What is a Jobs to be Done (JTBD) Board?
The Jobs to be Done Board is a structured workspace for understanding customers’ underlying goals, needs, and motivations—so you can design products, services, and experiences that truly fit their lives.
Based on the Jobs to be Done framework, this board shifts the focus from what customers say they want to the jobs they’re trying to get done, the struggles they face, and the outcomes they value. By capturing these insights visually, your team can align on where to innovate and what to prioritize.
When to Choose a JTBD Board?
Use this board when your team wants to:
Understand customer motivations beyond surface-level requests.
Frame problems in terms of functional, emotional, and social jobs.
Identify unmet needs and opportunity areas for innovation.
Prioritize product features or services based on customer outcomes.
It’s ideal for innovation teams, product managers, UX researchers and designers exploring new solutions or refining existing offerings.
When to Try Another Use Case?
If you want to focus on problem exploration before framing jobs, try the Continuous Discovery Board.
If you need a rapid, end-to-end process for moving from challenge to tested solution, the Design Sprint Board may be more suitable.
What Does It Mean for the HYPE Board?
Access Controls
Access is limited to listed users and approved email domains.
Authentication is available via Office 365, Google, or Viima.
All contributions (submissions, comments, likes) require login to ensure accountability.
Sharing Options
Enable email and Viva Engage/Yammer sharing to:
Invite cross-functional stakeholders to contribute customer insights.
Share patterns and opportunity areas that emerge from jobs analysis.
Statuses & Categories
We recommend the following five-stage process:
Job Statement – Capture a job in the “When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [outcome]” format.
Solution Concepts – Capture and discuss initial ideas for how to better help customers get the job done.
Evaluation – Identify and evaluate the most important JTBD
We created 3 evaluation metrics (scale of 1 to 5) to support decision-making at this stage:
Customer Importance – How critical is this job or outcome to the customer?
Satisfaction Gap – How far current solutions are from meeting the need.
Strategic Fit – How well solving this job aligns with business problems
All three have equal weight in the Viima Score
Idea responsibles and admins can provide evaluations
A text field is also available for feedback on the given evaluations
Chosen for Development – Jobs chosen for further development
Input fields
We added 6 input fields to the submission form to collect important insights
Current Struggles - Pain points, workarounds, or frustrations customers face today
Desired Outcomes - What success looks like for the customer
Opportunities - Unmet needs or gaps between current and desired outcomes.
How critical this job is to the customer’s life/work?
Dropdown with 4 options:
Nice to have
Good to have
Will need to have soon
Must have
How often does the customer encounter this job?
Dropdown with 4 options:
Rarely
Sometimes
Most of the time
Always
Who influences or benefits from this job being done? - Stakeholders
Making the Most of a JTBD Board
The Jobs to be Done Board is not just about documenting needs—it’s about reframing your perspective to see opportunities through your customers’ eyes. To get the most value from it:
Gather data from real interviews, observations, and feedback—not assumptions.
Separate jobs from solutions to avoid jumping to ideas too early.
Use the board as a reference when prioritizing your roadmap.
Revisit and update jobs as markets, technologies, and customer contexts change.
By anchoring innovation in the real “jobs” customers are trying to get done, your team can build solutions that resonate deeply and deliver meaningful results.