Vertical

A market segment defined by industry (automotive, healthcare, legal) rather than by service offered. Specializing in a vertical means every engagement deepens the same industry pattern library — the compounding asset behind expert positioning. WPH’s vertical is automotive.

Source: Corey Quinn, Anyone, Not Everyone (2024), and David C. Baker, The Business of Expertise (2017). Quinn’s thesis from scaling Scorpion: deep vertical specialization compounds — every client in the same industry makes you measurably better for the next one.

First used in: 1.4 · Beachhead & the three rings