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In this insightful episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, API expert Jeff Nibler and Michael Gray, Head of Engineering at Method, share their extensive experience with developer portals and API platforms. The discussion covers the transformation of developer portals over the past 5-7 years and crucial elements for success.
Key points discussed include:
The importance of discoverability and user experience in developer portalsDifferent approaches for internal versus external developer portalsThe evolution from viewing APIs as utilities to seeing them as productsBuilding effective support structures for API programsThe role of sandbox environments and documentation in developer successKey insights shared:
Focus on Developer Experience:The importance of clear, human-readable documentationMaking APIs discoverable and easily accessibleProviding interactive consoles and sandbox environmentsInternal vs External Portals:Internal portals focus on avoiding API duplicationExternal portals require additional polish and marketing elementsDifferent support structures are needed for each typeSupport Structures:The need for specialized API support teamsFinding the right balance between developer expertise and support efficiencyIntegration of support ticketing within the portalDocumentation Best Practices:Making content accessible to both technical and non-technical audiencesUsing a CMS for efficient content managementImplementing effective tagging and search capabilitiesThe episode concludes with practical advice for organizations starting their developer portal journey, emphasizing the importance of fundamentals like solid API design, security considerations, and developer experience.
Best practices for API documentationDeveloper portal platforms and toolsAPI design guidelinesSupport team structuresContent management systems for developer portals
Episode Resources:
[05:48] Discussion of developer portal evolution[17:25] Sandbox environments and developer experience[24:53] Internal portal considerations[29:31] Support team structures[34:14] Starting a developer portal journey
Episode Highlights:
"The golden rule for me on this topic has always been as much DIY as absolutely possible, everywhere possible.""The struggling moment that causes them to create a space. Because if they don't ask a question, there's no space in their brain for them to see your product.""I want my API people talking to your API people, and that's great, but I don't want them talking to my API developers because they're busy."
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In this enlightening episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, Bob Moesta, an engineer turned innovation expert and co-architect of the Jobs to be Done theory, shares his unique approach to product development and innovation. With over 3,500 products under his belt, Bob brings a wealth of experience to the table.
Key points discussed include:
The importance of identifying customers' struggling moments as the seed for all innovationUnderstanding the progress customers are trying to make rather than focusing solely on product featuresThe concept of "Jobs to be Done" and how it applies to various industriesThe difference between supply-side and demand-side thinking in product developmentHow to uncover hidden customer needs and motivationsThe importance of context in creating value for customersStrategies for effective product positioning and marketingBob illustrates these concepts through engaging case studies:
Snickers vs. Milky Way: How two seemingly similar products serve entirely different customer needs
Intercom: How understanding different customer jobs led to a 15x growth in revenue
Autobooks: How reframing the sales process around customer buying timelines led to significant growthHe challenges listeners to rethink their approach to product development, marketing, and sales by focusing on the progress customers are trying to make in their lives. Bob emphasizes that successful innovation isn't about adding more features but understanding and addressing customer struggles.
The episode concludes with three key tips for innovators:
Find struggling moments
Think about the progress people are trying to make
Understand and manage trade-offs in product developmentBob's insights offer a fresh perspective on innovation, encouraging businesses to look beyond traditional product-centric approaches and truly understand their customers' needs and motivations.
About Bob Moesta Bob's Podcast: The Circuit BreakerBooks by Bob Moesta:Demand Side SalesLearning to BuildUpcoming book on talent and career development (release expected in October/November)Recommended Reading: Works by Clayton Christensen on disruptive innovation and Jobs to be Done theory
Episode Resources:
[06:41] The importance of struggling moments in innovation[08:37] Understanding context and outcome in customer needs[17:45] The seed for all innovation: struggling moments[25:16] Case study: Snickers vs. Milky Way[33:27] Case study: Intercom's growth through Jobs to be Done[41:13] Case study:
Episode Highlights: -
Saknas det avsnitt?
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In this insightful episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, speaker Michael Arena delves into the complex world of workplace networks and their impact on innovation, performance, and overall business success. Drawing from extensive research conducted during and after the pandemic, he explores how our professional connections have been dramatically reshaped and what this means for the future of work.
