You’ll hear how Jess leveraged an internal AI hackathon to create her first product‑ and brand‑trained agent, then scaled that approach into a full “agentic learning” stack using tools like Claude, Gemini, Glean, and video platforms such as Clueso—plus a next‑gen AI‑native LMS. She explains her step‑by‑step method for designing agents, reverse‑engineering “what good looks like,” and acting as the strategic director of a hybrid team of humans and AI. If you care about Customer Education, Customer Success, or doing more with less through AI, this episode is a practical, down‑to‑earth blueprint for where our field is heading.

Click here for our Agentic Learning Survey for Customer Education!

Episode Highlights:

• From zero to launch: How Jess joined Forter with no existing customer education function and set an aggressive timeline to ship a full Help Center and Academy.
• Team of one → team of many (agents): Why she now operates with 20+ specialized AI agents across research, writing, analysis, and design.
• Agentic learning in practice: A concrete definition of agentic learning as a network of domain‑trained AI agents supporting both creators and learners.
• Hackathon origin story: How an internal AI hackathon (open to non‑engineers) became the catalyst for Forter’s first product‑ and brand‑trained agent.
• Replacing weeks of meetings: Case study where an agent analyzed a product screen recording and drafted a full article outline, saving weeks of PM/PMM + CE collaboration.
• Multi‑agent workflows: Using Glean to mine 100+ pages of onboarding data, one agent to analyze patterns, and another to convert that into on‑brand course modules.
• Strategic director mindset: Moving from “content producer” to director of a hybrid human + AI team, focusing on goals, quality, and business impact.
• and much, much more ...

Ashley and Dave go deep on action mapping as a performance-first design framework, how Ashley evaluated 13+ learning platforms before choosing Brainstorm, and why private, co-branded customer portals have become a game-changer for governance, security, and adoption. You’ll hear how she partners with Sales, CS, and Product, uses customer interviews and Gong calls to shape strategy, and is now reorienting learning paths around AI-powered app building and customer-specific use cases.

Episode Highlights:

• How Ashley repositioned Customer Education from “nice-to-have” to core expansion strategy at Quickbase  
• Using Failure to Launch (no app built in 60–90 days) as a key churn signal and CE design input  
• Moving from order-taking (“we need a course”) to strategic problem-solving using action mapping  
• The four blocker categories in action mapping: environment, knowledge, skill, and motivation  
• Why traditional frameworks like ADDIE/SAM often break down in fast-moving SaaS environments  
• The power of private, branded customer portals for governance, security, and co-created content  
• Turning CSMs, TAMs, and Sales into educators and content contributors (without overwhelming them)  
• and much, much more ...

Together, we dig into the craft behind effective educational content: from scripting for real humans instead of internal stakeholders, to using video as a scaled “virtual CSM,” to practical production tactics like no-pause editing, intentional cropping, and focusing on audio over fancy visuals. They also explore how employee-generated content (EGC), personal branding, and authentic on-camera presence can amplify product education, drive adoption, and build trust at scale. If you’re in Customer Education, Customer Success, or Product Marketing and you’re serious about using content to move the needle, this conversation will give you a playbook you can start testing this week.

Highlights:

• How to turn complex B2B products into simple, relatable stories your customers actually get
• Why audio quality, pacing, and presence matter more than cinematic visuals
• The “geometry vs. calculus” model for simplifying corporate jargon
• Using employee-generated content (EGC) and personal brands to amplify your product education
• Practical editing tricks: no-pause audio, crop-in/crop-out, and using text sparingly but strategically
• How to repurpose video across the journey: onboarding, in-product guidance, help center, and renewal

Key Takeways:

