Jobs-To-Be-Done Framework

What is the Jobs to be Done Framework?

The jobs-to-be-done framework is an approach to developing products based on understanding
both the customer’s specific goal, or “job,” and the thought processes that would lead that
customer to “hire” a product to complete the job.

When using this framework, a product team attempts to discover what its users are actually
trying to accomplish or achieve when they buy a product or service.

How Does the Jobs-to-be-Done Theory Apply to Product

Development?
Like other prioritization frameworks for product development, the jobs-to-be-done (JTBD)
approach removes the focus from the product itself, and places it on the customer.

Where this framework differs, though, is that it then takes the next step to explore customers’
true motivations for buying. In the often-used example, the surface-level explanation is, “I need a
drill.” Probing a little deeper, we discover the customer actually needs a well-drilled hole.

But the jobs-to-be-done theory takes this probing deeper still. As a result, it can help a product
team uncover the underlying goal that users are trying to achieve: the enjoyment of seeing a
picture hanging in their living room.

As entrepreneur and author Guerric de Ternay explains, product managers can use the jobs-to-
be-done framework in two ways:

1. To get a better understanding of what their market wants or needs

2. To create a compelling customer experience

As the book The Innovator’s Toolkit explains, a job to be done is neither a product nor a solution
itself; rather, it is the higher purpose for which a customer would buy a product and solution.
What is the Origin of the Jobs-to-be-Done Framework?
The jobs-to-be-done framework was developed by Tony Ulwick, founder of the innovation
consulting firm Strategyn. In fact, JTBD began as Ulwick’s patented process called Outcome
Driven Innovation (ODI), a framework focused on identifying outcomes that customers seek, as
opposed to products they want.

According to Ulwick’s book, Jobs to Be Done, since taking the theory to market in 1991, his
company Strategyn has used the JTBD framework with hundreds of client companies, and those
businesses have enjoyed an 86% success rate applying the jobs-to-be-done theory to develop and
improve their products.

What are Pros and Cons of JTBD?

Pros of jobs-to-be-done

1. It can help you better align what you’re building with what your users really want.

Because the job metaphor forces product teams to delve deeper into what their customers
actually want, JTBD can help focus product development on solving problems as opposed to
building features.

2. It can keep you from building “a faster horse” that nobody wants.
Part of the JTBD approach involves asking “Why” and “What.” Why do your customers want a
specific feature? What is their true desired outcome? What is the emotional state they’re hoping
your product will give them?

With many approaches to product development, organizations ask their target user personas what
they want —and then build what their users tell them to. The problem with this approach is that
your users often don’t have the vision or vocabulary to explain exactly what they want,
especially if nothing like it has reached the market yet.

This is why when Henry Ford asked potential customers what they wanted in terms of better
transportation, many answered, “A faster horse.” By applying the jobs-to-be-done framework,
you can help uncover not just what your users think they want, but what your users actually want
— and why.

Cons of jobs-to-be-done

1. It can lead your user research to become too abstract and high-level.

Although it involves a lot of probing to uncover your customers’ true motivations, JTBD still
requires you to translate those underlying customer goals or “jobs” into practical tools or
solutions to build.

One risk with this framework is that product teams can get lost in the abstract — “Our users want
to become the hero at work” — which can lead to difficulty in prioritizing the strategic roadmap
for the actual product.

2. Some product teams believe it can lead to lackluster design and user experience.

JTBD has become extremely popular with the product and innovation community. But some
worry that because the framework places so much emphasis on the product’s ultimate purpose
for a user, the product team will focus only on this purpose — to the exclusion of other important
elements such as design aesthetics and overall user experience.

In other words, if your users want a drill only for the enjoyment of seeing a beautiful painting
hanging on their wall, your product team might become exclusively focused on meeting that
single objective, which could lead to a drill that isn’t designed with comfort or ease-of-use as a
priority.

Read Feature-less Roadmaps: Unlock Your Product's Strategic Potential➜

Is Jobs-to-be-Done is Worth a Try for Any Product Team?

 JTBD begins with the logical theory that people buy any product or service to get something
done or to achieve a specific desired state.

Even if your team typically uses a different prioritization framework in your product
development, applying the jobs-to-be-done theory is a worthwhile effort. It can help give your
team a different perspective — and possibly a deeper level of understanding — about why your
customers buy your products, and how you can make them better.

Learn more about prioritization in the following webinar.

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