A collection of 13 Claude Code skills for operating a startup — from idea validation to strategic planning.
Delegation-focused workflows that produce concrete deliverables. Each skill combines 2-6 proven business frameworks into a sequenced workflow with fill-in templates. Built for pre-seed to Series A startups.
| # | Skill | Invocation | What It Produces |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Idea Validation | validating-ideas |
Lean Canvas, assumption maps, interview guides, GO/PIVOT/KILL scorecard |
| 2 | Business Model Design | designing-business-models |
Business Model Canvas, pricing architecture, unit economics model |
| 3 | Competitive Intelligence | gathering-competitive-intelligence |
Wardley maps, 7 Powers audit, battlecards, JTBD competitive map |
| 4 | Market Entry & Expansion | planning-market-entry |
Market attractiveness scorecards, regulatory readiness, entry sequencing |
| 5 | Product Strategy | shaping-product-strategy |
Shape Up pitches, DIBB strategic bets, ICE scorecards, API specs |
| 6 | Growth & Analytics | measuring-growth |
AARRR diagnostics, KPI dashboards, cohort analysis, growth narrative |
| 7 | Go-to-Market | launching-go-to-market |
Beachhead analysis, Racecar growth map, channel scorecards, PLG readiness |
| 8 | Sales & Partnerships | closing-deals |
Pipeline setup, deal qualification, provider scorecards, objection handling |
| 9 | Fundraising | raising-capital |
Investor deck (Sequoia format), pipeline CRM, monthly updates, data room |
| 10 | Financial Modeling | modeling-finances |
Revenue model, 13-week cash flow, burn rate calculator, scenario planning |
| 11 | Marketing & Brand | building-brand |
Positioning canvas (Dunford), BrandScript, content architecture, voice guide |
| 12 | Regulatory & Compliance | navigating-regulations |
Licensing matrix, AML/KYC program, compliance maturity scorecard |
| 13 | Strategic Planning | steering-strategy |
Strategy Kernel, OKRs, operating rhythm, hiring scorecards, decision log |
git clone https://github.com/bwerneckm/startup-skills.git
cd startup-skills
claude # Open Claude Code — skills are auto-discoveredThen invoke any skill by name or trigger phrase. For example:
- "Help me validate this new product idea" → triggers
validating-ideas - "Let's build our competitive intelligence" → triggers
gathering-competitive-intelligence - "I need to prepare for fundraising" → triggers
raising-capital
Copy the .claude/skills/ directory into your own project's .claude/ folder:
cp -r startup-skills/.claude/skills/ your-project/.claude/skills/Copy only the skills you need:
mkdir -p your-project/.claude/skills/
cp -r startup-skills/.claude/skills/validating-ideas your-project/.claude/skills/Each skill contains [PLACEHOLDER] fields designed to be filled in with your company's specific context. When Claude encounters these placeholders, it will ask you for the relevant information.
Common placeholders:
[YOUR_COMPANY]— Your company name[YOUR_PRODUCT]— Your core product or service[PRIMARY_MARKET]— Your primary geographic market[COMPETITOR_A/B/C]— Your key competitors[PROVIDER_A/B/C]— Your upstream providers or partners
For an example of a fully customized set, see the private AWA Finance version that these skills were derived from.
Skills reference each other by invocation name. For example, the designing-business-models skill references building-brand for positioning and modeling-finances for unit economics. This prevents framework duplication.
Shared frameworks (OKRs, positioning, unit economics) have a single "primary home" skill that owns the full framework. Other skills reference rather than duplicate:
| Framework | Primary Home |
|---|---|
| OKRs | steering-strategy |
| Dunford Positioning | building-brand |
| 7 Powers | gathering-competitive-intelligence |
| ICE Scoring | shaping-product-strategy |
| Unit Economics | modeling-finances |
steering-strategy is the meta-skill that orchestrates all others. It includes a "Skill Invocation Guide" mapping strategic questions to the right skill.
Skills start simple and include graduation paths:
- ICE → RICE (at 50+ items to prioritize)
- BANT+SPIN → MEDDIC (at first sales hire)
- Manual CS → Health Score model (at 10+ clients)
- Simple OKRs → Full cascade (at 15+ people)
60+ frameworks across 13 skills, including:
Strategy: Rumelt Strategy Kernel, Playing to Win, Thiel Zero-to-One, Wardley Mapping, 7 Powers
Product: Shape Up, DIBB, PR/FAQ, ICE Scoring, Opportunity Solution Trees, Stripe API Design
Growth: AARRR Pirate Metrics, North Star Metric, Crossing the Chasm, Racecar Growth Framework
Sales: Founder-Led Sales (Kazanjy/YC), SPIN Selling, MEDDIC, Challenger Sale, Gap Selling
Finance: Bottom-Up Revenue Modeling, 13-Week Cash Flow, Default Alive Test, Scenario Planning
Marketing: April Dunford Positioning, StoryBrand, Bullseye Framework, Topic Clusters
Operations: Mochary Method, WHO Hiring, Bezos Decision Framework, V2MOM, OKRs
Created by Breno Werneck at AWA Finance, powered by Claude Code.
MIT — use freely, modify for your startup, contribute improvements back.