Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) is a framework used in market research and product development to understand why people “hire” products and services in their daily lives. Rather than focusing only on basic demographics or customer preferences, JTBD digs into the intentions and motivation behind customer behavior. It asks a simple but powerful question: What job is the customer trying to get done?

In JTBD, a “job” refers to the progress a person is trying to make in a particular situation. This progress can be functional, emotional, or social. For example, when someone buys a smoothie, they might be doing it to replace a meal (functional), feel healthy (emotional), or appear fit to others (social).

This way of thinking helps researchers and innovators move beyond assumptions. Instead of looking at what people say they want, JTBD looks at what people are trying to achieve – whether or not they can articulate it directly.

JTBD Highlights in Market Research

Using the Jobs to Be Done lens allows companies to uncover:

• Customer jobs: What are the goals or tasks customers are trying to complete?
• User needs: What’s missing or frustrating in their current solutions?
• Customer intent: What motivates their choices beyond product features?

These insights are valuable for product development, brand messaging, and long-term innovation strategy. JTBD encourages us to think less about “what’s wrong with our product?” and more about “how well are we helping customers accomplish what they need to do?”

How JTBD Complements Other Research Approaches

JTBD doesn’t replace traditional qualitative or quantitative research. Instead, it adds depth. JTBD helps frame studies around goals and use cases rather than simple likes and dislikes. It’s also highly flexible – whether you’re conducting one-on-one interviews, focus groups, surveys, or ethnographic research, you can use JTBD principles to explore the real-world context behind decisions.

At SIVO Insights, we use JTBD thinking across industries – from consumer goods to healthcare to digital experiences – helping brands uncover new growth opportunities. By understanding customer jobs, we support strategies rooted in real human behavior and unmet potential.

Next, let’s explore what we actually mean by a “job” in this framework – and why it matters more than you might think.

In the Jobs to Be Done framework, a “job” is defined as the progress that a person is trying to make in a particular context. It’s not about the product they use or the task they complete, but the underlying outcome they’re seeking.

Think of a job as the reason someone chooses one solution over another. It’s rooted in real-life situations and goals, not abstract preferences. For example, when someone chooses to take a walk over taking a cab, their job may not be “get to my destination” – it might be “clear my head after a stressful meeting” or “get light exercise during lunch.”

This perspective helps businesses understand why customers behave the way they do. It shifts the focus from features to outcomes, from tactics to purpose.

Key Characteristics of a Customer Job

A “job” in JTBD usually includes these traits:

• Contextual: The job depends on a specific situation or moment in the customer’s life
• Goal-oriented: It reflects the customer’s desired outcome or progress
• Solution-agnostic: It is independent of any particular product or service
• Stable over time: Unlike needs or trends, jobs tend to stay relatively consistent over time

These qualities help businesses tap into long-term motivations rather than temporary problems. In other words, if you understand the true job, you can build solutions that stay relevant, even as market conditions evolve.

Examples of Jobs to Be Done

Consider the following job examples from different industries:

• Finance: “Help me feel in control when managing monthly expenses”
• Healthcare: “Help me return to daily activities after an injury”
• Education: “Help me stay current in my professional knowledge”
• Consumer goods: “Help me feel clean and refreshed during my busy morning routine”

Each of these jobs represents a form of progress. They reveal the real reason customers turn to a product or service – not just how they use it. Understanding these jobs allows companies to tailor their offerings, speak directly to intent, and prioritize long-term innovation over one-off feature fixes.

In JTBD, a job is not necessarily the same as a customer need. Next, we’ll explore how “needs” fit into the picture – and why jobs can offer deeper strategic guidance for product development and market positioning.

In the Jobs to Be Done (JTBD) framework, it’s easy to confuse a “need” with a “job.” After all, these terms often pop up together when discussing customer behavior and product development. But they represent two different – yet connected – ideas. Clarifying the difference between a customer need and a customer job helps organizations achieve deeper insights into what really drives consumer decisions.

Needs Reflect Pain Points or Desires

In simple terms, a need is a specific requirement, want, or pain point that a person experiences in the moment. Needs are usually more immediate and tangible. For example, “I need a faster way to get dinner on the table” or “I need a more comfortable chair to work from home.” Needs signal problems people want solved – but they don’t always reflect the broader goal or ultimate outcome.

