Structuring frameworks that survive Casey

The fastest way to lose points on a Casey structuring question is to type "I'd use a 4P/3C/Porter framework". The scorer flags it as rote, and the rest of your case starts uphill.

What Casey actually rewards

Casey's structuring rubric grades on three axes: MECE-ness, relevance to the prompt, and whether you sequence drivers logically. It does not reward complexity. A three-branch issue tree with clean sub-branches outperforms a beautiful 12-bucket framework that doesn't fit the question.

A repeatable approach

Step 1 — Re-read the objective. Casey's prompts are short. Underline the verb ("decide whether", "estimate", "diagnose") and the metric ("profit", "growth in 3 years", "EBITDA"). Your structure must terminate at that metric.

Step 2 — Top node. Start with the cleanest split for the objective. Profit problems → revenue and cost. Market entry → market attractiveness and ability to win. Pricing → willingness to pay and competitive response. One sentence.

Step 3 — Two levels deep, no more. Each branch should bottom out at something you could ask Casey for data on. "Marketing" is too vague. "Cost per acquisition by channel" is testable.

Step 4 — Prioritize on the spot. Casey often follows up with "where would you start?". Have an answer ready: the branch with the largest unknown impact, not the one you find easiest.

The MECE trap

MECE is a discipline, not a goal. Two clean buckets that fully cover the objective beats four buckets with overlap or gaps. If you find yourself adding a "Other" branch, your top-node split is wrong.

A worked example

Prompt: Should our regional airline launch a low-cost subsidiary?

Weak: 4P (product, price, place, promotion) — irrelevant to a strategic decision.

Better:

• Market attractiveness — segment size, growth, competitive intensity, price sensitivity
• Ability to win — fleet/cost position vs incumbents, brand fit, channel access
• Strategic fit and risk — cannibalization of main brand, capital required, downside scenario

Three buckets, each terminates at a testable question, sequenced from "is the prize worth it" to "can we get it" to "what could go wrong".

What to practice

Take ten past cases and write only the top-level structure for each, in under three minutes. Don't solve them. The point is to train the reflex of fitting structure to objective instead of recycling frameworks.