• The “sucker’s choice” in learning: scale with async and get low outcomes, or deliver high-touch experiences that don’t scale—and how AI changes that tradeoff.
• Why completion rates aren’t enough: shifting from “who finished the course?” to “who can actually do the behavior that drives product value?”
• Cohort-based customer onboarding:
  • Clay’s enterprise cohorts that get customers to a live, deployed workflow before their first call with a strategist.
  • Using “onboarding complete” as a signal that a customer is ready for strategic work, not just basic setup.
• AI-powered practice at scale:
  • Role plays, brainstorms, and screen-recording uploads graded by AI against a rubric.
  • GE Healthcare’s example: thousands of SME hours saved by automating role play assessment.
• From content consumption to competency:
  • Designing exercises that assess how well someone understands and applies concepts, not just whether they watched a video.
  • Moving from binary “activated / not activated” to a spectrum of competency and product proficiency.
• Admin and operations automation:
  • AI grouping learners, tracking participation, and sending smart nudges in Slack/Teams.
  • AI-assisted course creation from slide decks, product docs, or talks—getting teams 80–90% of the way there.
• Behavior change as the real goal:
  • Measuring skill improvement (e.g., 12% skill uplift) and tying it to time-to-value, product usage, and revenue.
  • Using product data (activation, feature usage, MAU) together with learning analytics to prove CE/CS impact.
• Social and community-based learning:
  • Learners coaching each other in Slack, not just relying on CSMs or TAs.
  • Encouraging learners to share their wins publicly (e.g., LinkedIn posts about what they built) to drive advocacy and organic growth.
• Personalization with AI “tutors”:
  • Tailoring scenarios and role plays to learner role, industry, and use case (e.g., government, specific product surface areas).
  • Cutting down “re-learn what I already know” time and focusing on the delta that actually matters.
• Strategic implication for CS leaders:
  • Freeing CSMs from repeating Clay 101 or basics on calls.
  • Replacing “LMS graveyards” with living, cohort-based, AI-augmented programs customers actually want to join.

From there, the conversation shifts into AI-assisted content creation and distribution. Roberto walks through how he used AI to co-create a compensation course—turning scarce SME time into a solid 60–70% draft—and then scaled that approach into reusable assistants for brainstorming, course design, and promotional comms. Adam and Roberto also dig into how they mapped academy content to activation milestones, setup wizards, and implementation email journeys, so customers see the right learning at exactly the right moment. If you care about Customer Education, Digital CS, or scaled CX, this episode is a masterclass in moving from “more content” to measurable customer outcomes.

Episode Highlights:

• Why localization ≠ translation, and how cultural nuance (e.g., The Simpsons in Italy) changes tone, jokes, and stereotypes.
• The trap of forcing English tone and structure into other languages—and why native reviewers must have the final say.
• How Personio decides what terminology to localize vs. leave in English (“Dinglish”), especially in tech and HR products.
• Practical workflow: producing content in English, then using vendors + native reviewers + AI to localize efficiently.
• Using AI assistants (via langdock) to:
  • Draft HR skill courses (like compensation) from SME interviews and public domain expertise.
  • Encode style guides, glossaries, and frameworks so drafts are on-brand and consistent.
  • Generate promo copy (emails, posts) as part of a repeatable, scalable workflow.
• The real benefit of AI: freeing up time for strategic thinking—like distribution, campaigns, and mapping to business outcomes.
• Why translation memory and maintenance are harder than translation itself, and why integration across tools matters.
• Leveraging tools like Parta for on-brand, collaborative content creation, and Clueso for scalable, localized video.
• Personio’s AI Surge Week: workshop design to help non-experts adopt AI for content creation through live examples and iteration.
• Rebuilding the essentials learning path by mapping:
  • Activation milestones 
  • Academy content 
  • Setup wizard steps 
  • Implementation email journeys
• Example: surfacing targeted content at the people data upload step to reduce anxiety (GDPR, privacy, data scope).
• Why “more content” is not the goal—surfacing the right content at the right time is.
• The future: products that “talk” to customers, where education shifts from click-path tutorials to decision-making and critical thinking.

We explore how AI is reshaping Customer Education: from speeding up content creation to orchestrating just‑in‑time learning, routing the right learner to the right asset at the right moment. They dig into the 2026 State of AI in Customer Education report, the idea of “structured professional balance” between humans and AI, and why completion rates are no longer enough. If you’re leading Customer Education, CS, or scaled enablement and wondering how to make AI practical (not gimmicky), this episode is for you.

Key topics & takeaways

• Why LearnWorlds is shifting from “course host” to learning product operating system
• The difference between a content library vs. a true learning system
• Why Customer ed teams “ask for a library but really need a system”
• Using AI for orchestration, not just content generation
• What “instructionally intelligent AI” means in practice
• The concept of structured professional balance: AI speed + human control
• AI as an orchestration layer across content, product signals, support, and lifecycle
• Customer education as a stress test for AI‑driven learning
• Why completion rates are the wrong north star; outcomes and behavior change matter more
• Budget realities for AI in CE and how teams are experimenting with small spends
• How the 2026 State of AI in Customer Education Report was built (quant + expert interviews)

On the music side, they explore Louis Cole, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Black Country, New Road, St. Vincent, and Tune-Yards. Adam and Dave connect venue, context, and stagecraft to how we design learning environments, build resilient teams, and foster community around our programs. If you’re thinking about onboarding, product adoption, AI-era education, or how to keep your learners coming back, this episode is packed with fresh, unexpected parallels.