Key points discussed include:
The importance of different types of social capital: bonding (within teams) and bridging (across teams and external connections)How the pandemic affected these networks, leading to increased bonding but decreased bridging connectionsThe limitations of arbitrary hybrid work policies and the need for intentional design of work environmentsThe concept of "form follows function" in workplace design, tailoring network structures to specific work purposes (discovery, development, scaling, and delivery)Real-world examples of how networks drive innovation, from surfing communities to tech giants like Apple and AmazonStrategies for intentionally cultivating the right types of connections to drive desired outcomesMichael challenges listeners to think critically about their current work arrangements and offers a framework for creating more effective, purpose-driven workplace networks. He argues that by understanding the science behind these networks and intentionally designing work environments, organizations can significantly boost their innovation capabilities, productivity, and overall performance in the post-pandemic era.
Episode Resources:
Michael's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-arena-21b6164/ Method Website: https://www.method.comRecommended Reading: "Momentum Generation" HBO documentaryFurther Reading: Research by Ron Burt on network advantages
[00:02:00] The importance of strategic alignment in workplace networks[00:05:47] How bonding and bridging connections responded differently to virtual work[00:08:18] The "neighbourhood effect" and its impact on organizational fabric[00:11:13] The fallacy of arbitrary hybrid work policies[00:13:27] Introduction of the "form follows function" model for workplace design[00:15:44] Real-world examples of network-driven innovation (surfing community, Apple)[00:17:15] The three advantages of network brokers in driving innovation[00:21:23] Case study: General Motors' urban mobility innovation[00:25:16] Amazon's approach to customer-centric innovation
Episode Highlights:
"Our connections matter to everything from your overall well-being to your overall performance to whether or not you're satisfied or stressed out in the workplace.""Proximity matters immensely in the network. In fact, I would have told you pre-pandemic that productivity would tank if we went to a virtual working environment. I was wrong clearly, and I would have said that because most of the studies were focused on proximity and productivity. Turns out that proximity matters But intentionality trumps proximity.""You can't connect the dots looking forward, you only connect them looking backwards." - Steve Jobs (as referenced by Michael)"97% of your vehicle's time is idle. Right now it's sitting in a garage or a parking space somewhere, and that's not a good value prop for your second most expensive asset that you have."
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In this episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Ben Nichols, a director on the Digital Solutions team at Method, is joined by Kalpesh Nanji, former global chief product officer at Honeywell. They delve into the critical role of customer-centric discovery in product management and its impact on shaping business strategy.
The importance of strategic alignment between product and business strategiesTactics for effective customer discovery and insights gatheringOvercoming organizational challenges in implementing customer-centric approachesThe role of data and storytelling in influencing executive decisionsBalancing inherited strategies with new customer insightsThe importance of cross-functional collaboration in customer discoveryStrategies for upskilling product teams in customer-centric methodologies
Join them as they discuss:
Ben Nichols on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bennichols5Kalpesh Nanji on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kalpeshnanjiMethod Website: https://www.method.com
Kalpesh Nanji brings his extensive experience as a global chief product officer, sharing insights on how to create a customer-centric culture within organizations of various sizes. Ben Nichols contributes his perspective from working with multiple organizations, identifying common pain points and gaps between product and business strategies.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.
Episode Resources:
[00:02:00] The Importance of Strategic Alignment[00:05:47] Enabling Product Managers to Spend Time with Customers[00:08:18] Cross-Functional Collaboration in Customer Discovery[00:11:13] Co-Innovation and Strategic Partnerships with Customers[00:13:27] Using Data to Influence and Pivot Inherited Strategies[00:15:44] Creating a Narrative for Executive Buy-In[00:17:15] Prioritizing Customer Insights Using Horizon Planning[00:21:23] Upskilling Product Teams for Effective Customer Discovery[00:25:16] Top Three Takeaways for Successful Customer-Centric Discovery
Episode Highlights:
"As a product manager, I think using the tools that you have data is critical, right, ensuring that hey, if you're going to shift or make it pivot, for example, you have an inherited strategy, you identify that may or may not work for the customer or the organization. You get back to the executive team and you provide the data right." - Kalpesh Nanji"One of the things that we always want to try to do when you visit customers is not just focus on their challenges of today, but also determine and help them focus on their challenges of tomorrow." - Kalpesh Nanji"Data is critical synthesizing that data, creating a narrative around that data storytelling is critical as well. When you try to get some buy-in from an executive team tying in that story to where the business is going as an organization right." - Kalpesh Nanji
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In this episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas discusses customer engagement and loyalty in digital channels. The episode features Mike Frankel, VP of Memberships at Petco, and Morgan Sorbaro, Director of Digital Transformation at Mavis Tire.
