What is Jobs-to-Be-Done? A Perspective-Changing Innovation Lens
Introduction
Innovation is often seen through the lens of products and services, but Jobs-to-Be-Done offers a unique perspective. This lens allows companies to understand markets, customer needs, and competitors differently, leading to more predictable and profitable innovation.
The Gift of Perspective
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The ability to see the world through a different lens is a gift that can be game changing. It’s the gift of perspective, a unique way to think about or explain something that’s otherwise difficult or even impossible to understand.
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Albert Einstein, for example, famously conducted thought experiments picturing himself riding on a beam of light, observing the universe along the way. What he saw through this lens reshaped the way we think about the world of physics.
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Jobs to be done is best defined as a perspective. It’s a powerful lens that allows aspiring innovators to observe markets, segments, customer needs, and competitors differently, and in doing so make their success in innovation far more predictable and profitable.
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Many of the world’s most sophisticated companies are using this lens to change their innovation mindset and to transform innovation from an art to a science.
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Here’s what they are doing: rather than experiencing the world of innovation through the lens of the company and the products and services they offer, they’ve realized that there is much to be gained by viewing the world of innovation through the lens of the customer and the problems they’re trying to solve.
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After all, people don’t want a quarter-inch drill; they want the quarter-inch hole. So, to be successful as an innovator, you should choose to see the world of innovation through the lens of the hole maker, not the drill maker.
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From this perspective, the world looks very different. What becomes immediately obvious when looking through this lens is why people buy products and services in the first place.
Understanding the Economic Principle of Consumer Behavior
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Consumers purchase products and services with the intention of achieving a specific task or goal. This behavior is rooted in an economic principle where people seek solutions to their needs and challenges through the acquisition of goods and services.
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The focus of consumer purchasing behavior is centered on accomplishing tasks, reaching objectives, and addressing and preventing problems. These tasks or ‘jobs’ can vary widely, and understanding them becomes crucial in shaping innovation and market research strategies.
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Shifting the focus from the product to the job that consumers are trying to accomplish brings about a transformation in the way markets and customer needs are approached. It challenges long-held assumptions about innovation and paves the way for a new, more effective approach.
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By viewing the ‘job’ as the fundamental unit of analysis, a new perspective on innovation emerges. This paves the way for a structured and science-based approach to a process that has historically been mired in ambiguity.
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The traditional definition of a market is challenged when the focus is shifted from the product to the job that consumers are trying to get done. It raises questions about how companies define their markets and underscores the limited clarity when products are at the center of market definition.
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Defining a market based on the ‘job to be done’ perspective involves identifying a group of people with a specific task or goal. This could range from parents imparting life lessons to children to surgeons undertaking a rotator cuff repair. The problem space becomes the focal point of market definition rather than the solution space.
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This shift in perspective offers companies a more stable and enduring focus for value creation, as it transcends the fluctuations associated with individual products. It aligns the market definition with the fundamental reason why people purchase products and services.
Understanding Customer Needs: A Different Perspective
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Defining customer needs is a significant challenge for product teams, as there is often disagreement on what actually constitutes a ‘need’.
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There is a lack of clarity on whether a need is a solution, feature, benefit, requirement, exciter, or delighter from the company’s perspective.
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The jobs-to-be-done lens provides a different perspective, where needs are seen as measurable outcomes that people want to achieve when getting a job done.
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Measurable outcomes, such as minimizing the likelihood of over or undercooking a meal, reducing cooking and cleanup time, are examples of customer needs when preparing a meal.
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This perspective emphasizes that people have clear, articulate needs in the problem space, and it is essential for effective needs discovery.
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Effective needs discovery is valuable as the need statements themselves serve as instructions for value creation for years to come.
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An example of measurable outcomes used by completion engineers to measure success when extracting oil from an oil well can provide insight into defining customer needs effectively.
Unmet Needs and Market Segmentation in Product Innovation
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Once a product team agrees on a customer need, they must identify unmet needs through a ‘jobs to be done’ lens.
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Unmet needs are defined as the important measurable outcomes that people struggle to achieve, which are not well satisfied by current solutions.
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Identifying unmet outcomes upfront enables companies to conceptualize product ideas with confidence before development begins.
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Achieving product-market fit early in the innovation process is the ultimate goal, and using the ‘jobs to be done’ approach makes this possible.
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The ‘jobs to be done’ approach sheds new light on market segmentation, as over 80% of product teams disagree on the best way to segment a market.
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Segmenting a market based on demographics, psychographics, personas, use cases, attitudes, behaviors, and price points may not be the most effective approach from a company lens.
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Through a ‘jobs to be done’ lens, the best way to segment a market becomes obvious - around the unmet measurable outcomes.
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An outcome-based approach to segmentation is possible only when markets and needs are defined through the ‘jobs to be done’ approach.
Innovative Market Segmentation
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When it comes to preparing a meal, half the market may struggle with overcooking the meal, while the other half may not.
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Segmenting the market around outcomes helps innovators understand the circumstances that cause different segments to exist and how to address their unique struggles.
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This approach to market segmentation is a breakthrough, as it provides clarity on the innovation process.
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Innovation doesn’t have to be a random process; it becomes obvious and defined through this lens.
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Innovation, through the Jobs To Be Done lens, is defined as the process of devising a solution, product, or service that fulfills the job better.
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The team at Stratagen has changed the way market needs and segments are defined by using the Jobs To Be Done lens.
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They have also developed the Outcome Driven Innovation process, which has been used in over 1,000 growth strategy engagements with a world-class client base across 30 plus industries, generating billions of dollars in new revenue.
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The process has been battle-tested for decades and makes the innovation process five times more predictable.
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By looking at innovation through this new lens, Stratagen aims to change the way the world innovates.
Conclusion
The Jobs-to-Be-Done perspective offers a transformative way to approach innovation, emphasizing the importance of understanding customer needs and market segmentation. By shifting the focus from products to the ‘jobs’ that consumers aim to accomplish, companies can create more stable and enduring value for their customers.