Can Jobs to be Done and Behavioral Science work well together?
I looked at one of Clayton Christiansens papers on HBR "Know Your Customers’ Jobs to Be Done” from 2016 to illustrate the point.
“Job” is shorthand for what an individual really seeks to accomplish in a given circumstance" - This in behavioral science can translate to our Outcome for example - but we don't have to translate it, as the JTBD definition does a good job at this.
Let's explore further from the article:
"The circumstances are more important than customer characteristics, product attributes, new technologies, or trends". - To apply this, you need to make sure that you understand the context into which people are making decisions - if you are designing a product or service, then make sure that before you launch, you can test in that specific context, to validate.
"Good innovations solve problems that formerly had only inadequate solutions..or no solution." - To apply this, you must understand what is driving the behavior and ensure you can address it. (go granular to know exactly what solution is needed to address the driver.
If people lack the physiological capability or even the physical one for example there is no way they can be motivated to buy or use your product or service - hence why you need to use a behavioral model to understand what is really going on.
"Jobs are never simply about function..they have powerful social and emotional dimensions". - To apply this, we must take into account the environment, and system in which decisions are made and how norms and culture can influence this
Now if you have the part of identifying the drivers of behavior covered, you still need to design a solution.
The article goes on to say “A deep understanding of a job allows you to innovate without guessing what trade-offs your customers are willing to make” - but if you aren’t using an evidence-based and systematic approach then even if you identified drivers with your jobs to be done, you would still be guessing what your solution should be.
This is where I truly believe the combination of human-centered design + Behavioral Science and Systems Thinking can play a huge role.
Your teams already have the ability, talent, and know-how to design amazing experiences. Still, without knowing the behavior you want to design for and how to ensure you are ideating for the right solution, we will continue to fail our customers, users, and employees.
What are your thoughts on this?