Job stories
Job stories, also known as Jobs-to-be-done stories, are a valuable tool in the world of product development and user-centered design. Coined by Clayton Christensen and further popularized by Alan Klement and Bob Moesta, job stories provide a framework for understanding and addressing the needs of users in a specific context.
Unlike user stories that focus on features and functionality, job stories shift the perspective to the underlying motivations and desired outcomes of users. They capture the job that users are trying to accomplish when they engage with a product or service. A job story typically follows a simple structure –
When [situation]
, I want to [motivation]
, and so I can [
expected outcome]
.
The structure of a job story encourages a deeper understanding of user needs by considering the specific context in which the job arises, the motivation driving the user to perform the job, and the expected outcome or benefit they seek to achieve. This helps...