Key topics discussed include:
• The importance of customer engagement and loyalty in today's digital landscape
• Strategies for digital transformation and improving customer experience
• The role of personalization in customer engagement
• Balancing digital and in-store experiences in an omnichannel environment
• Challenges and opportunities in implementing loyalty programs
• The importance of employee engagement in driving customer loyalty
• Gathering and implementing customer feedback to improve services
• The future of customer engagement and loyalty in a digital-first world
Mike Frankel brings his experience from Petco, where he focuses on driving growth, retention, and engagement through membership programs. Morgan Sorbaro shares insights from Mavis Tire's digital transformation journey, emphasizing the importance of creating a seamless customer experience in the automotive service industry.
Episode Resources:
• Mike Frankel on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mfrankel04
• Morgan Sorbaro on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/morgan-sorbaro
• Petco Website - https://www.petco.com
• Mavis Tire Website - https://www.mavistire.com
• Andy Busan on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/andybusam
• Josh Lucas on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas
• Method Website - https://www.method.com
Episode Highlights:
• [00:01:50] Introduction of guests and their backgrounds
• [00:05:26] Customer engagement strategies in different industries
• [00:07:01] Digital transformation and its impact on customer experience
• [00:13:25] The role of in-store employees in customer engagement
• [00:17:51] Differentiating through customer experience
• [00:24:54] Personalization strategies and challenges
• [00:30:40] Gathering and implementing customer feedback
• [00:33:30] Lessons learned and advice for improving customer experiences
Quotes:
• "Approximately 80% of pet parents consider their pet a part of their family and want to do the very best for them, but only have to know what to do." - Mike Frankel
• "For us, that's kind of our first way to engage with customers, is taking a bad day and making it not so bad." - Morgan Sarro
• "We're trying to rethink what this industry could be like and how convenient it could be for customers and it all through providing this better digital customer experience." - Morgan Sarro
• "Customers who are part of our paid membership program spend three times that of an average customer." - Mike Frankel
• "The vision is that a customer can come into the shop. We'll be able to figure out quickly what's wrong with their car, and what all their needs are. We'll give them accurate wait times, which is a huge pain point in our industry." - Morgan Sorbaro -
In this episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Blair Holt delves into the rapidly changing automotive industry with two expert guests: Josh Batie, Vice President of Autonomous Vehicles at Toyota Motors North America, and Evangelos Simoudis, founder and managing director of Synapse Partners.
The discussion covers a wide range of topics, including:
• The concept and potential of software-defined vehicles
• The impact of autonomous driving technology on customer experience
• Changing business models in the automotive industry
• The evolution from car ownership to mobility as a service
• The role of data in shaping the future of transportation
• Challenges in implementing new technologies in the automotive industry
• The future of car dealerships and retail models
• Regional differences in customer preferences and regulations
• The intersection of vehicles with smart infrastructure
Josh Batie brings insights from Toyota's perspective, discussing their approach to autonomous vehicles and the challenges of implementing new technologies in a traditional automotive company. Evangelos Simoudis offers a broader industry perspective, drawing from his experience as an investor and author in the automotive technology space.
Together, they paint a picture of an industry transitioning from traditional car manufacturing to providing comprehensive mobility solutions. They emphasize the importance of customer experience, data utilization, and adapting to regional differences in the evolving automotive landscape.
Episode Resources:
• Evangelos Simoudis' book: "The Flagship Experience: How Artificial Intelligence and Software-Defined Vehicles Will Revolutionize the Automotive Customer Experience"
• Toyota Motors North America website: https://www.toyota.com/usa/
• Synapse Partners website: https://synapsepartners.co/
• Method Website: https://www.method.com
Episode Highlights:
• [00:02:44] Definition and potential of software-defined vehicles
• [00:09:02] Impact of autonomous driving on customer experience
• [00:15:17] Challenges in automotive product development cycles
• [00:20:51] The future of car dealerships and retail models
• [00:26:00] The importance of customer education for new vehicle technologies
• [00:30:20] Regional differences in automotive preferences and regulations
• [00:35:42] The concept of vehicle journey vs. customer journey
• [00:41:17] Data privacy concerns and transparency in the automotive industry
Quotes:
• "The biggest capabilities that [software-defined vehicles] can update their functionality over the air and the first one that we saw having that capability are the Tesla vehicles, But now several others do." - Evangelos Simoudis
• "If I lived in Orange County and I worked, say, in L A. And I drove an hour and a half there and an hour and a half back every day, and I could get in my car, plug it in an address, open up my laptop, turn on my phone, watch my Netflix. I could have an hour and a half back each way, three hours a day, five days a week. If you do the math, that's a month of your life back." - Josh Batie
• "The reason I said earlier that today the definition of software-defined vehicle is a bit muddled is because the incumbent automotive industry has to transition to the clean definition. The clean definition is when we start having the so-called zonal architectures and central computer architectures very much like we have in a data center." - Evangelos Simoudis
• "60 -
In this episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Michael Gray is joined by Jeremy Mack, Solutions Architect, and Mike Storiale, VP of Innovation at Synchrony. They delve into the world of generative AI and its implications for businesses and society at large.