Key topic bullets (Customer Education & CS–focused)

• Onboarding by design: How Helldivers 2 uses scaffolding, mission flow, and “muscle memory over menus” to teach complex mechanics—mirroring ideal SaaS onboarding.
• Context > content: Why the venue (Small venue vs. big noisy hall) transformed Louis Cole vs. King Gizzard orchestral shows—and how that maps to learning environments and attention.
• Performance support vs. upfront training: Games as a model for balancing early instruction with in-the-moment guidance.
• Community-based learning: Peak as a metaphor for learners pulling each other up the mountain via collaboration and shared discovery.
• Resilient teams after setbacks: Black Country, New Road rebuilding after losing their lead singer—parallels to CE teams navigating layoffs and org changes.
• Emergent learning & retention: How Megabonk and other games keep players experimenting and returning, similar to driving ongoing product adoption.
• Edges and surprise in learning: St. Vincent and Tune-Yards using surprise, constraints, and audience participation to create memorable experiences—vs. bland, predictable training.
• AI and emergent workflows: Early thoughts on how AI products shift education from “where to click” to “how to think and prompt.”

They dive into the org design behind Webflow’s modern education function—video production, instructional design, platform, certifications, and onboarding—and how those pieces work together to support both self-serve users and large enterprise accounts. From launching high-stakes certifications in under a year, to deciding when humor helps (or hurts) learning, to using AI for exam development and just‑in‑time learning, this episode is a masterclass for Customer Education and Customer Success leaders building programs that actually move product adoption and revenue.

Highlights:

• How Webflow University evolved from PLG top-of-funnel magnet to a dual PLG + enterprise education engine.
• The “make it better, but don’t mess it up” mandate when inheriting a beloved program and community.
• Balancing high production value vs. speed and scalability in a fast-changing SaaS + AI product.
• Where marketing ends and education begins—and how Webflow split teams and responsibilities.
• Structuring a modern education org: video, instructional design, platform/experience, certifications, onboarding.
• Why rigid instructional design can backfire—and how to flex based on audience (developers vs. designers vs. marketers).
• Designing high‑stakes, AI‑proctored certifications that are meaningful to partners and the ecosystem.
• Using AI as a tool for question authoring, psychometrics, and in‑product just‑in‑time learning—without replacing humans.
• Metrics that matter in PLG vs. enterprise: traffic and conversion vs. time‑to‑value, renewal, and expansion.
• The future: customers learning via agents and contextual AI, but still needing conceptual scaffolding and strategy.

Key Takeaways:

• From training to clarity: Why high-performing teams need an operating system for execution, not just more content.
• AI in the workflow: How tools like Outreach, Gong, Intercom’s Fin, and AI-powered knowledge systems can surface the right guidance at the exact moment of need.
• Personalization at scale: Using AI as a layer across your stack to tailor messaging, content, and guidance for different roles, segments, and customer journeys.
• Agentic learning: The emerging pattern where AI agents watch, listen, and respond across tools (Slack, email, CRM, product) to drive just-in-time learning.
• Customer education + enablement ≠ silos: How internal enablement content and external customer education should be co-created and re-used, not duplicated in isolation.
• “Pull” vs. “push” learning: Moving away from mandated content dumps toward on-demand, contextually triggered support in tools like Slack and in-product.
• AI-assisted coaching: Using call intelligence and AI roleplay to coach sales, CS, and trainers on talk time, questioning, and customer-centric behaviors.
• Rethinking the LMS: Why static courses and rigid LMS structures struggle in modern SaaS, and what a more dynamic, AI-driven content fabric might look like.
• Revenue architecture lens: Viewing the entire customer journey—from acquisition through expansion—as a continuous learning and behavior-change system.
• Accountability and impact sprints: Using impact sprints and clear business outcomes to connect enablement & education work to measurable revenue and retention.

