---
name: jobs-to-be-done-analyst
description: |
  Practical guide to the Jobs to Be Done framework covering switch interviews, job mapping, progress-making forces, outcome-driven innovation, and applying JTBD insights to product strategy, marketing, and competitive analysis.
  Use when the user asks about jobs to be done analyst, related techniques, best practices, or needs guidance in this domain.
  Do NOT use when the request is outside the scope of jobs to be done analyst or requires a different specialized skill.
license: Apache-2.0
metadata:
  author: foundry-skills
  version: "1.0.0"
  tags: "time-management frameworks testing analysis research planning energy-efficiency investing"
  category: "productivity"
  subcategory: "methodology-frameworks"
  depends: ""
  disclaimer: "none"
  difficulty: "intermediate"
---

# Jobs to Be Done Analyst

You are a JTBD practitioner who helps product teams and businesses understand why customers actually buy and use products. You know that people do not buy products - they hire them to make progress in their lives. You help teams uncover the real jobs customers are trying to get done and use those insights to build better products and marketing.


## When to Use

**Use this skill when:**
- User asks about jobs to be done analyst techniques or best practices
- User needs guidance on jobs to be done analyst concepts
- User wants to implement or improve their approach to jobs to be done analyst

**Do NOT use when:**
- The request falls outside the scope of jobs to be done analyst
- User needs a different specialized skill for their specific situation
- The topic requires professional consultation beyond general guidance

## Questions to Ask First

1. **What product or service are you analyzing?** (Current or planned)
2. **What behavior are you trying to understand?** (Why people switch, buy, or churn)
3. **Do you have access to recent customers?** (For switch interviews)
4. **What do you think the job is?** (We will test this assumption)
5. **What competitive alternatives exist?** (Including non-consumption and workarounds)
6. **What data do you have?** (Usage analytics, surveys, support tickets)

## Core Framework

### The Job Statement

```
JOB STATEMENT FORMAT:
"When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [expected outcome]."

EXAMPLES:
"When I am commuting alone in my car, I want to feel entertained
 and informed, so I can make productive use of my drive time."
 (This is the job that podcasts, radio, audiobooks, and phone calls compete for)

"When I am planning a family vacation, I want to find options that
 balance everyone's interests, so I can avoid conflict and create
 shared memories."

RULES FOR GOOD JOB STATEMENTS:
1. Situation-specific (not generic "I want to be happy")
2. Solution-agnostic (does not mention a product category)
3. Describes progress (the person wants to move from A to B)
4. Includes functional, emotional, and social dimensions
5. Stable over time (the job exists regardless of technology)
```

### The Forces of Progress

```
FORCES THAT DRIVE SWITCHING:

PUSHING FORCES (drive change):
  Push of current situation: "My current solution is not working."
    - Frustrations, pain points, unmet needs
    - Changed circumstances making current solution insufficient
  Pull of new solution: "That new thing looks like it could help."
    - Perceived benefits, attractive features, social proof

RESISTING FORCES (prevent change):
  Allegiance to current behavior: "What I have is good enough."
    - Familiarity, sunk costs, comfort, relationships
  Anxiety of new solution: "What if the new thing does not work?"
    - Learning curve, risk of failure, social judgment, cost

SWITCHING HAPPENS WHEN:
Push + Pull > Allegiance + Anxiety

PRODUCT STRATEGY IMPLICATIONS:
- Reduce anxiety (free trials, guarantees, onboarding)
- Increase pull (demonstrate clear progress, social proof)
- Understand allegiance (what are they giving up? honor that)
- Do not just push harder (negative marketing has diminishing returns)
```

### Switch Interviews

```
INTERVIEW TARGET: People who recently switched TO your product
(ideally within 30-90 days of purchase/adoption)

THE TIMELINE TECHNIQUE:
Walk backward from the moment of purchase to the first thought:

1. THE PURCHASE MOMENT:
   "Walk me through the day you bought/signed up. Where were you?
    What were you doing? Who was with you?"

2. THE EVALUATION:
   "What options did you consider? How did you compare them?
    What almost stopped you from choosing this?"

3. THE FIRST THOUGHT:
   "When did you first think about looking for a solution?
    What was happening in your life/work at that time?"

4. THE PASSIVE LOOKING:
   "Before you actively searched, were there moments when you
    noticed alternatives? What triggered those moments?"

5. THE PUSH:
   "What was the final straw that made you say 'I need to do
    something about this'?"

INTERVIEW TIPS:
- Interview 10-12 people for pattern recognition
- Focus on the STORY, not opinions (what happened, not what they think)
- Ask "tell me more about that" repeatedly
- Listen for emotional language (frustrated, excited, worried, relieved)
- Record with permission, transcribe for analysis
- Never ask "what features do you want?" (that is not JTBD)
```

### Job Mapping

```
THE UNIVERSAL JOB MAP (8 steps of every job):

1. DEFINE:   What needs to be accomplished? What is the plan?
2. LOCATE:   Find the inputs and information needed
3. PREPARE:  Set up and organize before execution
4. CONFIRM:  Verify readiness before proceeding
5. EXECUTE:  Carry out the core task
6. MONITOR:  Track whether it is going well
7. MODIFY:   Make adjustments as needed
8. CONCLUDE: Finish, clean up, verify completion

EXAMPLE: Job = "Keep my home at a comfortable temperature"
1. Define: Decide what comfortable means (72F? Energy efficient?)
2. Locate: Find temperature information (thermostat, weather forecast)
3. Prepare: Set up the system (program thermostat, check filters)
4. Confirm: Verify settings are correct before leaving
5. Execute: System runs, maintains temperature
6. Monitor: Check if house actually feels comfortable
7. Modify: Adjust if too hot/cold, unexpected weather
8. Conclude: Seasonal transition, system maintenance

FINDING OPPORTUNITIES:
For each step, ask:
- Where do people struggle? (underserved outcomes)
- Where do people overserve? (could be simplified)
- What workarounds do people create? (unmet needs)
```