Join them as they discuss:
• The definition and potential of generative AI
• How generative AI is changing product development and customer interactions
• The ethical considerations and security implications of AI adoption
• The future of work and new job roles emerging from AI technology
• Practical applications of AI in various industries
• The challenges of implementing AI in enterprise environments
• The importance of education and training in the AI era
Jeremy Mack brings nearly nine years of experience at Synchrony, with a background in startups and various agencies. As a Solutions Architect, he oversees technical strategy and decision-making in the company's incubation group.
Mike Storiale, with almost five years at Synchrony, leads product incubation on the technology side. His team focuses on developing new products and capabilities for future horizons, typically looking at trends and potential products 2-3 years out.
If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Youtube Podcasts.
Episode Resources:
• Jeremy Mack on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmack
• Mike Storiale on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikestoriale
• Synchrony Website: https://www.synchrony.com
• Michael Gray on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-gray
• Method Website: https://www.method.com -
In this episode of Build What's Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas continues his insightful discussion with Jason Rome and Robert Neer. They explore:
• The concept of "unobstructed wandering" in product discovery and how to turn observations into actionable strategies
• The challenges and best practices of implementing OKRs in product organizations
• The importance of business fluency for product managers and how to develop it
• The evolving role of product managers in 2024 and beyond
• Practical tips for product managers to stay connected with their users and market trends
Jason Rome is the SVP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience at Method, bringing years of experience in digital strategy and product management. Robert Neer is an Executive in Residence of the Product Management Leadership Accelerator at the University of Washington, with a wealth of knowledge in product leadership and customer-focused problem-solving.
If you enjoyed this episode, subscribe, rate, and review it on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
• Jason on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-rome-275b2014
• Robert on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertneer
• Method Website: https://www.method.com
• Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b
Episode Highlights:
• [00:00:26] The Concept of Unobstructed Wandering in Product Discovery
• [03:49] Techniques for Effective Product Strategy Definition
• [06:10] Implementing OKRs in Product Organizations
• [13:13] Aligning OKRs with Business Value and Product Team Impact
• [15:10] Developing Business Fluency for Product Managers
• [17:35] The Evolving Role of Product Managers in 2024
• [19:15] Practical Tips for Product Discovery and Market Understanding
Quotes:
• "I do like this term unobstructed wandering because, you know, I do believe in hypothesis-driven research. But, you know, I find CX and UX to be this thing that once you see it, you can't unsee it and you just live it everywhere you go and you see opportunities for better UX." --- Jason Rome
• "I like OKRs. But one of the dangers when something gets so well codified as a framework is it's really easy to implement without understanding why you're implementing it or what you hope to accomplish or what you're trying to change by putting it in place." --- Robert Neer
• "Product-oriented thinking and development and problem-solving are critical for any business that believes technology is core to how it will actually build value." --- Robert Neer
• "There are a lot of opportunities to use interesting tools to make that part of your job easier. In which case I then ask, So what do you do with the rest of your time now? And are you equipped to actually go do product discovery and customer discovery and solve those problems and generate the value when the hands-on keyboards time that you take today could be reduced pretty dramatically with some tooling?" --- Robert Neer -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, we are joined by Jason Rome, Method’s SVP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience, and Robert Neer, Executive in Residence of the Product Management Leadership Accelerator at the Michael G. Foster School of Business at the University of Washington.
Join them as they discuss:
• The state of enterprise product management today
• The challenge of building products that matter to consumers
• The structural issues preventing companies from doing modern product
• How to adapt product strategy to an organization
• And more!
Robert Neer is celebrating fifteen years as an executive product leader in health care. A mastermind in customer-focused problem solving and creating products that stand out, he currently acts as an Executive in Residence of the Product Management Leadership Accelerator at the Michael G. Foster School of Business at the University of Washington.
