---
id: "prereq-business-model-mechanics"
type: "prereq"
source_timestamps: ["¶9", "¶15"]
tags: ["business-acumen", "pricing-models"]
related: ["concept-business-model-portfolio", "claim-independent-growth-strategies"]
reason: "Necessary to grasp why a single growth strategy dilutes a portfolio and how competitors like Cursor outmaneuvered GitHub."
sources: ["commercial"]
sourceVaultSlug: "hbr-seg-commercial"
originDay: 5
articleStem: "hbr-tier2-09-customer-workarounds"
sourceUrl: "https://hbr.org/2026/05/what-customer-workarounds-can-reveal-about-your-business-model"
sourceTitle: "What Customer Workarounds Can Reveal About Your Business Model"
---
# Understanding of Basic Business Model Mechanics

**Prerequisite:** The text assumes the reader understands the fundamental differences between pricing/access models — **per-seat subscriptions, usage-based pricing, API monetization, and enterprise agreements**.

**Why it matters:** Without this, you cannot grasp why a single growth strategy dilutes a [[concept-business-model-portfolio]] (see [[claim-independent-growth-strategies]]) or how [[entity-cursor-d5]] outmaneuvered [[entity-github-copilot-d5]] by pairing a subscription with usage-based pricing.

**Related:** [[concept-business-model-portfolio]] · [[claim-independent-growth-strategies]] · [[action-separate-growth-strategies]]


## Related across articles
- [[prereq-freemium-mechanics]]
- [[concept-business-model-portfolio]]