23
For instance, “I am short of money” is too vague to allow innovators to fully
grasp the “why” at stake. When recast in the framework of a JTBD, however, innovators gain valuable clues needed to predict user behavior: “I am short of money to
pay my mortgage which is a source of concern to me. I am a proud provider for my
wife and young kids.” That kind of insight helps the innovation better meet the
needs than the alternatives offered by competitors.
JTBDs can be quite different from solutions. For instance, many providers of
MP3 reproducers focused on the presumed solution, namely, providing music. In
contrast, Apple aimed the iPod at helping customers listen to music through a seamless experience. It reconsidered the whole business around personal music management, enabling customers to acquire, organize, listen to, and share music.
As value creation targets JTBDs, organizations and firms can not only improve
what they already have but also target new, “blue ocean” markets.
21
The deepest and most significant advantage of this framework is that it explicitly
acknowledges that each JTBD consists of several dimensions (see Box 1.5).
21 Describing the concept of blue ocean markets is beyond the scope of this chapter. Interested readers are kindly invited to read the book Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market
Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant by W. Chan Kim and Renee A. Mauborgne.
Box 1.5 The Anatomy of a Job to Be Done
To fully grasp the why behind purchasing decisions, you must understand the
complex nature of people. Every effective job must account for all three of
these components:
• Functional – it addresses practical, technical aspects.
• Social – it addresses behavioral aspects of users, as well as how the user
interacts and relates to people and groups of people.
• Emotional – it addresses very deep, personal aspects of users such as feelings, sentiments, aspirations, and desires.
Think of the job to be done by a luxury Swiss watch:
• Functional component – it provides an exact, accurate, and reliable account
of the passing of time.
• Social component – it conveys an aura of status and economic success,
providing cues about social status and power. “I am one of the few who can
afford this very expensive and exclusive watch; therefore, I am successful
and powerful.”
• Emotional component – it represents, in this case, a deep sense of belonging to family, passing the watch on from generation to generation. It can
also represent the deep act of love from a spouse or partner reflected in
such an expensive gift.
1 The Quest for Innovation: Addressing User Needs and Value Creation
For instance, “I am short of money” is too vague to allow innovators to fully
grasp the “why” at stake. When recast in the framework of a JTBD, however, innovators gain valuable clues needed to predict user behavior: “I am short of money to
pay my mortgage which is a source of concern to me. I am a proud provider for my
wife and young kids.” That kind of insight helps the innovation better meet the
needs than the alternatives offered by competitors.
JTBDs can be quite different from solutions. For instance, many providers of
MP3 reproducers focused on the presumed solution, namely, providing music. In
contrast, Apple aimed the iPod at helping customers listen to music through a seamless experience. It reconsidered the whole business around personal music management, enabling customers to acquire, organize, listen to, and share music.
As value creation targets JTBDs, organizations and firms can not only improve
what they already have but also target new, “blue ocean” markets.
21
The deepest and most significant advantage of this framework is that it explicitly
acknowledges that each JTBD consists of several dimensions (see Box 1.5).
21 Describing the concept of blue ocean markets is beyond the scope of this chapter. Interested readers are kindly invited to read the book Blue Ocean Strategy: How to Create Uncontested Market
Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant by W. Chan Kim and Renee A. Mauborgne.
Box 1.5 The Anatomy of a Job to Be Done
To fully grasp the why behind purchasing decisions, you must understand the
complex nature of people. Every effective job must account for all three of
these components:
• Functional – it addresses practical, technical aspects.
• Social – it addresses behavioral aspects of users, as well as how the user
interacts and relates to people and groups of people.
• Emotional – it addresses very deep, personal aspects of users such as feelings, sentiments, aspirations, and desires.
Think of the job to be done by a luxury Swiss watch:
• Functional component – it provides an exact, accurate, and reliable account
of the passing of time.
• Social component – it conveys an aura of status and economic success,
providing cues about social status and power. “I am one of the few who can
afford this very expensive and exclusive watch; therefore, I am successful
and powerful.”
• Emotional component – it represents, in this case, a deep sense of belonging to family, passing the watch on from generation to generation. It can
also represent the deep act of love from a spouse or partner reflected in
such an expensive gift.
1 The Quest for Innovation: Addressing User Needs and Value Creation