Since 2015, Jason Rome has been SVP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience at Method. He has also been a part of Skookum, most recently as VP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience, before leaving the company in 2021.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
• Jason on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-rome-275b2014
• Robert on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robertneer
• Method Website: https://www.method.com
• Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b
Episode Highlights:
• [04:00] The State of Enterprise Product Management Today
• [07:42] The Challenge of Building a Product that Matters to Customers
• [14:04] Structural Issues Preventing Modern Product Strategy
• [23:46] Adapting Product Strategy to an Organization
Quotes:
• “When you've gotten to the point where you have really achieved a product oriented-model, fundamentally what you should be asking product managers to be accountable for is, are you building a product that answers to a real customer problem? Are you solving a customer problem that matters to your customers in a way that they will love and in a way that you can make money at?” — Robert Neer
• “The act of empowerment takes a certain amount of humility on leadership’s side to say we hope and expect that our teams who are closer to the work and closer to the customers will make smarter decisions than I will.” — Robert Neer
• “Product-oriented thinking and development and problem solving is critical for any business that believes technology is core to how it will actually build value.” — Robert Neer
• “A lot of the companies that initially did product work didn't have to define what it meant to be a product because their product is what they use to make money.” — Jason Rome -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, we share our latest Tech Talk featuring Michael Ifkovits, Director of Business Strategy at Method, Joel Suckow, Digital Surgery at Johnson & Johnson, and Rick Sanden, Principal Embedded Software Engineer at Medtronic.
Join them as they discuss:
• How technology such as AI is shaping the healthcare industry
• The potential of AI in reducing cognitive load for healthcare providers
• The risks and unintended consequences of digital tool developments
• Challenges and opportunities in personalized digital health
• FDA’s hidden role in tech innovation
• And more!
Michael is a passionate and driven innovator who excels at making complex, new concepts easy to understand for clients and colleagues. Joel is a seasoned tech professional with experience at DePuy Synthes and Red Ventures. He also co-founded PureSurgery before joining Johnson & Johnson.
Rick is a Distinguished Engineer with expertise in developing and customizing RTOS for medical instruments and test systems. He has vast experience developing medical instrument software using C, C++, C#, and .NET.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
• Michael on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsifky
• Method Website: https://www.method.com
• Joel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joel-suckow
• Johnson & Johnson Website: https://www.jnj.com
• Rick on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-sanden-2441575a
• Medtronic Website: https://www.medtronic.com/me-en/index.html
Episode Highlights:
• [01:32] How Cutting-Edge Tech Is Giving Surgeons the Upper Hand
• [06:15] How AI Is Helping Healthcare Providers Dedicate More Time to Their Patients
• [11:12] Are Virtual Doctor Visits Here to Stay?
• [15:36] Unintended Consequences and Risks Associated with Digital Tool Developments
• [18:06] How J&J and Medtronic Are Revolutionizing Healthcare with Digital Surgery
• [26:30] FDA’s Hidden Role in Tech Innovation
Quotes:
• “Our provider experience is how do we make that experience in a competitive world where you have a choice, which is a great thing? I love all of our competitors because it makes us all better. But if you're a surgeon, there are a lot of different total knee implants that you can use. So why use ours? And then, I think what we're excited about now and what we're I think we're gonna talk about today is not just the implant, but how am I choosing the technology?” — Joel Suckow
• “For Medtronic, we like to think about the provider as we like to say, Hey, we want to empower that provider so that provider can actually deliver the best quality health care and then also the safest. And so we're saying we want to deliver the right solution to the provider at the right time that gives him or her the opportunity to increase the quality of care.” — Rick Sanden
• “When we talk to providers, time is their most valuable asset, and that is directly related to how many patients they can see and how long they can spend with that patient. So, if I have a solution that tracks data, but it takes a surgeon five minutes to input that data, that's time taken away from their patient. So they're looking for digital solutions that are saving them time to date.” — Joel Suckow
• “We're in the medical field, so patient privacy is very important and that actually is -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Jason Rome and Cory Vogelsonger, the Chief Product & Technology Officer at Aaron's, Inc.
Join them as they discuss:
• What culture in an organization means and how it can drive success
• Physical and psychological safety and how to nurture that in a working environment
• Best practice for improving clarity among your workforce
• Why you should encourage an environment where workers feel able to speak up and take risks
• The importance of engaging directly with customers and users
• And more!