Sarah shares her decades of experience transitioning from instructional designer to entrepreneur, and how LearnExperts’ LEAi platform is reshaping training efficiency and scalability for SaaS and enterprise teams. Listen in to discover proven approaches to accelerate course development, create certification-ready exams, and empower both instructional designers and business experts to deliver high-quality, impactful customer learning at scale.

Key Topics:

• How AI in LearnExperts accelerates course creation by up to 85% while ensuring quality and consistency
• Overcoming human resistance to change when implementing new technology in learning teams
• Practical use cases: Equipping non-instructional designers to build effective training content
• Automating exam/question bank creation with built-in best practices for certification
• Strategies for updating, customizing, and repurposing training materials quickly for evolving business needs
• The importance of embedding domain expertise and learning science into scalable platforms
• Enabling customer education teams to address backlogs and prevent customer churn

Customer Education and Education Services are converging, and Dave continues sharing his thoughts on how B2B SaaS organizations are reimagining what learning means for their customers, partners, and teams. Drawing on his journey through small to large businesses - including Atlassian, Outreach, Gainsight, and ServiceRocket - he breaks down why businesses need to move beyond simply selling training—embracing continuous, measurable, and truly impactful learning experiences. This offers listeners an inside look at the systems, teams, and metrics that set elite learning teams apart. Packed with stories from the frontlines—including modular content wins, the challenge of getting measurable outcomes, and real examples of change led by forward-thinking leaders—this episode is a roadmap for anyone looking to level up their Customer Education or Customer Success game. Want to dive deeper or connect with us? Have stories to share? Reach out to us today through this link on the CELab website, or contact us through LinkedIn!

Episode Highlights:

• Transition from revenue-driven to value and outcomes-driven learning strategies.
• The “Trinity” of learning measurement: Learner identity, what’s learned, and usage data.
• Modular, scalable content as a key to modern learning success.
• Importance of aligning education, enablement, services, and customer success teams.
• Continuous learning loops beat one-and-done training every time.
• Tailoring without fully bespoke (costly) solutions: Balancing scale and relevance.
• Embedding data and business outcomes in learning program design.
• Practical examples from Atlassian, Gainsight, and more.
• Tips for leveraging champions and blended content delivery.

Listeners will discover how digital transformation, the subscription economy, and post-pandemic realities have forced learning organizations to adapt at unprecedented speed. Using real-world examples and honest reflection, Dave highlights practical strategies, common pitfalls, and the importance of continual innovation in customer education. Whether you lead a startup or enterprise, this episode arms you with actionable ideas for thriving in the modern era of learning.

Key Highlights:

• Why Education Services and Customer Education are converging in SaaS
• Lessons from legacy revenue-driven versus outcomes-based models
• How the subscription economy demands faster, more agile learning solutions
• COVID-19’s lasting impact on digital learning and engagement
• Key risks in “old school” and modern on-demand training programs
• The real-world business value of blending live and digital learning
• Practical steps to improve adoption, reduce churn, and drive measurable customer success
• The critical role of customer success-minded educators in today’s SaaS world

Tune in as we debunk ILT myths, unpack a hands-on framework spanning “Tell Me, Show Me, Let Me Try,” and discuss how to build truly engaging experiences for customers and internal learners. If you want actionable strategies on scaling customer education, maximizing engagement, and measuring impact, this episode is a must-listen!

Key Episode Topics & Highlights

• ILT’s evolution: from “dead” to indispensable in SaaS training
• Building global, scalable, virtual instructor-led programs
• “Tell Me, Show Me, Let Me Try” framework
• Multimodal learning and accommodating diverse learner styles
• Turning classrooms into communities & leveraging peer learning
• Avoiding common mistakes in new ILT programs
• The power of thoughtful post-training experiences and measurement
• Using feedback loops, NPS, support ticket data, and product engagement tools
• Driving adoption, retention, and tangible business impact via training

Key Topics & Takeaways for Customer Education and Customer Success:

• The spectrum of partner enablement models and why “one size fits all” doesn’t work
• How AI and generative tools are transforming learning experiences for partners and customers
• The difference in motivations between partners and direct customers—and why it matters
• Building scalable enablement programs from scratch in fast-growing companies
• The importance of cross-functional collaboration (product, marketing, sales enablement)
• Why playbooks must be flexible: lessons learned from adapting to new environments
• Career advice for those moving from customer education to partner enablement

Listeners will discover how Clea and her team navigated the challenges of startup life, balanced perfectionism with progress, and leveraged data and AI to drive customer success. Whether you’re building your first customer education program or scaling an established one, this episode is packed with actionable insights, candid stories, and inspiration for every stage of your journey.

