Developed by Bob Moesta and Clayton Christensen, Jobs to Be Done Theory (JTBD or Jobs Theory) is a lens that reveals the circumstances—or forces—that drive people and organizations toward and away from decisions.
While conventional marketing focuses on market demographics or product attributes, JTBD goes beyond superficial categories to expose the functional, social, and emotional dimensions that explain why people make the choices they do.
Everyone has Jobs to Be Done in their lives—the progress they’re trying to make as they strive toward a goal or aspiration within particular circumstances. We call these Jobs because just as people hire contractors to help them build houses or lawyers to build a case, people “hire” products or services when “jobs” arise in their lives.
Transcript:
Nothing in the world improves until people decide to change—whether it’s policymakers creating healthcare programs or nations pledging to curb emissions. Improvement can’t happen until someone changes their behavior. So what drives our decisions, and is there a way to predict how humans will behave? The answer lies in the Jobs to Be Done Theory, a powerful framework for understanding why people do what they do.
Think about it this way: if your car breaks down, you hire a tow truck and then a mechanic so you can get back on the road. If you need to get from Boston to San Francisco, you choose an airline that fits your needs. People don’t simply buy products or services; they pull them into their lives to make progress. The progress they seek, plus the circumstances they’re in, are the two components of the job to be done. When a job arises, people hire a solution.
This is best explained through the forces of progress. When we hit a struggling moment and have to make a decision, there are forces that both compel and oppose change. Compelling us to change are the push of our current situation and the pull of a new idea. Opposing change are our daily habits, as well as anxieties about the unknown. Humans often don’t like change—but if opportunity outweighs opposition, we will move to a new behavior. Conversely, if our habits and anxieties outweigh reasons to change, we will continue as we are.
So what’s the value of using a Jobs to Be Done perspective? Let’s compare it to common alternatives. A lot of research tries to predict behavior by looking for correlations between demographics and choices, or by identifying common human needs that could shape decisions. But decisions aren’t simply the result of demographic categories. For example, King Charles and Azie Osborne share the same age, sizable income, and more—but they wouldn’t buy the same car. Frequently photographed in every action, King Charles might drive an electric car to represent his passion for the environment. Meanwhile, after 30 years of failed attempts, Azie Osborne might buy a Ferrari to celebrate passing his driving test. He didn’t just want any car to get from A to B—he wanted a prestigious brand to represent status.
Demographic data is often an ineffective predictor of the choices we make. Decisions aren’t solely the result of perceived needs either. For example, a condo developer targeting downsizing retirees assumed they were in the business of building new homes. But high-end touches and flashy newspaper ads didn’t convert to sales. Only after interviewing buyers who had already moved in did the developers realize retirees cared most about having enough space for their large dining room table, which represented family. They were also overwhelmed by the process of moving and letting go of possessions. So the developer built storage units across the street and offered two years’ rent-free. The job to be done wasn’t just the need for a comfortable home—it was helping people make a major life transition without regrets. You can’t understand people’s needs until you understand their stories.
But what about jobs happening at a larger scale, like reimagining a country’s education system or partnering across industries to transform healthcare? Take healthcare as an example. Systems and organizations are increasingly trying to reach more patients to improve their health. One company may hire a telehealth platform to provide care anytime, anywhere. A different company may hire a health coaching service to help patients with chronic conditions. Both hires are trying to solve the same problem—reaching more patients to improve health—but each satisfies a different job. Telehealth satisfies help me provide care anytime, anywhere, while health coaching services satisfy help me engage my patients in lifestyle changes.
There is a lot of competition for eyes, ears, and wallets. But competition is more than just alternative versions of the same solution. Jobs to Be Done Theory, developed by Bob Moesta and Clayton Christensen, shows that it’s the push and pull of our daily circumstances—not factors or numbers on a spreadsheet—that determine why we make the choices we do.
To learn more about how to use this theory to frame your strategy, visit ChristensenInstitute.org/theory/jobs-to-be-done.
