Analyze political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal forces. Use when external market shifts could materially affect a product, roadmap, or strategy.

Purpose Conduct a systematic analysis of macro environmental factors—Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental, and Legal—that could impact your product or project. Use this to identify external opportunities and threats, inform strategic planning, assess market entry risks, and make data driven decisions about product direction in the context of broader forces beyond your control. This is not internal analysis—it's outward facing assessment of the big picture forces shaping your product's environment. Input Works best with: The product, market, or strategic decision the analysis should serve. Also useful: Geography, time horizon, and which forces you already suspect matter most. Anything supplied with the invocation itself — text after the skill name, a pasted context dump, or an appended ARGUMENTS: line — counts as answers already given. Use it and skip whatever it covers; don't re ask. Arriving empty handed? That works too. The skill asks what product/market and geography to analyze before scanning the six forces — an unanchored PESTEL is a trivia exercise. Example invocation: PESTEL for launching our telehealth platform in Germany over the next 18 months. Key Concepts The PESTEL Framework Originating from Francis Joseph Aguilar's 1967 PEST analysis, PESTEL extends the framework to six categories: 1. Political: Government policies, stability, trade regulations, taxation 2. Economic: Growth rates, inflation, exchange rates, consumer spending 3. Social: Demographics, cultural trends, lifestyle changes, consumer attitudes 4. Technological: Advancements, R&D, automation, digital transformation 5. Environmental: Climate change, sustainability, resource scarcity, regulations 6. Legal: Compliance, IP rights, employment laws, health/safety regulations Why This Works Comprehensive: Covers all major external forces affecting your product Proactive: Identifies threats and opportunities before they become critical Strategic: Informs long term planning, not just tactical decisions Risk management: Highlights vulnerabilities in your product strategy Anti Patterns (What This Is NOT) Not competitive analysis: PESTEL looks at macro factors, not competitors Not internal analysis: Focuses on external environment, not your company's strengths/weaknesses Not static: Macro environment changes—reassess regularly When to Use This Entering a new market or geography Strategic planning (annual roadmapping, 3 5 year planning) Assessing product viability in a changing environment Risk assessment for new product initiatives Pitching to execs or investors (shows environmental awareness) When NOT to Use This For tactical, short term decisions (use competitive analysis instead) When external factors are stable and well understood As a substitute for customer research (PESTEL is macro, not micro) Application Use template.md for the full fill in structure. Step 1: Define the Scope Clarify what you're analyzing: Quality checks: Specific: Not "analyze market" but "assess viability of EU launch" Time bound: PESTEL factors change—state your horizon Step 2: Analyze Political Factors Examine government and regulatory influences: Quality checks: Specific to your product: Don't list generic policies—explain the impact Actionable: Can you adjust strategy based on this insight? Step 3: Analyze Economic Factors Examine economic conditions: Quality checks: Data driven: Use real economic indicators (GDP growth, inflation rates, etc.) Product specific: How do these trends affect your product? Step 4: Analyze Social Factors Examine societal and cultural trends: Quality checks: Trend based: Reference actual cultural shifts, not assumptions Validated: Use survey data, research reports, or demographic studies Step 5: Analyze Technological Factors Examine technology landscape: Quality checks: Competitive context: How does the tech landscape affect your position? Actionable: What R&D or partnerships do you need? Step 6: Analyze Environmental Factors Examine environmental and sustainability issues: Quality checks: Honest assessment: If impact is minimal, say so (don't force relevance) Market positioning: Can environmental factors be a differentiator? Step 7: Analyze Legal Factors Examine legal and compliance landscape: Quality checks: Legal risk assessment: What could block or delay your product? Compliance costs: Budget for legal, data residency, certifications? Step 8: Synthesize Insights After analyzing all six factors, summarize: Step 9: Update Regularly Annual review: Reassess PESTEL factors during strategic planning Trigger events: Update when major external events occur (new regulations, economic shifts, etc.) Track changes: Document how factors evolve over time Examples See examples/sample.md for a full PESTEL analysis example. Mini example excerpt: Common Pitfalls Pitfall 1: Generic Analysis Symptom: "Political: Regulations exist. Economic: Economy affects spending." Consequence: No actionable insights. Fix: Be specific: "EU AI Act requires explainable AI → Need transparency features by Q3 2026." Pitfall 2: Ignoring Low Impact Factors Symptom: Forcing relevance where none exists (e.g., "Climate change affects our SaaS product...") Consequence: Wastes time, dilutes focus. Fix: If a factor has low impact, say so. Focus effort on high impact areas. Pitfall 3: No Data Sources Symptom: "Economic growth is strong" (no citation) Consequence: Unverifiable claims, low credibility. Fix: Cite sources: "SMB sector growing 5% annually (US Census Bureau, 2025)." Pitfall 4: Analysis Without Action Symptom: Long list of factors, no strategic recommendations Consequence: Insights don't inform decisions. Fix: Synthesize into "Top Opportunities," "Top Threats," and "Strategic Recommendations." Pitfall 5: One Time Exercise Symptom: PESTEL analysis done once, never revisited Consequence: Stale insights as macro environment shifts. Fix: Review annually or when major external events occur (new regulations, economic shifts, etc.). References Related Skills skills/recommendation canvas/SKILL.md — PESTEL factors inform risk assessment in canvas skills/positioning statement/SKILL.md — PESTEL insights shape competitive positioning skills/problem statement/SKILL.md — Social/economic factors influence customer problems External Frameworks Francis Joseph Aguilar, Scanning the Business Environment (1967) — Origin of PEST analysis PESTEL (extension of PEST to include Environmental and Legal) Michael Porter, Competitive Strategy (1980) — Complements PESTEL with industry level analysis Dean's Work PESTEL Analysis Prompt Template (adapted from Aguilar's framework) Provenance Adapted from prompts/pestel analysis prompt template.md in the https://github.com/deanpeters/product manager prompts repo. Skill type: Component Suggested filename: pestel analysis.md Suggested placement: /skills/components/ Dependencies: References skills/recommendation canvas/SKILL.md , skills/positioning statement/SKILL.md

pestel-analysis