Key Topics & Highlights:

• Rapid implementation of Skilljar LMS in just 55 days
• Transitioning from instructor-led to scalable, modular online training
• Building customer education programs in fast-paced startup environments
• Balancing perfectionism with progress: “done is better than perfect”
• Using data and analytics to measure and improve learning outcomes
• Integrating AI and contextual help into customer education platforms
• The importance of soft skills and team culture in Customer Success
• Tailoring education for technical and non-technical audiences
• Advice for launching your first customer education program

Highlights

• Customer education is essential for growth and retention.
• The integration of SkillJar and Gainsight creates a powerful Customer OS.
• Community plays a crucial role in customer success.
• Learning should be an ecosystem that includes community engagement.
• Erica Kuhl emphasizes the importance of collaboration in education.
• The future of customer education lies in integrating various platforms.
• AI can enhance the customer education experience.
• Creating opportunities for practitioners to connect is vital.
• Feedback from the community is essential for product development.
• The vision for Gainsight is to empower customers through education and community.

This episode features the return of serial guest and friend, Samantha Murray and both of our co-hosts - Adam and Dave - to spar about nomenclature (word of the day - the devising or choosing of names for things, especially in a science or other discipline). In this ever-evolving world of learning in B2B SaaS. Should we call our customer education, enablement, or something else entirely?

We explore how different organizations structure their customer-facing teams, the impact of titles and internal branding, and why the outcomes we drive may matter more than the names we use. You'll hear real-world examples from large and fast-moving organizations, insights from LinkedIn discussions, and even a bit of AI-generated analysis on the distinctions between customer education, enablement, and digital CS. The episode challenges listeners to rethink how teams are grouped, what outcomes they’re responsible for, and how the industry can move forward amid rapid technological and organizational change.

Highlights:

• The ongoing debate: Customer Education vs. Customer Enablement vs. Scaled CX
• How naming conventions and titles impact team structure and outcomes
• Real-world organizational examples and shifting internal branding
• The role of AI in analyzing industry trends and terminology
• The importance of aligning teams around shared outcomes, not just functions
• The pros and cons of top-down vs. fractional/flexible leadership models
• How to drive industry alignment during times of disruption and tech consolidation

Want to join the conversation? Jump into the the conversation that kicked this off on LinkedIn or join us in our Community platform to share your org structures and experiences!

Eric shares his journey stepping into the role of Customer Education Manager at Smartcat and taking the reins of the influential Customer Education Bi-Weekly Newsletter. Together, Dave and Eric unpack the challenges and opportunities presented by rapid technological change, the importance of data, and the power of community-driven knowledge sharing. Whether you’re a practitioner, leader, or just curious about the future of customer education, this episode is packed with actionable insights and inspiration.

What's in the episode?

• The impact of AI and automation on customer education and enablement
• Breaking down silos between customer education, customer success, and marketing
• The evolution and importance of the customer education bi-weekly newsletter
• Practical steps for getting started with AI as an education professional
• The role of data and clean architecture in scaling learning interventions
• Building a sustainable, collaborative community of practice
• Real-world examples of AI-powered learning and support
• The value of sharing, community, and elevating individual voices

If you haven't already become a subscriber, make sure you sign up today!

These days emerging platforms like Parta embrace partnership, innovation, and the drive to create engaging, scalable content for global audiences. Listeners will hear firsthand how Personio’s team overcame localization hurdles, streamlined collaboration with subject matter experts, and integrated AI and automation to future-proof their learning programs. The episode also explores the broader impact of treating vendors as true partners, resulting in solutions that benefit not just one company, but the entire Customer Education community. Whether you’re a learning leader, Instructional Designer, or EdTech enthusiast, this episode is packed with actionable insights and inspiration.