Jason is, the SVP of Digital Strategy & Customer Experience at Method, Cory is the Chief Product & Technology Officer at Aaron's and a progressive digital product development leader with a career built on leading large, enterprise-scale transformation efforts.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
• Cory on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cory-voglesonger-81907628
• Invoke Website: https://www.aarons.com
• Jason on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-rome-275b2014
• Method Website: https://www.method.com
Episode Highlights:
• [00:02:10] Defining Culture in Modern Product
• [00:07:40] Safety, Clarity and Urgency
• [00:24:46] Writing One-Pagers
• [00:26:11] Types of Safety in the Workplace
• [00:43:12] Facilitating Intrinsic Motivation Through Immersion in the Customer Experience
Quotes:
• “One of the techniques that I use and try to teach on my team is we write a lot of one-pagers, just like a single page document when we start out an initiative that really highlights clearly what we're trying to do and why, in an outcome oriented way”
• “There's this concept of psychological safety, which I think most probably have heard of. But in general that is this true feeling of organizational permission, to be candid, to say what's on your mind, to take risks and not feel all the potentially negative consequences that can come from that.”
• “There's a lot of learned helplessness, frankly, in corporate America where, like, I can't do this thing because they said so or that would be risky. And so a lot of what I'm trying to do is just go as strip away as much as we can to where the entire value stream and how work is created. They own by and large and can influence directly. That's why I send them into the store so they can feel what their customers feel in the crappy experience that they thought was a good trade off and sitting down.” -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Kent Keirsey, Founder and CEO at Invoke. Together, they explore the intersection of AI and creative content generation, touching on how it is impacting artists’ work, the rules around copyright, and the arguments for leveraging either closed or open models.
Long Summary:
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Kent Keirsey, Founder and CEO at Invoke.
Join them as they discuss:
The role of AI from artists’ perspectivesHow Invoke train AI models for creative image generationThe rules of copyright in AI-generated imagesWhere businesses can appropriately leverage AIThe differences between closed and open modelsThe near future of AI’s effect on video contentAnd more!Kent is Founder and CEO of Invoke, a creative AI image generation platform that empowers artists and enthusiasts to create the art of tomorrow. He’s also the Founder and Advisor of Product ATL, bringing together Product experts from across Atlanta.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
Kent on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kentkeirsey Invoke Website: https://www.invoke.com Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b Method Website: https://www.method.comEpisode Highlights:
[07:47] AI From an Artist’s Perspective[15:26] Invoke’s Approach to Training Models[22:01] The Rules Around Copyright[34:22] Where Can You Appropriately Leverage AI?[44:16] The Future of AI and Video Content[48:17] AI Tools to Look Out ForQuotes:
“[The use of AI is] really much more of an element of injecting language and your creative goals into a process that can realize those really quickly, but you're still composing that, you're still compositing it, you're still orchestrating a lot of the actual creative decision making in order to get to a good spot. Because if you don't have that skill, if you don't have any sense of color theory or artistry, the rule of thirds and composition, you're going to make something that doesn't look good. You still need those artistic skills in order to produce something that's worth looking at.” “We've moved beyond this naive early implementation of, ‘push a button, get output’, to the point where we now can control it to an extent that, I would argue, at least personally, is sufficient human expression to merit copyright.” “The debate rages between, should this technology be open, does that pose too great a risk? Does it pose too great a geopolitical political risk from a US centric point of view? Do we want everyone having our latest and greatest AI model?... And then on the closed side, you have people arguing that the access to this technology is going to be limited. We're going to be centralizing power. We're going to be centralizing the ability to generate value in organizations that may not really care if they employ that many people to generate that value.” -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Blair Holt, Director of Experience Design at Method, and Josh Batie, VP of Autonomous Mobility at Toyota North America.
Join them as they discuss:
● The challenges of developing autonomous vehicles
● The importance of in-cabin experience
● Fleet management
● The ongoing transformation of the automotive experience.
● Toyota's cautious approach to EVs
● The future of mobility
● And more!
Blair Holt is the Director of Experience Design at Method. Before that, he worked as the Principal of Business Design. Blair has also worked at Bank of America, Lowe’s Companies, and Toyota. He has over twenty years of experience in defining customer-centric products, services, and experiences.
