Beyond Job Maps: Unlocking a Superior Path to Greenfield Innovation
Break Free from Analysis Paralysis and Focus on What Drives True Greenfield Innovation
One of the biggest problems I see with Jobs-to-be-Done enthusiasts is that they default to bending the knee to the holy job map with desired outcomes.
If you’re a true designer working in the solution-space, this very practical. However, if you’re focused on greenfield innovation, that may not be the best approach.
“Greenfield innovation is the process of developing new products, services, or systems from scratch, without the constraints of existing infrastructure or legacy systems.”
While you could still use a job map, getting the correct level of abstraction just right can be challenging. It needs to be far enough away from the current level that you can find opportunities for growth. And, it needs to be close enough to reality that you can take action on the outcomes.
There are a few ways to do this. You could develop a list of jobs that an end user is currently trying to get done (that may not be the case if you’re successful) and rate them with various metrics. This is what we’ve called a job study and can be used retroactively to understand why customers hired your product/platform (if you don’t already know) or for market selection.
But, here’s another related idea.
The Ideal State
What you really need is directional information as opposed to granular, discrete performance metrics. Remember, you shouldn’t be limiting yourself to the constraints of existing infrastructure or legacy systems. This is how your innovation will get quickly leap-frogged!
Let’s look at the HVAC service provider world. Here’s what I would want to know:
How is this done today (not a job map study)
How might we do this differently (not a job map study)
But, you still need to understand priorities. I would probably use my market selection approach to figure this out.
Instead of jobs of an end user (who might get eliminated) my focus would lean more toward the ideal state of a job and context. For example:
Job: Facilitating business operations
Context: for an HVAC service provider
If I developed a set of 20 Ideals for this job, they might look like this:
Minimize delays in assigning service technicians to customer jobs - Ensures prompt service delivery and customer satisfaction.
Access real-time data on technician availability and location - Improves scheduling efficiency and reduces response times.
Know the inventory status of HVAC parts and equipment - Prevents service delays due to missing components.
Avoid double-booking technicians or resources - Ensures smooth scheduling and prevents operational conflicts.
Simplify tracking of completed service calls and follow-ups - Helps maintain customer satisfaction and operational transparency.
Minimize errors in billing and invoicing for services - Ensures financial accuracy and builds customer trust.
Ensure compliance with HVAC service industry regulations - Prevents legal issues and upholds industry standards.
Identify trends in service requests and anticipate demand - Optimizes resource allocation and reduces downtime.
Minimize the effort required to train new technicians - Reduces onboarding time and ensures consistent service quality.
Ensure consistent communication between field technicians and the office - Facilitates efficient problem-solving and task coordination.
Access historical data on customer equipment and service records - Enables better diagnostics and personalized service.
Know the most profitable service offerings - Guides focus on high-value services and improves revenue.
Minimize the time needed to generate service quotes for customers - Improves sales efficiency and customer experience.
Avoid equipment downtime during peak service seasons - Ensures operational readiness and maximizes service capacity.
Optimize routing for technicians to minimize travel time - Reduces operational costs and enhances productivity.
Streamline the process for handling emergency service requests - Ensures faster resolution of urgent issues and customer satisfaction.
Ensure accuracy in diagnosing HVAC system issues - Reduces repeat visits and builds trust in service quality.
Minimize miscommunication with customers about service schedules - Enhances reliability and customer trust.
Avoid losing customer service history due to system errors - Preserves valuable data and ensures continuity in service.
Access tools to monitor workforce productivity in real-time - Improves oversight and operational efficiency.
Imagine if you could all of these done dramatically better, with fewer features on a single platform!
They are not jobs. They are the ideal state. Actually, they are more like success metrics; but a reduced set of the most truly important ones to consider when developing a new business model. Prioritize them using the market selection approach mentioned above. Once you’ve determined which are the highest priority for the largest share of the market…and are willing to pay the most <deep breath>…ask:
How is this done today? How many solutions, tools, methods are cobbled together?
How could we make it better? Fewer tools, methods, solutions? (eliminating the struggle stack and struggle multipliers)
How could we help get it done faster?
How could we help get it done with fewer errors?
How might we eliminate this completely from the visible future? (what happened to record stores?)
How can we develop a complete solution that only has a handful of visible features because it obfuscates the solutions we currently rely on completely? (Spotify?)
I would argue that you don’t need a job map to do this. But if you’d like to generate these types of lists quickly, this link will show you can get a custom GPT that does it for you.
STOP!! with the job maps already unless your studying customer journeys, or existing products that you’re trying to incrementally improve. You’re caught in an analysis paralysis loop designed to get you to seek consulting help.
Mike Boysen - www.pjtbd.com
Why fail fast when you can succeed the first time?
Book an appointment: https://pjtbd.com/book-mike
Grab my JTBD Masterclass: https://mc.zeropivot.us/s/mc-1
Get the whole customer management thing done on a single platform:
https://pjtbd.com/tech-stack