• The inefficiencies and limitations of legacy e-learning tools like Articulate and SCORM
• How Personio achieved a 50% efficiency gain in course creation with Parta
• The power of branded, differentiated learning experiences
• Real-world collaboration between learning designers and subject matter experts
• Overcoming localization and translation challenges at scale
• The value of deep, responsive vendor partnerships
• Future trends: AI-driven content discoverability and integration with business tech stacks
• Lessons for building scalable, engaging customer education programs

Want to learn more? Check them out by following this link: https://parta.io/celab

Listeners will get a behind-the-scenes look at Randon and his team's innovative approach to content creation, localization, and data-driven decision-making. From the power of “Jamf Shorts” to the operational backbone of Atlassian tools, Randon and Dave explore the real-world challenges and solutions that make customer education a strategic differentiator. Whether you’re a team of one or leading a global org, this episode is packed with actionable insights and inspiration.

In this episode we cover:

• Scaling customer education from startup to global enterprise
• The power of modular, short-form video content (“Jamf Shorts”)
• Integrating learning with product, support, and customer success
• Using Atlassian tools (JIRA, Confluence) for agile content ops
• Data-driven decision-making: metrics, dashboards, and A/B testing
• Smart localization strategies for global reach
• Building team synergy and cross-functional collaboration
• Advice for small teams and industry newcomers

Join Adam Avramescu and Dave Derington as they dissect the conference's key moments, exploring the critical intersection of community, education, and technology. From Gainsight's strategic acquisitions to the challenges of creating meaningful digital learning experiences, this episode offers a roadmap for customer education professionals navigating the complex world of modern customer success.

Key Topics:

• Gainsight's acquisition of Skilljar and its implications
• AI's role in customer education content creation
• Scaling digital customer success strategies
• Integrating education, community, and product experiences
• Challenges of creating high-quality digital learning at scale
• The future of customer success operating systems

Key Discussion Topics:

• The limitations of traditional training methods
• How virtual labs solve complex training challenges
• AI and automation in customer education
• Measuring training impact and ROI

Check out Cloudshare today at http://cloudshare.com/lp/celab!

• How AI can now handle complex conversations, perhaps better than humans
• Voice interfaces are becoming the new primary customer engagement channel
• Restructure your knowledge base for AI readiness
• How small teams can support millions of customers

The future of AI in business is constantly changing, and this conversation unlocks a lot of interesting and relevant topics. While Regal. ai is focused on Support - this is a massively important component to learning. Check it out today!

Key Takeaways

• AI enhances course content development by analyzing feedback and automating updates.
• Academy OS eliminates invisible labor by automating manual processes in content creation.
• Prioritization of feedback and course updates is streamlined using AI and Airtable’s relational databases.
• Connecting customer education data with product usage data shows clear correlations to product adoption and retention.

Key Takeaways:

• The Two-Hump Problem: Different learning needs for SMB and enterprise customers
• Customer education is more than training - it's about driving behavioral change
• Digital experiences are crucial, but they must be high-quality and tailored
• Change management involves three key stages: 1. Awareness and desire 2. Knowledge and ability 3. Continuous reinforcement
• Traditional training models are outdated in the fast-changing SaaS landscape
• Platforms like Brainstorm are revolutionizing how companies deliver personalized learning
• Success metrics should focus on future value anticipation, not just immediate training completion
• Empowering customers to own their learning journey is critical for long-term success

We also discuss a 4-square (Eisenhower Matrix) model in this talk. Here's an image to help visually demonstrate the vectors between self-directed and structured learning and how they apply to the spectrum of business, from SMB to Enterprise.

Casey shares her team's remarkable achievement of developing a comprehensive academy with nearly 100 videos in months, using innovative tools like Synthesia for AI-powered narration and strategic content design, Camtasia for editing, Wistia for hosting, and Gainsight to bring it all together. Even more, with such a small team they leveraged content creation expertise through Greenmusk to accelerate delivery. The result? Over 150 certifications issued, dramatically reduced training overhead, and a learning platform that serves both customers and industry professionals.

Key Insights:

• How to Build an Enterprise-Level Academy with Limited Resources
• Leveraging AI and Smart Tools to Dramatically Reduce Training Time
• Transforming Customer Onboarding from Live Sessions to Strategic 30-Minute Meetings
• Creating a Learning Platform That Attracts Users Beyond Your Customer Base
• Practical Strategies for Making Complex Software Training Engaging and Accessible

Whether you're a Customer Success leader, a Training Professional, or tech innovator, this episode offers a blueprint for scaling education without scaling complexity.

Listen now and transform your approach to customer learning!

