Jobs To Be Done: People Hire Progress, Not Products

Written by Jorge Gadelha

Jobs to be done helps teams understand the progress a customer seeks in a specific situation. A useful framework does not replace judgement. It gives the team a shared way to examine evidence, discuss trade-offs and decide what deserves attention. Use this carousel as a working note: revisit the slides during planning, a customer conversation or a review of current priorities. The value is not in completing a template. It is in making the logic behind the next action visible. This article expands the five-slide note into a practical framework for managers, marketers and sales teams.

Customers change something in their lives.: The product matters because of the progress it helps create.

1. Start with the struggling moment.: What situation makes the current way no longer good enough?

2. Understand the desired progress.: What functional, emotional and social change is the customer pursuing?

3. Map the forces around change.: Push of the problem. Pull of the new. Anxiety. Habit.

Design for progress.: Situation -> Desired progress -> Forces -> Better experience.

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What this framework helps you decide

The product matters because of the progress it helps create.

A useful framework compresses complexity without pretending it has disappeared. It gives a team shared language, exposes assumptions and clarifies the decision that should follow. The sections below turn the visual sequence into questions that can be used in planning, review or a customer conversation.

1. Start with the struggling moment.

What situation makes the current way no longer good enough?

Use this part of the framework as a decision prompt. Ask what is currently assumed, what evidence supports the assumption, which trade-off follows, and who owns the next observable action. The purpose is not to complete a template; it is to improve the quality and speed of a real business decision.

2. Understand the desired progress.

What functional, emotional and social change is the customer pursuing?

3. Map the forces around change.

Push of the problem. Pull of the new. Anxiety. Habit.

Design for progress.

Situation -> Desired progress -> Forces -> Better experience.

A practical example

Imagine a small team using jobs to be done during a weekly review. Instead of adding more activity, the team names the current situation, compares the available evidence and chooses one next action with an owner and a review date. The framework makes the reasoning visible, so colleagues can challenge the assumption and learn from the result.

The mistake to avoid

The most common mistake is treating jobs to be done as a presentation exercise. A polished diagram creates little value when the team avoids a trade-off, cannot name the evidence behind the choice, or leaves the next step without an owner.

How to use the framework

Name the business or customer decision.
Write the current assumption in one sentence.
Collect the minimum evidence needed to challenge it.
Choose one action, one owner and one review date.
Record what would cause the team to change direction.

Frequently asked questions

What is jobs to be done?

Jobs to be done is a practical way to understand the progress a customer seeks in a specific situation. It connects a business question to explicit evidence, choices and action.

Why does jobs to be done matter?

It reduces ambiguity and helps a team explain why one action deserves attention while another should wait or stop.

How do you apply jobs to be done?

Start with one current decision, work through the framework, identify the largest uncertainty, assign an owner and define the evidence that will trigger the next review.