Product Management & Jobs to be done

Product management is a critical function that plays a vital role in the success of a company. One interesting aspect of product management is the idea of the "Jobs to be Done" (JTBD) theory, which is a customer-centric approach to understanding the needs and motivations of consumers.

Another interesting aspect of product management is how it has changed with the advent of Agile methodologies and the Scrum framework. Agile and Scrum have become widely adopted in software development, and it also has a big impact on product management. Agile and Scrum focus on rapid iteration, continuous delivery, and collaborative teamwork. This means that Product Managers need to work closely with development teams, actively participate in sprint planning and reviews, and continuously gather and incorporate customer feedback into the product development process. This approach helps product managers to be more nimble, responsive to customer needs, and ultimately deliver better products.

Jobs to be Done (JTBD) theory is a customer-centric approach to understanding the needs and motivations of consumers. It was popularized by Clayton Christensen, a Harvard Business School professor and author, who first introduced the concept in his book "The Innovator's Dilemma." According to JTBD theory, people "hire" products or services to help them accomplish a specific task or achieve a certain goal, or to help solve a problem they have.

The JTBD framework consists of three main elements: the job, the pain points, and the desired outcome. The job is the task or goal that the customer is trying to accomplish, such as organizing a trip, preparing a meal, or finding a new job. The pain points are the difficulties, frustrations, or limitations that the customer experiences while trying to accomplish the job. And the desired outcome is what the customer wants to achieve or what will make them happy after using the product.

Clayton Christensen is widely regarded as one of the most influential management thinkers of his generation and is best known for his disruptive innovation theory. His book “The Innovator's Dilemma” published in 1997, is widely considered a classic in the field of business strategy. He has developed the JTBD Theory and this methodology is now applied in diverse industries and sectors, which have found it to be an effective tool to better understand customer behavior and to develop new products, services, and solutions tailored to customer needs.