This is a topic that's relatable to all of us in the field of Customer Education: Should Customer Success Managers (CSMs) should be responsible for customer training? In this episode, Adam and Dee explore the complexities of training delivery across different company stages and contexts.

Top 3 Insights:

1. Training Expertise Matters: Not all CSMs have the skills to deliver effective training. Professional trainers bring specialized learning design expertise that ensures consistent, high-quality educational experiences.
2. Balancing Efficiency and Customer Experience: Companies should carefully evaluate their training approach, considering both operational efficiency and customer outcomes. The goal is to right-size training offerings that meet customer needs without overextending resources.
3. Contextual Training Strategy: Training approaches should adapt based on company maturity, product complexity, and market context. Early-stage companies might rely on CSMs, while mature organizations benefit from dedicated training teams and scalable educational programs.

The discussion emphasizes that while CSMs play a crucial role in customer success, specialized training is often best handled by professionals who can deliver consistent, high-quality learning experiences.

As our market continues to grow and change, it's crucial for us to keep on top of emerging trends. Make sure you check out and subscribe to the CXetera substack and check out the show on iTunes, Spotify, and all the other places where you catch your pods!

The conversation delves into best practices for creating effective training programs, the significance of informal learning, and the necessity of building trust with partners. The episode emphasizes the need for simplicity and consistency in training while also addressing the complexities of managing partner relationships and ensuring successful customer outcomes.

Highlights:

• Partner training is essential for scaling customer education.
• NetExam evolved from a content management system to a specialized LMS for partner training.
• Building trust with partners is crucial for successful training programs.
• AI can enhance training by analyzing performance and providing feedback.
• Informal learning should be recognized and credited in training programs.
• Training should be simple and accessible to partners.
• Certification requirements should be balanced to avoid overwhelming partners.
• Custom learning paths can enhance the training experience.
• Measuring success should go beyond just certification completion.
• The relationship with partners should be nurtured from day one.

Key Takeaways from this episode:

• The transition to AI can significantly improve resolution rates.
• Content maintenance is a major challenge in customer support.
• Testing and iteration are crucial for successful AI implementation.
• Proactive education can enhance customer experience and product adoption.
• AI chatbots can serve as growth levers rather than just cost centers.
• Understanding customer needs is key to effective support strategies.
• Data architecture plays a vital role in AI chatbot performance.
• Regular optimization is necessary to maintain high customer satisfaction.
• Engaging with support teams helps identify areas for improvement.
• AI can personalize responses based on user-specific data.

What we've learned over the years is that what we call Customer Education has no discrete start or end. Universally, we focus on:

• The challenges and opportunities of scaling learning programs to support millions of users,
• The importance of integrating community and learning initiatives
• The strategic approaches required to drive adoption and engagement within complex, distributed organizations.

The episode offers a unique perspective on the evolving landscape of customer education and the innovative ways leading companies are tackling the complexities of learning at scale. Listen in and let us know your thoughts!

Julie explains how she partnered closely with her finance team to uncover the true costs associated with creating and delivering in-person training, including factors like instructor salaries, travel expenses, and content development time. By meticulously tracking this data, Julie was able to build a pricing structure that covered the company's costs while still providing value to customers. 

This episode explores:

• The challenges of transitioning from in-person to virtual instructor-led training, and how to maintain the personal touch
• Strategies for collaborating with sales and finance teams to establish fair pricing
• The importance of using data and metrics to inform pricing decisions, not just gut feel
• Tips for promoting continuous learning and platform adoption through engaging training experiences

Whether you're a seasoned learning leader or just starting to build out your customer education program, this episode offers practical insights and a pricing playbook you can apply to your own organization.

• A behind-the-scenes look at NotebookLM's podcast feature in action
• Real-time analysis of AI-generated content from industry experts
• Hilarious commentary and unexpected revelations about customer education topics
• A glimpse into the future of AI in podcasting and educational content

Whether you're a tech enthusiast, a customer education professional, or just someone who enjoys a good laugh at the expense of our robot overlords, this episode is a must-listen. Tune in to "AI vs. Humans: CELab's Real-Time Riffing on a NotebookLM Podcast" and join the conversation about the future of AI in education and content creation.

