My name is Mike Boysen, and my goal is to help all of you achieve your innovation research outcomes faster, less expensively, with less bias, and fewer assumptions. I spend a great deal of my time looking for ways to help you develop strategic options that give you the inputs needed to accelerate into experiments quickly, cheaply, easily, and productively. My blogging documents many of the thought exercises I go through as I continually strive to take existing knowledge and emerging technology and blend them together to address our unmet needs. If you’d like to take a deeper dive, let me suggest a couple of options for you.
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As I think about all of the Outcome-Driven Innovation (ODI) surveys I’ve seen, I don’t believe I’ve ever seen the solution captured specifically for each step in the map. Generally there is a question about which products are used in a “Select all that Apply” format. This is a Job-level capture, so it doesn’t address the fact that a single job performer might use different tools at each step (not to mention the fact that a higher-context job might actually have different job performer at each step, more on that in a separate blog). This approach really doesn’t tell us what we need to know. I always found this odd because…
…we always talk about people cobbling solutions together to get the job done, so we know there should be multiple solutions - whether they be products, services, do-it-yourself, or all of the above.
…it didn’t allow us to determine at which step our client’s solution was being used, and / or where competing brands were being used.
Weird, isn’t it?
We say one thing, and then we do another.
In fact, if we were to implement a step-wise approach to understanding which methods | brands | products | or services were being used, we’d need to determine in advance, which brands we want to focus on so we can screen-in and screen-out our respondents to we have better control over our budget.
Is this possible? Is it too much work?
I’ve been thinking about this and wonder if it doesn’t make more sense to identify what brands are being used for each step, regardless of how much extra research work is involved. I’m starting to believe that growth strategy studies fall dramatically short if this work isn’t done.
Depending up on the level of abstraction, we will see brands, whether they’re traditional or non-traditional competitors, occupying - or dominating - adjacent steps in a job map. It might not be as prevalent in the world of journey analysis when we’re focused on consumption steps related to a particular brand, such as a train ride from point A to point B.
However, if the customer journey is actually longer than the train ride - which most are because we’re not talking about company pathways here - then we’re failing to see the entire journey from the customers’ perspective, and therefore failing to find ways to help get their entire job done on a single platform, or with a single brand. We’re also not able to evaluate our non-traditional competitors against a common set of performance criteria.
That would include other similar solutions competing at the same step, in basically the same way. And it could include services that are offered by a provider who has found a way to solve a problem for customers that spans brands and industries.
One example would be Amazon shopping which negates the need to set up your own shopping website, or hire a dedicated eCommerce platform - like Shopify - for those businesses that don’t want to, or can’t handle all of the complexities that would be with involved managing these activities and/or want access to a larger audience that your product might be recommended to.
Do you really want to limit journey analysis in a way that ignores opportunities to leverage capabilities across the broader job-to-be-done?
Maybe you do.
So let’s think about something as simple as cutting your lawn. If we were going to study this, we would need to assume that there is no lawn maintenance service yet (because this has been a thing for many decades).
So, we’re probably trying to understand a higher context job to be done. In other words, if we’re a lawn mower manufacturer, the job our product is focused on (cutting the lawn) is probably a single step in a higher-context job of maintaining a lawn or even maintaining a front yard (which may not have a lawn at all).
Sure we could simply be trying to improve an existing service solution, but that’s a limited view and our ability to identify hidden value gaps will shrink dramatically over time. If our goal is to find growth pathways, we need to abstract our thinking away from current solutions
I know, that makes you uncomfortable…your boss probably wants you to do something productive next week.
So the first step is to make sure we’re not locked into a job definition that represents a very mature market. We need to elevate our view of the market from
home owners cutting their front lawn
Determine the desired lawn height - The ability to decide on the optimal grass length that meets the aesthetic and health requirements of the lawn.
Locate the lawn mower and fuel - The ability to find and gather the lawn mower and ensure there is enough fuel for the task.
Prepare the lawn mower for use - The ability to check the lawn mower's condition, such as the sharpness of the blade, and fill it with fuel if necessary.
Select the mowing pattern - The ability to decide on the pattern or direction in which to mow the lawn for optimal appearance and health of the grass.
Start the lawn mower - The ability to safely turn on the lawn mower, readying it for the task at hand.
