Jobs To Be Done

---
name: jobs-to-be-done
description: 'Discover what customers truly need by analyzing the "job" they hire your product to do. Use when the user mentions "customer discovery", "why customers churn", "what job does this solve", "competing against luck", "product-market fit", "switching behavior", "milkshake moment", or "functional vs emotional jobs". Also trigger when investigating why users choose competitors, designing features around real customer needs, or reframing a value proposition. Covers JTBD interviews, competition analysis, and jobs-oriented roadmaps. For product positioning, see obviously-awesome. For rapid validation, see design-sprint. For non-leading interview technique, see mom-test.'
license: MIT
metadata:
  author: wondelai
  version: "1.5.0"
---

# Jobs to Be Done Framework

Framework for discovering innovation based on a fundamental truth: customers don't buy products -- they "hire" them to do a specific job in their lives.

## Core Principle

**Job to Be Done** = the progress a customer wants to make in specific circumstances.

Key elements of the definition:
- **Progress** (not goal, not solution) -- the customer wants to move from the current state to a better one
- **Circumstances** -- context determines the job, not customer attributes (demographics are useless)
- **Hiring/Firing** -- the customer actively chooses a product for the "job"

## Scoring

**Goal: 10/10.** Score 1 point per satisfied row in the Quick Diagnostic (7 rows) plus up to 3 points for depth: +1 if all three job dimensions are evidenced, +1 if the job statement avoids any product/solution name, +1 if competition includes non-consumption. Bands: **9-10** = job stated without the product, all four forces mapped, three dimensions evidenced, non-obvious competition and Little Hire tracked; **5-6** = job named but one or two diagnostic rows fail (usually missing forces or emotional/social dimensions); **<=3** = product-first framing, demographic segmentation, or Pull-only thinking. Always state the current score and the specific diagnostic rows to fix.… install to load the full skill