Summary
This session explored the dynamics of customer success and product development, as panelists shared their experiences and strategies. They emphasized the importance of embedding customer success leaders within scrum teams to enhance communication and feature development. A significant focus was placed on the documentation of decision-making processes, with members describing how they kept track of rationale behind design choices to facilitate transparency. The talk also highlighted the role of research operations in empowering other team members to conduct and synthesize user research. Panelists discussed how structured feedback mechanisms, such as the RICE method for feedback prioritization, can help prevent overfocus on individual pieces of feedback. They shared experiences in building relationships between product managers and research teams to drive better product outcomes. Panelists also discussed methods for ensuring that customer insights are acted upon, particularly through iterative co-design methods and ensuring closed-loop feedback with customers. Overall, the panel emphasized the importance of collaboration, documentation, and active engagement with customers in the product development cycle.
Key Insights
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Embedding customer success leaders in product teams fosters better communication.
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Documenting design decisions alongside prototypes enhances transparency and usability.
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Research operations should focus on empowering others to conduct research rather than just handling research themselves.
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Using frameworks like RICE helps prioritize feedback effectively and prevents focus drift.
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Building strong relationships with product managers is essential for effective research utilization.
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Engaging customers through focus groups solidifies relationships and informs product direction.
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Structured synthesis processes can improve the quality and retention of research findings.
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Iterative co-design with customers creates ongoing engagement and feedback loops.
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Engineering days allow teams to focus on implementing smaller improvements based on research and customer feedback.
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Real-time updates on customer feedback help maintain transparency and trust.
Notable Quotes
"Going big is great, but how do we get started if we haven't done it before?"
"We put decisions along with each screen and explain the rationale for each design choice."
"The value of research is to democratize it and allow others to conduct their own research."
"We prioritize feedback using the RICE method: reach, impact, confidence divided by effort."
"Part of building effective relationships is partnering at a human level."
"You have to build the relationship first before advising others."
"Look for quick wins that create value for both PMs and the research team."
"We obsess over the synthesis phase because it's where we can lose vital insights."
"Customers are tired of promises; listening and demonstrating progress keeps them engaged."
"We create closed loops by showing customers that we've acted on their input, which builds trust."
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