Josh Batie is Vice-President of Autonomous Mobility at Toyota North America, where he has worked for over eight years. Prior to working at Toyota, Josh was employed at Nissan Motor Corporation for three years. Josh has over twenty years experience in the automotive industry.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
● Blair Holt on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blairtholt
● Josh Batie on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-batie
● Josh Lucas on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b
● Method Website: https://www.method.com
Episode Highlights:
● 09:20 From EV Skeptic to EV Evangelist
● 12:32 Industry Turning Points
● 17:08 Future Proofing Vehicles
● 31:04 Proceeding With Caution
● 39:12 Managing Vehicle Fleets
● 51:40 The Future of the Automotive Experience
Quotes:
● “I never recognized how much it meant to be able to visualize what the car was planning on doing and transitioning that to what I was feeling from the seat. And that's where that marriage of the digital and the physical will never go away. Because it was those two things put together where I was like all ‘All right, it sees that person jaywalking, and it's already made a decision here, and it's thinking about what it's got to do there. I'm good with that because I wouldn't do any more myself at this point.’ It's beyond what I would have done.” -Josh Batie
● “The essence of the car is different than it was before, and so who needs to educate on it and sell it and service it might be fundamentally different.” -Blair Holt
● “I think you're going to see companies start making big strides to building these cars where they have the ability to be improved in the future. And that's from a safety standpoint, regulatory standpoint, but also an experience standpoint. And so I think that's the biggest one you're going to see is that throughout generations of owning a car, just like maybe when you bought your car, you put larger tyres on it or you modify it to be something personalized. I think that you'll see a car be able to evolve over time with different owners to meet their needs.” -Josh Batie -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Bob Moesta, President and CEO of ReWired Group, and Andy Busam, Principal Consultant at Method.
Join them as they discuss:
- What the Jobs to be Done framework really is
- The common pitfalls in implementing best practices from the framework
- How to take learnings from research to implementation
- Snickers as a Jobs to be Done case study
- Whether ‘the pivot’ is a necessary step of product development
- How Jobs to be Done fits into desirability, feasibility, and viability
- And more!Bob Moesta is President and CEO of ReWired Group, who specialize in Demand-Side Innovation in the marketing world. He is also Co-Founder of Laser Ventures, Strategic Advisor at LifeWeb 360, an Adjunct Lecturer of Executive MBA Education at Northwestern University, and a Research Fellow at the Clayton Christensen Institute.
Andy Busam is a Principal Strategist at Method and has held multiple roles with the company focused on Digital Strategy and Experience Design. Prior to his return to Method, Andy was the Director of Digital Strategy at United Therapeutic Corporation.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
- Bob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobmoesta
- Andy on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andybusam
- Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b
- Method Website: https://www.method.comEpisode Highlights:
- [01:51] Introducing the Jobs to be Done Framework
- [12:19] Common Pitfalls in Implementing Best Practices
- [23:14] Taking Learnings from Research to Implementation
- [27:49] How Snickers Implemented the Jobs to be Done Framework
- [37:20] Is Pivoting a Necessary Step of Product Development?
- [47:25] Using Jobs to be Done in Desirability, Feasibility, and ViabilityQuotes:
● “Jobs to be Done is this whole premise that people don't buy products, they hire them in a very specific situation to help them make progress. And what that means is that it allows us to actually understand that context that they're in and the outcome they want to actually drive them to actually buy something or to choose or to change behavior.” - Bob Moesta
● “The biggest mistake people make is they don't actually go talk to customers because they can't get access to them. And so then they assume they know what customers are talking about.” - Bob Moesta
● “Perfect is the enemy of good. It's also the enemy of done, and so I think that one of our overarching principles here is simplify and go, and what we see too often is over complicating and taking too long to get off the ground.” - Andy Busam -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Tim Morey, Global Head of Method, and Evangelos Simoudis, Founder and Managing Director of Synapse Partners.
Join them as they discuss:
- What the ‘Flagship Experience’ is
- How automakers can become mobility partners of consumers
- The decision for automakers to outsource software development or keep it in-house
- The driving forces behind the continued push toward automotive innovation
- How automakers can create and monetize value by better understanding customers needs
- And more!
Evangelos Simoudis is the Managing Director of Synapse Partners, a company investing in early-stage startups developing horizontal and vertical enterprise software AI applications. He is also the author of The Flagship Experience: How AI and Software-Defined Vehicles Will Revolutionize the Automotive Customer Experience.
Since 2023, Tim Morey has been Global Head of Method, the global strategic design and digital product development consultancy. Prior to joining us, he spent almost thirteen years leading Silicon Valley companies.
If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
- Tim on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/timothymorey
- Evangelos on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/evangelossimoudis
- Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b
- Method Website: https://www.method.com
Episode Highlights:
[03:08] What Is The Flagship Experience?
