These AI prompts support the Christensen JTBD Interview workflow — from pre-research hypothesis formation through transcript coding to cross-interview synthesis. Each prompt is designed for use with Claude, ChatGPT, or any capable LLM. Replace all [bracketed placeholders] with your specific project details before running.
Prompt 1: Pre-research — scan for job signals
You are a research analyst preparing for a Christensen JTBD interview study.
Product/category: [describe the product or product category]
Target circumstance: [describe the circumstance where you believe the job arises]
Scan the following sources for signals about the job this product is hired to do:
1. Customer reviews: [paste 20-30 reviews or provide review source URL]
2. Support tickets: [paste 10-15 representative tickets]
3. Competitor reviews: [paste reviews of competing products]
For each source, extract:
- Circumstances mentioned (when, where, what was happening)
- Functional outcomes desired (what they needed to accomplish)
- Emotional language (how they felt or wanted to feel)
- Social context (who else was involved or whose opinion mattered)
- Alternatives mentioned (other products, workarounds, "did nothing")
- Barriers mentioned (why something was hard, expensive, or inaccessible)
Output a job hypothesis in this format:
"When [circumstance], help me [functional progress], so I can [outcome]. I want to feel [emotional dimension] and be seen as [social dimension]."
List the top 5 circumstances by frequency and the competitive set by job.Prompt 2: Post-interview — code transcript by three dimensions
You are a qualitative research analyst coding a Christensen JTBD interview transcript.
Participant group: [active user / lapsed user / non-consumer]
Product/category: [name]
Read the transcript below and code every relevant statement into one of these categories:
DIMENSIONS:
- F (functional): what the participant needed to get done, measurable outcomes
- E (emotional): how the participant wanted to feel, feelings to avoid
- S (social): how the participant wanted to be perceived, whose opinion mattered
TIMELINE:
- CIRC (circumstance): the situation that triggered the job
- HIRE (Big Hire): the moment of deciding to buy/adopt
- USE (Little Hire): the moment of actually using the product
- COMP (competition): alternatives considered or used
- BARRIER: obstacles to hiring any solution
- GAP: discrepancy between buying and using
For each coded statement, provide:
- The verbatim quote
- The code (e.g., F-CIRC, E-HIRE, S-COMP)
- A one-sentence interpretation
After coding, summarize:
1. Primary job definition (circumstance + progress + outcome, all three dimensions)
2. Competitive set by job
3. Big Hire / Little Hire gap (if any)
4. Key barriers (for non-consumers)
Transcript:
[paste transcript]Prompt 3: Cross-interview synthesis — cluster jobs and define opportunities
You are a senior researcher synthesizing findings from [N] Christensen JTBD interviews.
Below are the individual interview summaries (job definition, competitive set, Big Hire/Little Hire gap, barriers) for each participant.
Tasks:
1. Cluster participants by circumstance similarity (not demographics). Name each cluster.
2. For each cluster, write a consolidated job definition:
"When [circumstance], help me [functional progress], so I can [outcome].
Emotional need: [what they want to feel].
Social need: [how they want to be perceived]."
3. Map the competitive set for each cluster. Which alternatives are shared across clusters? Which are cluster-specific?
4. Identify non-consumption opportunities: which clusters have the most non-consumers, and what are their barriers?
5. Flag Big Hire / Little Hire gaps: which clusters show the widest gap between buying and using?
6. Rank clusters by strategic opportunity: consider market size (number of people in this circumstance), barrier removability (can we address the barriers?), and competitive intensity (how well are alternatives serving this job?).
Individual interview summaries:
[paste summaries]Prompt 4: Job definition validation — stress-test against transcripts
You are a critical reviewer checking a job definition against raw interview data.
Proposed job definition:
"When [circumstance], help me [progress], so I can [outcome].
Emotional: [emotional need]. Social: [social need]."
Below are excerpts from [N] interview transcripts. For each excerpt:
1. Does this job definition explain the participant's behavior? (yes/partially/no)
2. If partially or no: what is missing from the definition? What would need to change?
3. Does the participant mention a dimension (functional, emotional, social) that the definition ignores?
4. Does the participant describe a circumstance that does not fit the definition?
After reviewing all excerpts, provide:
- Coverage score: what percentage of participant behaviors does this definition explain?
- Recommended revisions to the definition
- Any evidence of a second, distinct job that the definition conflates with the first
Transcripts:
[paste excerpts]