IS5542 Chap.6 Jobs to Be Done and How Might We Statements
Jobs to Be Done and How Might We Statements
Opportunities before solutions
The workshop's second and third segments find opportunities with Jobs to Be Done and then define problem statements with design thinking.
The underlying claim is that customers hire products to get a job done, and that jobs stay stable while technology changes, so a new capability is valuable only if it does an existing job better.
Writing job stories
A job story follows a fixed pattern: when a situation arises, I want to do something, so I can reach an expected outcome.
Teams in the workshop take on product roles and prompt a model to propose likely job stories for customers, then number them and choose the most important within a short time box.
From job to How Might We
Problem statements are written as How Might We questions naming an action, an object and a stakeholder, with a purpose clause.
The workshop's key refinement replaces a company goal such as increasing revenue with the customer's job, so the statement inherits its purpose from the job story.
Choosing what to pursue
Statements are drafted in quantity, then placed on a two-by-two matrix of value to the organisation, judged as an executive sponsor would, against complexity of implementation.
The ideal quadrant comes first, long-term strategic and quick-gain statements next, and the rest are bypassed. Three are chosen, with dot voting to break ties, and taken back to a model for solution ideas.
Why volume comes first
Drafting many statements before judging any stops a team fixing on its first idea.
The matrix then does the judging in the open, and dot voting settles ties without letting seniority decide.
What this chapter covers
- 01
Customers hire products to get jobs done
- 02
The job story format
- 03
Using a model to widen the list of jobs
- 04
How Might We statements
- 05
Replacing a company goal with the customer's job
- 06
Value against complexity
- 07
Choosing three statements
Worked example · free
Turn a customer complaint into a ranked problem statement
- 3Write the job story in the course's format.
- 3Write the How Might We statement.
- 2Place it on the matrix with reasons.
Key terms
- Jobs to Be Done
- A method for finding opportunities by asking what customers are really trying to get done.
- How Might We
- A problem statement form naming an action, what it acts on, the stakeholder and the purpose.
- Value-Complexity Matrix
- A two-by-two grid used to sort problem statements by value to the organisation and difficulty of implementation.
- Design Thinking
- A human-centred process usually drawn as five stages: empathise, define, ideate, prototype and test.
Jobs to Be Done and How Might We Statements FAQ
Why should the purpose of a How Might We statement be the customer's job?
Because a statement aimed at the company's goal, such as more revenue, invites any idea that sells more, including ones customers do not want. Naming the job keeps the solution anchored to a real need, and the revenue follows if the job is done better than by the alternatives.
How do teams decide which three statements to take forward?
They place every statement on a matrix of value against complexity, take the ideal quadrant first, and use dot voting if it holds more than three. If it holds fewer, they fill the gap from the strategic quadrant. The rule is deliberately mechanical so that the loudest voice does not decide.
Why does the workshop say jobs stay the same while technology changes?
Because what customers are trying to achieve, such as travelling light or finishing a task quickly, outlasts any product that serves it. Framing opportunities around those jobs keeps a GenAI project focused on doing an existing job better rather than on showcasing a new capability nobody needs.
Exam move
Practise the chain on three everyday products: write one job story each, convert it into a How Might We statement with the job as its purpose, and place it on the matrix. The review's matrix question tests only the axes, but the essay questions reward being able to run the whole chain.
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