Jobs to be done

The notion of JTBD has roots in Outcome-Driven Innovation (ODI), developed by Anthony Ulwick of the consulting firm Strategyn. ODI, which emerged in the late 1990s, emphasizes identifying measurable outcomes customers desire, the outcomes they prioritize when trying to get a job done, and created a structured approach for opportunity discovery.{{Cite web |last=Khanh |first=Linh |date=2024-09-26 |title=Jobs-to-Be-Done Template: Framework and 7 Examples to Leverage |url=https://userpilot.com/blog/jobs-to-be-done-template/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Thoughts about Product Adoption, User Onboarding and Good UX {{!}} Userpilot Blog |language=en-US}}

In 1999, Ulwick shared ODI with Harvard Business School’s Clayton Christensen, who popularized the language of "jobs to be done" in his 2003 book The Innovator’s Dilemma, and later in Competing Against Luck. {{Cite news |last=Rifkin |first=Glenn |date=2020-01-25 |title=Clayton Christensen, Guru of 'Disruptive Innovation,' Dies at 67 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/25/business/clayton-christensen-dead.html |access-date=2025-06-19 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}

Prominent figures associated with JTBD theory include:

• Tony Ulwick developed ODI, which includes mapping customer jobs and desired outcomes through a structured methodology.
• Clayton M. Christensen adopted and expanded JTBD theory to diagnose customer decisions beyond demographic filters.{{Cite news |last=Rifkin |first=Glenn |date=2020-01-25 |title=Clayton Christensen, Guru of 'Disruptive Innovation,' Dies at 67 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/25/business/clayton-christensen-dead.html |access-date=2025-06-19 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}
• Bob Moesta applied JTBD concepts to sales and marketing contexts.{{Cite web |last=Peiries |first=Shavin |date=2021-06-29 |title=Notes on Demand Side Sales by Bob Moesta |url=https://shavinpeiries.medium.com/notes-on-demand-side-sales-by-bob-moesta-202632fba421 |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Medium |language=en}}

JTBD categorizes jobs into five major types:

1. Functional Jobs - the practical tasks or problems customers aim to solve (e.g., "drill a hole").
2. Emotional and Social Jobs - the feelings people want to experience or how they wish to be perceived (e.g., confidence, convenience).
3. Related Jobs - tasks surrounding the core job, such as maintenance or setup.
4. Consumption-Chain Jobs - steps such as installation, transport, and disposal that support the core job.
5. Purchase Decision Jobs - the financial or performance criteria used by buyers.{{Cite web |last=Ulwick |first=Tony |date=2023-05-22 |title=Jobs-to-be-Done: A Framework for Customer Needs |url=https://jobs-to-be-done.com/jobs-to-be-done-a-framework-for-customer-needs-c883cbf61c90 |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Medium |language=en}}

A job map breaks down a job into sequential steps - from defining objectives to execution and afterwards - to identify opportunities for optimization.{{Cite journal |last=Hankammer |first=Stephan |last2=Brenk |first2=Sebastian |last3=Fabry |first3=Hannah |last4=Nordemann |first4=Anne |last5=Piller |first5=Frank T. |date=2019-09-10 |title=Towards circular business models: Identifying consumer needs based on the jobs-to-be-done theory |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652619316919 |journal=Journal of Cleaner Production |volume=231 |pages=341–358 |doi=10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.05.165 |issn=0959-6526}}

JTBD integrates customer-defined desired outcomes - specific, measurable metrics used to assess job completion success - which allow innovation teams to prioritize unmet customer needs quantitatively.{{Cite web |title=What Is the Jobs to Be Done Framework (JTBD)? |url=https://builtin.com/articles/jobs-to-be-done-framework |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Built In |language=en}}

ODI, founded by Tony Ulwick, uses job mapping and outcome measurement to identify areas where customer needs may not be fully met. The methodology includes a scoring system that ranks outcomes by their importance to customers and current satisfaction levels.{{Cite web |title=Innovation Process |url=https://strategyn.com/outcome-driven-innovation-process/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Strategyn |language=en-US}}

Bob Moesta’s Demand-Side Sales adapts JTBD principles to sales and marketing, focusing on customers’ life circumstances and motivations rather than the seller’s agenda. Its goal is to connect products to the real "job" users need done.{{Cite web |title=Bob Moesta: Demand-Side Sales 101 |url=https://businessofsoftware.org/talks/demand-side-sales-101-bob-moesta-online/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Business of Software |language=en}}

Clayton Christensen framed JTBD as a tool to understand decision-making causality - why customers choose one solution over another. His approach suggests exploring customer context and motivation deeply to design disruptive, context-aware products.{{Cite web |title=Jobs to Be Done Theory |url=https://www.christenseninstitute.org/theory/jobs-to-be-done/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Christensen Institute |language=en-US}}

JTBD has been applied in various fields, including product design and marketing, to better align offerings with customer needs. Reported benefits include:

• Improved alignment between product design and real customer needs.
• Reduced innovation risk by focusing on outcomes rather than features.
• The ability to uncover hidden market segments based on functional/emotional jobs.
• Improved customer retention through closer alignment with user needs has been cited as a possible outcome.{{Cite web |last=Yoo |first=Jay Rughani, Daisy Wolf, Vijay Pande, Julie |date=2023-09-18 |title=Commercializing AI in Healthcare: The Jobs to be Done |url=https://a16z.com/commercializing-ai-in-healthcare-the-jobs-to-be-done/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Andreessen Horowitz |language=en}}

• McDonald's reportedly adjusted milkshake consistency and packaging after studying consumer use cases, such as commuters seeking portable breakfast options.{{Cite web |title=Fullstory Blog Jobs to Be Done blog og image {{!}} Fullstory |url=https://www.fullstory.com/blog/clayton-christensen-jobs-to-be-done-framework-product-development/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=www.fullstory.com |language=en}}
• Tax software: Simplified to reduce time spent on taxes upon discovering customers prioritized speed over complexity.{{Cite web |last=Kalbach |first=Jim |date=2016-10-23 |title=A Practical Model for Jobs To Be Done (JTBD) |url=https://experiencinginformation.com/2016/10/23/a-practical-model-for-jobs-to-be-done-jtbd/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=EXPERIENCING INFORMATION |language=en}}

Other examples include Spotify (“help me focus or relax”), Uber (“help me get from A to B affordably and safely”), and Duolingo (“help me learn a language in short, enjoyable sessions”).{{Cite web |last=Tsarova |first=Elen |date=2023-07-12 |title=Jobs To Be Done Examples: Spotify, Duolingo, Uber Cases {{!}} Railsware Blog |url=https://railsware.com/blog/jobs-to-be-done-examples/ |access-date=2025-06-19 |language=en-US}}

JTBD frameworks may become overly abstract if not paired with practical application and translation into specific features. Structuring desired outcomes for quantitative analysis can also be resource intensive.{{Cite web |last=Mohammed |first=Shah |date=2024-06-10 |title=Exploring the Limitations of the Jobs to be Done Framework |url=https://shahmm.medium.com/exploring-the-limitations-of-the-jobs-to-be-done-framework-ebd387fd12e0 |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=Medium |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Why 'Jobs-to-be-Done' Doesn't Work and What You Should be Doing Instead {{!}} HackerNoon |url=https://hackernoon.com/why-jobs-to-be-done-doesnt-work-and-what-you-should-be-doing-instead |access-date=2025-06-19 |website=hackernoon.com |language=en}}

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