Definition
Jobs to be done (JTBD) looks at the goal a person is trying to reach, not the features they ask for.
The idea is that people "hire" a product to get a job done. As the old saying goes, people don't want a drill. They want a hole in the wall. The idea is closely linked to Clayton Christensen of Harvard Business School.
A handy way to write a job looks like this: "When I [situation], I want to [action], so I can [result]."
Why it matters
Jobs make feedback easier to act on. A feature request is one person's guess at a solution. The job tells you the real need. It also opens up other, maybe simpler, ways to meet it.
Example
A review says: "Add a timer to the recipe app."
The job: when I cook two dishes at once, I want to know when each step is done, so I can serve them both hot.
Related terms
- Feature request A feature request is a message from a user asking for something your product can't do yet.
- Product-market fit Product-market fit means your product meets a real need so well that people stay, pay and tell their friends.
- Voice of the customer (VoC) Voice of the customer (VoC) means gathering what customers say, in their own words, and using it to guide your choices.
- Competitive analysis Competitive analysis means studying rival apps to find where they win, where they fail, and where you can stand out.
Learn more
Updated by the Synthiya team. See all terms.