Turning Research into Strategy—Using Jobs-to-Be-Done at IBM Cloud
Objective
Implement Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD) methodology to uncover user needs and transform roadmap investments.
Challenge
- Shifting focus from usability testing to generative research.
- Educating cross-disciplinary teams on JTBD and outcome scoring.
- Driving buy-in from stakeholders resistant to change.
Approach
Data-Derived Personas
Developed personas, like "Evan," using K-means clustering of cross-product usage data. This provided a clear, data-driven foundation for decision-making and roadmap alignment.
Outcome Scoring and Prioritization
Used quantitative outcome scoring to identify poorly served but high-priority jobs, enabling focused roadmap adjustments and targeted research efforts.
User Journey Validation
Conducted research to validate and optimize end-to-end user journeys, ensuring alignment with JTBD insights and improving user satisfaction.
Results
Improved UX and Task Completion
- 22-point increase in SUS (from 62 to 84).
- Task completion rates rose from 38% to 95%.
Cultural Shift in Research
- 150% increase in quarterly generative studies.
- 88% of researchers reported a better balance of generative and evaluative work.
Conclusion
By integrating JTBD and generative research practices, the IBM Cloud UX Research team delivered user-centered insights that transformed roadmap priorities, resulting in tangible improvements to product design and user experience.
Ready to transform your product development with data-driven insights?
Let’s talk about how data-derived personas and user journey validation can revolutionize your research practices.
Have a project in mind? A collaboration proposal? Or do you just want to get in touch?
You can also send me a message here