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LMU Munich · on Coursera

Competitive Strategy

Beginner English University CertificateFREE
SkillsCompetitive strategyGame theoryStrategic thinkingBusiness economicsDecision analysis

Is this course right for you?

Our take
Tobias Kretschmer's LMU Munich course looks at strategy where it gets genuinely interesting: when your best move depends on what your rivals do.

Good for: Understanding competitive strategy through the lens of game theory.

Skip if: You want general business strategy without the analytical/game-theory angle.

It uses the basic tools of game theory to analyse how firms compete, cooperate and respond to one another, which makes it more analytical than a general strategy course. That's the draw if you enjoy reasoning through strategic interaction rigorously — and the warning if you wanted broad business strategy without the game-theory machinery, since the analytical lens is the whole point here.

Audit it free on Coursera; the certificate sits behind a subscription (about $49/month) or Coursera Plus, with financial aid available, and marks the study rather than a qualification. The logic of strategic interaction is durable (as of 2026).

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About this course

Competitive Strategy looks at how businesses behave when their strategic choices depend on each other. From LMU Munich and instructor Tobias Kretschmer, it uses the basic tools of game theory to analyse how firms pick strategies to gain competitive advantage — pricing, entry, signalling, and more — across six modules.

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Instructor

TK
Tobias Kretschmer
Coursera instructor

Tobias Kretschmer is a professor at LMU Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität) specialising in strategy and organisation. His teaching is known for making game-theory-based strategy accessible and even entertaining through clear examples.

Frequently asked questions

No, but you will meet some. From LMU Munich, the course uses game-theory ideas to analyse how firms compete and make strategic decisions when their outcomes depend on rivals' choices. It teaches the relevant concepts as it goes, so no prior game theory is required — but be aware it takes a more analytical, game-theoretic angle on strategy than a purely descriptive business-strategy course.

Not heavy, but more analytical than a typical strategy course. Its game-theory framing involves some structured reasoning and simple analysis of strategic situations rather than advanced mathematics. If you can follow logical reasoning and basic quantitative thinking, you have enough. It is more rigorous than a purely conceptual strategy course, but it is not a mathematics course — the focus is strategic reasoning.

A general strategy course covers broad frameworks like SWOT and Porter's Five Forces descriptively. This one takes a sharper, more analytical angle — using game theory to reason about how firms compete when their moves affect each other, like pricing, entry, and rivalry. So it is deeper on the logic of competitive interaction specifically, complementing rather than replacing a broad strategy overview.

Yes, you can audit it on Coursera and watch the lectures at no cost. The graded elements and the certificate require a subscription, with financial aid available if you apply. Since much of the value is understanding the competitive-strategy reasoning, auditing gives you the substance if you want the concepts rather than the credential.

It typically runs a few weeks at a modest weekly pace as a focused course. It is analytical and concept-driven rather than a hands-on build, so the time goes into working through the competitive-strategy and game-theory reasoning and applying it to how firms actually compete.
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