Interview Script·45 min·10 questions
Discovering why operations teams embed tools deeply despite workflow disruption
You're seeing operations staff at mid-sized companies who've become power users of your product, but you need to understand exactly which capabilities drive that adoption. You have usage data showing high engagement, but you're missing the story of how these users actually weave the tool into their daily processes and why they stick with it when they could easily revert to previous methods.
Why standard questions fail here
Generic feature surveys miss the messy reality of how tools actually get adopted in operations workflows. This script reconstructs the specific moments when users chose your tool over existing processes, traces how they gradually integrated different features, and uncovers the concrete problems they solve that keep them coming back daily.
Sample Questions
Grounded in The Mom Test and Jobs-to-be-Done.
Jobs-to-be-Done: establish context before exploring specific job stories
Let them paint the picture naturally - don't interrupt with clarifying questions yet
- What are the most time-consuming parts of your day?
- What tools do you find yourself switching between frequently?
- Generic job descriptions rather than actual daily activities
JTBD switching moment analysis: understand the struggling moment that triggered search
Use the timeline technique: get them to reconstruct the sequence of events chronologically
- What had you tried before that wasn't working?
- Who else was involved in that decision?
- What almost stopped you from trying our tool?
- Generic 'we needed better efficiency' instead of specific trigger events
Mom Test principle: focus on past behavior rather than abstract preferences
Probe for specific actions: 'What did you do next?' rather than 'What did you think?'
- What convinced you to move forward with our tool specifically?
- What concerns did you or others have at the time?
- Rational feature comparisons without emotional or practical context
Mom Test principle: ask about specific recent behavior to avoid hypotheticals
Use temporal anchoring: pick a specific recent day and reconstruct it moment by moment
- What would have happened if the tool wasn't available in that moment?
- How did you decide to use our tool rather than another approach?
- Generalizations like 'I usually use it for...' instead of specific instances
JTBD outcome focus: identify the functional and emotional jobs being fulfilled
Use the critical incident technique: get granular details about one specific success story
- How did you know you had saved time - what was different?
- How did that success impact other parts of your work?
- Vague efficiency claims without concrete before/after comparisons
Contextual inquiry principle: observe actual usage patterns rather than rely on recall
Ask them to screenshare or show you while explaining - watch what they do, not just what they say
- What happens when this feature doesn't work as expected?
- Are there workarounds you've developed for any limitations?
- Feature lists without context of why they matter to their workflow
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