Incy TemplatesAssumption and Evidence Tracker
A prioritised list of your riskiest unconfirmed assumptions and what evidence would resolve them.
A running log that separates what you're assuming from what you've actually confirmed with evidence.
Part of the Customer Discovery Kit family. Also see: Customer Discovery Kit: the Guide, Customer Interview Planner, Evidence Analyser.
- Version
- 1.0
- Last updated
- 12 Jun 2026
- Completion time
- 15–20 min
- Formats
- markdown
About this template
A single source of truth for 'do we actually know this, or are we assuming it.' Start it the day you begin customer research and keep it updated as evidence comes in — it becomes the backbone of every proceed/revise/pause decision you make afterwards.
Instructions
- List your current assumptions about the problem and the customer — things you believe but haven't confirmed.
- After every interview or observation, add one line: what you heard, and whether it confirms, contradicts, or doesn't yet touch each assumption.
- Keep this separate from your task list — its only job is separating belief from evidence.
- Review it before every proceed/revise/pause decision.
What you'll need
Your current assumptions about the problem, even rough or half-formed ones.
Who it's for
Teams who want one place to track beliefs, not just tasks.
When to use it
Start it the day you begin customer research and keep it updated throughout.
When not to use it
Not a project-management tool — it tracks beliefs, not tasks or deadlines.
What's included
A running log format for assumptions and the evidence against each one, plus a prompt to flag when a pattern is actually forming versus a single data point still standing alone.
- Assumption and Evidence Tracker (Markdown, AI-agent-ready) (markdown)
Completed example
From the Shift Swap tracker — assumption logged on day one: "Workers want more flexibility in their shifts generally."
Evidence added after interviews: "Narrower than assumed — the actual pain is the day-of moment: managers finding out a shift is uncovered with no time left to fix it. Workers dislike texting five people individually and getting ignored, but didn't describe wanting more flexibility overall."
Surprise entry (not an assumption, but logged anyway): "Several managers had already tried a shared spreadsheet and abandoned it — nobody checked it reliably. Evidence of real, if fragile, demand for something better than what they're already trying."
Interpreting your result
An assumption with no evidence rows next to it after several interviews is either genuinely untested or genuinely irrelevant — decide which, rather than letting it sit unexamined.
Once your riskiest assumptions have real evidence behind them, score the whole picture with the Evidence Analyser Tool.
Licence
Single-purchaser licence covering personal and commercial use, including client work. Redistribution or resale of the template itself is not permitted.
Frequently asked questions
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