt: Guiding policy
Porter: Choose a generic strategy; accept its trade-offs
Treacy & Wiersema: Choose one value discipline; meet threshold on the other two

Step 3 · Layer 3

Target

Defensibility

What will stop a well-funded competitor from copying us once we are visible?

Helmer: 'Strategy is a route to continuing Power in significant markets' — name the Power
Neumann: Pick the moat available at this stage and the one it converts into
NFX: Choose which network-effect type the product can actually tip

Step 4 · Layer 4

Build

Product Strategy

What must the product do better, more easily or more completely than the alternative?

Martin & Lafley: What capabilities must be in place? (product half)
Rumelt: Coherent action
Christensen: Integrate where performance is not yet good enough
Steve Blank: Customer Discovery: test assumptions about customer problems and needs

Step 5 · Layer 5

Sell

Go-to-Market Strategy

What capabilities must be in place — in the market?

Martin & Lafley: What capabilities must be in place? (market half)
Rumelt: Coherent action
Moore: Beachhead, whole product, bowling alley

Step 6 · Layer 6

Sustain

Operating Model

What management systems are required?

Martin & Lafley: What management systems are required?
Rumelt: (implicit) proximate objectives and feedback
Helmer: Process Power is the long-run product of this step

Martin: strategy is 'making a few key choices', and planning is 'a dull and dreadful substitute' for it. The cascade grew out of a 1987 Eaton engagement, was refined across ~80 P&G category teams (1987–89), and became P&G's strategy method under Lafley (2000–09).

Porter's 'What Is Strategy?' supplies the audit for the output of steps 2–5: a real strategy involves trade-offs — things you deliberately will not do — and fit among activities.

The layers organize questions, not a fixed chronology. Customer discovery can change the chosen market or product before an advantage exists.