19 Nov TDG podcast feature: How deeper listening can unlock massive growth

The Design Gym’s managing partner, Andy Hagerman, recently joined the brilliant Heather J Smith on her newly launched podcast, Product Game Plan, which is designed specifically for enterprise product managers. They had an insightful and fun conversation about the future of product design, co-creation, and the evolving role of product managers in shaping business growth.

“I believe that co-creation and co-design will be one of the most substantial shifts in our collective ways of working—and the way businesses operate—over the next decade. It’s not just a nice to have; it’s a need to have.”

The Story Behind Their Connection

Heather first connected with Andy as a client of The Design Gym, in her role as a product manager at Cisco (one of The Design Gym’s longest-standing clients.)

Over the course of several collaborations, they built and led various customer listening and co-creation programs with some of Cisco’s biggest customers all around the world, seeking to understand their needs and incorporate their ideas into their new products. 

Heather and Andy quickly bonded over not just what they were doing, but how they approached their work:

•  Getting out of the screen and into the real world.
•  Incorporating better listening into everyday customer interactions.
• Quickly reflecting customer ideas in products and gathering feedback.
• Innovating internally to drive external growth.
  

Since then, they’ve become close friends, and Heather’s podcast is the perfect platform to continue their insightful discussions.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

In this episode, Heather and Andy explore:

• The evolving role of product and design teams.
• Opportunities for sales teams to drive growth.
• The critical link between employee experience and customer experience.