Jobs Reflect the Progress Someone is Trying to Make

A job, by contrast, is the progress a person wants to achieve in a given life situation. In JTBD terms, this is the “why” behind the need. A job encompasses more than just a fix – it reflects the user’s intent, priorities, and expected outcomes.

For example, the job behind the dinner need might be: “Help me feed my family quickly and nutritiously with less stress after work.” That same food-related job could give rise to different needs – meal kits, takeout, or time-saving recipes – depending on the person’s context.

Quick Comparison: Job vs. Need

• Jobs are broader goals based on life circumstances (“Make weekday evenings more manageable.”)
• Needs are specific problems or desires related to that job (“Need a fast and healthy dinner option.”)
• Jobs are relatively stable over time, while needs may shift day-to-day based on context.

Recognizing this distinction is important because focusing only on needs can lead to surface-level solutions. When you understand the job behind the need, you can create products and messaging that address people’s full set of motivations – not just their most urgent pain points.

Understanding customer needs is essential – but uncovering the job behind those needs delivers even greater strategic value. That’s because a person’s underlying goal, or “job to be done,” often reveals a richer, more holistic picture of their behavior and motivations.

Moving Beyond Surface-Level Needs

When companies focus solely on meeting obvious or stated customer needs, they may overlook deeper opportunities. Take this example:

Need: “I want a better battery on my phone.”
If we stop at the need, the solution might be: a longer-lasting phone battery.

But the job might be: “Help me stay connected reliably while traveling.”
This job opens the door not just to better battery life, but also portable chargers, offline functionality, or travel-specific data plans.

Understanding customer jobs helps organizations move from reactive product tweaks to proactive innovation strategies based on how customers define success in their lives.

The Impact on Product Development and Consumer Insights

Capturing jobs, rather than just needs, helps brands:

• Develop better-aligned solutions: Products connect to long-term customer goals, not just temporary fixes.
• Segment audiences by intent: Jobs group users based on motivation, not just demographics or behaviors.
• Spot market whitespace: Knowing what progress people seek helps identify unmet opportunities.

For innovation teams, customer jobs are like a compass. They guide not only ideas and prototypes, but also larger decisions about brand positioning, messaging, and investment. By tapping into the deeper logic behind customer decisions, JTBD becomes a powerful framework for strategic growth.

At SIVO, we find that exploring both needs and jobs gives clients sharper consumer insights. Jobs allow us to ask: What larger challenge is this product helping someone solve? Answering that question often sparks bigger thinking – and better solutions.

While jobs and needs serve different functions in the Jobs to Be Done framework, the real value emerges when they’re used together. Combining insights about what customers want now (needs) with what they’re trying to accomplish in the bigger picture (jobs) leads to stronger research, smarter innovation, and products that truly resonate.

Pair Needs with Jobs to Strengthen Context

Think of a need as a symptom, and the job as the diagnosis. Understanding both explains not just what action the customer is taking, but why. This helps brands design for the correct context – whether the user is hurried, cost-focused, emotional, or goal-driven.

For example:

• Need: “I need a quiet space to work.”
• Job: “Help me stay productive while balancing home responsibilities.”

If you only address the need, you might add a noise-canceling feature. But if you solve for the job, your product or service might also address time management, emotional support, or even support network tools.

Tips for Using Jobs and Needs in Research:

• Start with customer stories: Interviews and ethnographic research are effective ways to surface both jobs and needs through real-life experiences.
• Map jobs to the customer journey: Each stage of interaction may involve a different job and different set of needs, from discovery to purchase to usage.
• Quantify jobs when possible: After identifying qualitative JTBD insights, layer on surveys or segmentation to measure prevalence and priority.

By blending qualitative and quantitative methods, researchers can build a robust view of user needs and customer jobs, grounded in real behavior. This is where SIVO Insights excels – delivering clear, actionable findings that align teams and empower smart decision-making.

When teams align around both what customers currently need and what they ultimately seek to achieve, they can design better solutions, craft more relevant messaging, and spark meaningful innovation across the business.