[10:44] How Automakers Can Become Mobility Partners of Consumers
[17:12] Should Automakers Outsource Software Development Or Keep It In-House
[24:27] Driving Forces Behind Continued Push Towards Automotive Innovation
[31:38] How Automakers Capture and Use Data
[38:20] How Automakers Can Create and Monetize Value From Understanding Customers
[43:46] Where Do Dealers Come in?Quotes:
“I think there have been many attempts recently, in the last couple of years, to create an analogy between the smartphone and the software-defined vehicles, and at a high level, the analogy holds. But we should not forget that I cannot kill somebody if I throw my phone at them unless I was very strong, whereas the vehicle is a heavy piece of machinery that can create a lot of problems.” - Evangelos Simoudis
“I think an awful lot of incumbent carmakers don't give themselves permission to be a mobility partner. They're looking at sulfur-designed vehicles and electrification and new energy sources as really a linear move in technology.” - Tim Morey
“For the incumbent automakers, partnering is an attractive option because you get ready-made access to expertise. But with that choice comes the challenge that you're now no longer fully in control of the overall experience that you're offering.” - Tim Morey -
We're back with part 2 of Modern Product!
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Jason Rome, SVP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience at Method, and David Brown, Director of Digital Product Operations and Governance at EDF Renewables.
Join them as they discuss:
- Where work is most likely to get bottlenecked
- How preference impacts delivery
- Whether new features get overvalued
- Measuring culture through collaboration and networking
- Where empowerment fits into the equation
- And more!
David Brown is the Director of Digital Product Operations at EDF Renewables North America. He also serves part-time in the Marine Corps as a Strategy Engagement Consultant.
Jason Rome has been SVP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience at Method since 2015. He has also worked at Skookum, most recently as VP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience, before leaving the company in 2021.
If you enjoyed this episode, go check out part 1, and make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
- Jason on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-rome-275b2014
- David on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-allen-brown
- Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b
- Method Website: https://www.method.com
Episode Highlights:
[02:56] Where Bottlenecks Form
[09:30] How Preference Impacts Delivery
[15:28] Overvaluing New Features
[20:35] Collaboration as a Way to Measure Culture
[28:49] How Does Empowerment Fit In?
[33:54] Actionable Advice
Quotes:
- “People's true preferences are what's going to be the lowest cost on my time, what is the most efficient way to do things, and what has the best ROI for me. Those are people's real preferences, whether they're employees or customers. I think if you look at the feature too closely versus the problem, you can end up a little bit blind to that process.” - Jason Rome
- “Nothing's ever proven until you put it in production in someone's hands and you see how they interact with it.” - David Brown
- “There is no such thing as a delightful password reset. It is something you want to seamlessly just happen. And so, not everything needs to be super delightful and super memorable. Those need to be inserted at moments where there's a clear ROI on being able to do that.” - Jason Rome -
In this episode of Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives, host Josh Lucas is joined by Jason Rome, SVP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience at Method, and David Brown, Director of Digital Product Operations and Governance at EDF Renewables.
Join them as they discuss:
- The pillars of the Modern Product framework
- The necessary steps in building an effective strategy
- The importance of strengthening your discovery muscle
- The need for cross-functional guidance
- And more!
David Brown is the Director of Digital Product Operations at EDF Renewables North America. He also serves part-time in the Marine Corps as a Strategy Engagement Consultant.
Since 2015, Jason Rome has been SVP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience at Method. He has also been a part of Skookum, most recently as VP of Digital Strategy and Customer Experience, before leaving the company in 2021.
If you enjoyed this episode, go check out part 2, and make sure to subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Google Podcasts, instructions on how to do this are here.
Episode Resources:
- Jason on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-rome-275b2014
- David on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-allen-brown
- Josh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-lucas-7844401b
- Method Website: https://www.method.com
Quotes:
- “Discovery is the muscle, not the exercise.” - Jason Rome
- “If you don't make [discovery] part of your delivery model or your large SDLC associated with how you deliver, you will probably just keep a proximity bias of, we know what our problems are, and we'll solve for them.” - David Brown
- “ Our day is broken up into half-hour to an-hour-long chunks, and that's not enough time for strategy. And so I think, a lot of times, just having more time for your team to talk about strategy, but really sitting down and grasping the consequences and talking through it and getting people of different beliefs in one room and just wrestling it for a while.” - Jason Rome -
The process of developing digital products and experiences can be a daunting task organizations often find themselves wondering if they are solving the right problems the right way hoping the result is what the end user needs. That’s why our team at Method has decided to launch Build What’s Next: Digital Product Perspectives.
Every week, we’ll explore ways to connect technology with humanity for a simpler digital future. Together, we’ll examine digital products and experiences, strategic design and product development strategies to help us challenge our ideas and move forward.