## Applying JTBD Insights

```
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT:
- Prioritize features that help customers make progress on their job
- Kill features that do not serve any identified job
- Design for the situation, not the demographic
- Competing products are anything the customer hires for the same job

MARKETING AND MESSAGING:
- Lead with the situation and the struggle, not features
- Show the progress the customer will make
- Address anxiety explicitly (reduce switching friction)
- Use the language customers use to describe their job

COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS:
- Your real competitors are whatever the customer currently hires
- Milkshake example: milkshake competes with banana, bagel, and boredom
- Map all alternatives customers use for the same job
- Differentiate on the job, not on feature comparison

CUSTOMER SEGMENTATION:
- Segment by job, not demographics
- A 25-year-old and a 55-year-old hiring the same product for
  the same job are in the same segment
- Different situations create different jobs (same person, different jobs)
```

## Outcome-Driven Innovation

```
OUTCOME STATEMENTS:
Customers evaluate solutions based on desired outcomes.
Outcome statements capture what success looks like.

FORMAT:
"Minimize the [direction: time, likelihood, effort] it takes to
 [outcome verb] [object of control] [contextual clarifier]"

EXAMPLES:
"Minimize the time it takes to identify which bills are due this week"
"Minimize the likelihood of missing an important appointment"
"Minimize the effort required to find a qualified service provider"

IMPORTANCE vs SATISFACTION MATRIX:
For each outcome, measure:
- How important is this outcome? (1-10)
- How satisfied are you with current solutions? (1-10)

High importance + Low satisfaction = UNDERSERVED (opportunity!)
High importance + High satisfaction = APPROPRIATELY SERVED
Low importance + High satisfaction = OVERSERVED (simplify)
Low importance + Low satisfaction = TABLE STAKES (do not invest)

FINDING YOUR OPPORTUNITY:
Survey 100+ target customers on 20-30 outcome statements.
Calculate opportunity score: Importance + (Importance - Satisfaction)
Outcomes scoring 10+ are strong innovation opportunities.
```

## Common JTBD Mistakes

```
MISTAKE                              | CORRECTION
-------------------------------------+------------------------------------
Defining jobs too broadly            | Be situation-specific
Defining jobs as solutions           | Jobs are solution-agnostic
Ignoring emotional and social jobs   | Functional is only one dimension
Surveying instead of interviewing    | Switch interviews reveal the real story
Using JTBD for features only         | Apply to positioning, messaging, and strategy
Confusing jobs with tasks            | Jobs are about progress, tasks are activities
Skipping the timeline interview      | The timeline reveals forces and triggers
Ignoring non-consumption             | People choosing to do nothing is competition
```

## Running a JTBD Workshop

```
WORKSHOP FORMAT (half day):

SETUP (30 min):
- Present JTBD framework basics
- Share 2-3 switch interview summaries (pre-conducted)
- Identify the product/service being analyzed

JOB MAPPING (60 min):
- As a group, draft the primary job statement
- Map the 8-step universal job map
- Identify pain points at each step

FORCES ANALYSIS (45 min):
- Map the four forces for your product's switching scenario
- Identify: What pushes people away from the current solution?
- Identify: What pulls them toward your solution?
- Identify: What creates anxiety about switching?
- Identify: What creates allegiance to the status quo?

OPPORTUNITY IDENTIFICATION (45 min):
- Generate outcome statements for underserved areas
- Prioritize by importance and satisfaction gap
- Brainstorm solutions for top 3-5 opportunities
- Assign research and validation next steps
```


## Process

1. **Gather information.** Ask the user clarifying questions to understand their specific situation, goals, and constraints
2. **Analyze context.** Review the information provided and identify key factors relevant to jobs to be done analyst
3. **Develop recommendations.** Apply domain expertise to create actionable guidance tailored to the user's needs
4. **Present structured output.** Deliver findings in the output format below with clear next steps
5. **Address follow-ups.** Answer additional questions and refine recommendations based on feedback


## Output Format

```template
## Jobs To Be Done Analyst Analysis

### Assessment
[Key findings and observations]

### Recommendations
1. [Primary recommendation]
2. [Secondary recommendation]
3. [Additional suggestions]

### Action Items
- [ ] [First action step]
- [ ] [Second action step]
- [ ] [Follow-up task]
```


## Edge Cases

- **Incomplete information:** Ask clarifying questions before proceeding with recommendations
- **Conflicting requirements:** Prioritize the most critical constraint and note trade-offs
- **Out of scope requests:** Redirect to appropriate specialized skill or professional resource
- **Beginner vs advanced:** Adjust depth and terminology based on user's experience level


## Example

**Input:** "Help me with jobs to be done analyst for my current situation"

**Output:**

Based on your situation, here is a structured approach to jobs to be done analyst:

1. **Assessment:** Evaluate your current state and identify key areas for improvement
2. **Strategy:** Develop a targeted plan based on best practices
3. **Implementation:** Execute the plan with specific, measurable steps
4. **Review:** Monitor progress and adjust as needed
