Job Stories
Turn a feature idea into JTBD-style job stories with situation, motivation, outcome, and testable acceptance criteria for your backlog.
Overview
Job Stories is an agent skill most often used in Validate (also Build) that writes JTBD-style backlog items with situations, motivations, outcomes, and detailed acceptance criteria.
Install
npx skills add https://github.com/phuryn/pm-skills --skill job-storiesWhat is this skill?
- Uses the When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [outcome] job-story format
- Eight-step process from situations through motivations, outcomes, and acceptance criteria
- Acceptance criteria emphasize observable, measurable validation of the job done
- Arguments for product, feature, design links, and user-context inputs
- JTBD framing focuses on the job rather than persona roles
- Eight-step process from situations through acceptance criteria
- Story template includes title, When/I want/so I can description, design link, and detailed acceptance criteria
Adoption & trust: 1k installs on skills.sh; 12.3k GitHub stars; 3/3 security scanners passed (skills.sh audits).
What problem does it solve?
Your backlog lists features as vague user stories and agents cannot tell what situation triggered the need or how to verify success.
Who is it for?
Indie PMs and solo founders scoping a feature with real user situations and want backlog items agents can implement against design links.
Skip if: Teams that already have signed-off technical specs with no need to reframe requirements in situational JTBD format.
When should I use this skill?
Writing job stories, creating JTBD-style backlog items, or expressing user situations and motivations with detailed acceptance criteria.
What do I get? / Deliverables
You receive job stories with linked designs and measurable acceptance criteria ready for prioritization, prototyping, or implementation planning.
- Job stories in When/I want/so I can format
- Detailed, observable acceptance criteria per story
- Design references embedded in each story where provided
Recommended Skills
Journey fit
Spans multiple journey phases - primary shelf plus alternate fits below.
Validate → Scope is the canonical shelf because job stories clarify user situations and outcomes while you are still defining what to build before full implementation planning. Scoping is where situation-triggered requirements replace role-based user stories and keep the backlog aligned to observable outcomes.
Where it fits
Frame a onboarding feature as situations that trigger signup friction before committing engineering time.
Attach acceptance criteria to prototype tasks so you know which outcomes the mock must demonstrate.
Break a dashboard epic into job stories your coding agent can implement with linked Figma frames.
Document shipped behavior as outcome-backed criteria for release notes and internal QA.
How it compares
Use for situation-first JTBD backlog items instead of classic 'As a user I want' stories when context drives the requirement.
Common Questions / FAQ
Who is job-stories for?
It is for solo builders and small product teams who write their own backlogs and want JTBD-style clarity before design or engineering work.
When should I use job-stories?
Use it while validating scope when framing a new feature, and again during Build PM work when splitting epics into outcome-backed stories with acceptance tests.
Is job-stories safe to install?
It is documentation and planning guidance with no inherent shell or network demands; review the Security Audits panel on this Prism page like any third-party skill before install.
SKILL.md
READMESKILL.md - Job Stories
# Job Stories Create job stories using the 'When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [outcome]' format. Generates stories with detailed acceptance criteria focused on user situations and outcomes. **Use when:** Writing job stories, expressing user situations and motivations, creating JTBD-style backlog items, or focusing on user context rather than roles. **Arguments:** - `$PRODUCT`: The product or system name - `$FEATURE`: The new feature to break into job stories - `$DESIGN`: Link to design files (Figma, Miro, etc.) - `$CONTEXT`: User situations or job scenarios ## Step-by-Step Process 1. **Identify user situations** that trigger the need 2. **Define motivations** underlying the user's behavior 3. **Clarify outcomes** the user wants to achieve 4. **Apply JTBD framework:** Focus on the job, not the role 5. **Create acceptance criteria** that validate the outcome is achieved 6. **Use observable, measurable language** 7. **Link to design mockups** or prototypes 8. **Output job stories** with detailed acceptance criteria ## Story Template **Title:** [Job outcome or result] **Description:** When [situation], I want to [motivation], so I can [outcome]. **Design:** [Link to design files] **Acceptance Criteria:** 1. [Situation is properly recognized] 2. [System enables the desired motivation] 3. [Progress or feedback is visible] 4. [Outcome is achieved efficiently] 5. [Edge cases are handled gracefully] 6. [Integration and notifications work] ## Example Job Story **Title:** Track Weekly Snack Spending **Description:** When I'm preparing my weekly allowance for snacks (situation), I want to quickly see how much I've spent so far (motivation), so I can make sure I don't run out of money before the weekend (outcome). **Design:** [Figma link] **Acceptance Criteria:** 1. Display Spending Summary with 'Weekly Spending Overview' section 2. Real-Time Update when expense logged 3. Progress Indicator (progress bar showing 0-100% of weekly budget) 4. Remaining Budget Highlight in prominent color 5. Detailed Spending Log with breakdown by category 6. Notifications at 80% budget threshold 7. Weekend-Specific Reminder at 90% by Thursday evening 8. Easy Access and Navigation to detailed breakdown ## Output Deliverables - Complete set of job stories for the feature - Each story follows the 'When...I want...so I can' format - 6-8 acceptance criteria focused on outcomes - Stories emphasize user situations and motivations - Clear links to design and prototypes --- ### Further Reading - [Jobs-to-be-Done Masterclass with Tony Ulwick and Sabeen Sattar](https://www.productcompass.pm/p/jobs-to-be-done-masterclass-with) (video course)