Mow the lawn - The ability to operate the lawn mower to cut the grass to the desired height, following the selected pattern.
Monitor the lawn mower's performance - The ability to keep an eye on the lawn mower's functionality, ensuring it operates efficiently and the grass is being cut evenly.
Refill fuel if necessary - The ability to stop and refill the lawn mower with fuel if it runs out during the task.
Adjust mowing pattern as needed - The ability to change the mowing direction or pattern based on obstacles or uneven growth patterns encountered.
Inspect the lawn for missed spots - The ability to check the lawn after mowing to ensure no areas were missed and the desired height is uniform across the lawn.
to
home owners that are maintaining their front yard
In this map, there could be an existing model for yard maintenance, or not. The concept of hiring a service does not require a service to be present, it just needs to be measured to see whether customers struggle in ways a service could address…and to what degree.
Evaluate the yard's maintenance needs - The ability to assess the current state of the yard, identifying specific areas that require attention, such as mowing, landscaping, or addressing pest issues.
Decide between DIY maintenance or hiring a service - The ability to weigh the pros and cons of personal effort versus professional services, considering factors like time, cost, and skill level.
Research and select a yard maintenance service if hiring - The ability to find and choose a professional service that aligns with the homeowner's maintenance needs and budget, if the decision is to hire.
Schedule a service appointment if hiring - The ability to arrange a convenient time for the maintenance service to visit and perform the necessary tasks, applicable only if the service route is chosen.
Locate gardening tools and supplies if DIY - The ability to find and gather necessary tools and materials, such as lawn mowers, rakes, fertilizer, and seeds, if opting for DIY.
Prepare the yard for service or DIY maintenance - The ability to clear the yard of any obstacles or personal items that might hinder the maintenance process, regardless of the chosen maintenance method.
Communicate specific needs to the service provider if hiring - The ability to convey particular concerns or instructions to the professionals, ensuring customized care of the yard, applicable only if the service route is chosen.
Execute yard maintenance activities if DIY - The ability to carry out the planned tasks, such as mowing the lawn, trimming bushes, weeding, and watering plants, if opting for DIY.
Oversee the maintenance work or monitor DIY progress - The ability to monitor the service team's progress or self-monitor DIY efforts, ensuring the work meets the homeowner's expectations.
Inspect the work upon completion or review DIY results - The ability to review the maintenance service's work or assess the results of DIY efforts, ensuring all tasks have been completed to satisfaction.
Provide feedback or request adjustments if hiring - The ability to communicate with the service provider about any areas that may need further attention or improvement, applicable only if the service route is chosen.
Plan for ongoing maintenance - The ability to schedule regular maintenance appointments or set a personal maintenance schedule, ensuring the yard remains in optimal condition throughout the year.
We could also get into decision-oriented jobs where the homeowner considers their idea state, and whether the yard should be grass, dirt, decorative stone, or old cars on jacks. That’s a completely different exercise.
Either way, you can see a dramatic difference in how the first job map will include a lawn mower at almost every step. But second map could have different solutions depending upon whether you go DIY or with a service. And it could also incorporate other maintenance items beyond just cutting grass - which is assumed in the first job.
They say that constraints often lead to innovations. But in this case, the constraint is a self-imposed view of the world. You’ll benefit from seeing past this kind of constraint.
If you'd like to learn more...
I do offer end-to-end consulting if you’re just not ready to do it all your own. I’m 20x faster and at least 10x cheaper than your alternatives. Big Brands: This means you can get many more problems solved with your existing budget (I work with a global team of experienced practitioners)
I also offer coaching, if you’d like to know someone’s got your back and you want to do the heavy lifting and get some knowledge transfer, I'm there!
I can help you get your qualitative research done in 2 days for mere budget scraps.
I’ve also got an academy where you can find a number of options for a do-it-yourself experience. This portfolio of AI prompts eliminates the pain of learning how to perform proper qualitative JTBD research.
Finally, I've recently opened up a JTBD community that is completely FREE! It's still early days and it's where I work with clients - in private spaces - and where I hang out to answer questions or just blather on. I hope you'll join us! There will be more and more free stuff, and there will also be some premium stuff eventually. I wonder what that will be?
If People Cobble Solutions Together to Get Jobs Done, then...