Some of our top hits this year featured Customer Education leaders like Katie Felton and Dan Ennis, to thought-provoking discussions on the intersection of digital customer success and community, these episodes are packed with practical wisdom and cutting-edge insights. But the real showstopper was Julie Dirksen, author of the legendary "Design for How People Learn" - a must-listen for anyone serious about behavior change in customer education.

Key Takeaways:

• Customer education is becoming more integrated with digital customer success, community, and other teams
• AI is making waves, but the real value comes from understanding its capabilities and limitations
• Efficiency and automation are key, but don't forget the human touch in content creation
• The customer education job market is heating up, with a focus on leveraging AI tools

What's in store for 2025? As usual, we have some bold predictions, from the continued evolution of digital CX to the rise of AI-powered content workflows. One thing's for sure - the future of customer education is looking brighter than ever. Buckle up as we wrap up 2024 with style, panache, and extreme prejudice.

Adam then provides insights into his own journey, discussing the cultural adjustments of living in Amsterdam and the evolution of the customer education function at Personio, now known as the Scaled CX team. He delves into the integration of customer education with digital customer experience practices, focusing on meeting customers where they are through various channels. We recap the first year of the CELab community and plans to enhance it in 2025. Looking ahead, they share their predictions for the year to come, including a deeper exploration of scaled digital initiatives, cross-functional collaboration, and the use of AI in customer education.

Episode Highlights:

• Dave's experiences throughout 2024 as an independent consultant and the common challenges seen across the landscape of Customer Ed
• Adam's perspective on the state of customer education in Europe and the evolution of the Scaled CX team at Personio
• The integration of customer education with digital customer experience practices
• The launch and future plans for the CELab Community
• Predictions for 2025, including Scaled CX / Scaled Digital Success, Cross-functional collaboration, and AI in Customer Education

In this field, we always see a "blurring of the lines" between marketing and education. It's vitally important for us to meet customers where they are, and strategically use platforms like Twitch, YouTube, and social media to amplify content and build communities. The conversation also touches on the role of AI in content creation and repurposing, as well as strategies for scaling customer education efforts while maintaining personalization and engagement.

Key discussion points:

• The changing landscape of content marketing and customer acquisition, with the decline of traditional tactics like ads and cold email
• The rise of media-based approaches, including podcasting, as a powerful way to reach and engage audiences
• The need to diversify content distribution across multiple platforms and formats to meet customers where they are
• Leveraging tools and technologies, such as AI and video editing, to streamline content creation and repurposing
• Balancing the open, accessible nature of content with the need for tracking and analytics to measure impact
• Exploring hybrid models that combine free, publicly available content with paid, more personalized educational offerings

The guests share insights into the challenges and best practices of implementing a standardized digital credentialing framework across Trimble's diverse business units. They also discuss Trimble's broader efforts to transform their customer education programs, including the introduction of their successful "Learnfest" initiative and the exploration of gamification and hands-on learning experiences. Throughout the conversation, the speakers emphasize the importance of leadership support, the need to prioritize the learner's perspective, and the value of embracing failure as a pathway to innovation.

Key Discussion Points:

• Trimble's digital credentialing framework and the journey to standardize it across the organization
• The conceptual and technical aspects of implementing a verifiable, secure digital badging system
• Trimble's diverse industry portfolio and the role of customer education in driving value
• The "Learnfest" initiative and Trimble's efforts to cultivate a learning culture
• Challenges in overcoming traditional learning methods and driving cultural transformation
• The importance of gamification, hands-on experiences, and failure-based learning
• Strategies for engaging internal and external stakeholders in the learning process
• The role of leadership support and the need for a unified learning experience

• Clueso's origin story and the pivotal moment that led to its creation
• The impact of Clueso on the workflows of small and large customer education teams
• A deep-dive into AI-powered features automate the video creation process, saving time and resources
• How localization and translation features further make Clueso help reaching a global customer base a snap

Check out Clueso today by clicking this link and get your demo!

Samantha shares her experiences in customer education at Shopify and Docebo, highlighting the value of cross-functional collaboration and the impact of customer education on the overall customer experience. What's the overlap between customer education and product marketing? There are so many similarities and synergies to explore, so don't miss this lively discussion!

Key Takeaways:

• Consolidating customer education programs can lead to a more cohesive and effective customer experience.
• There are challenges in the B2B SaaS industry, including layoffs and the cutting of customer education programs, but exploring other opportunities can lead to personal and professional growth.
• Customer education professionals should focus on cross-functional collaboration and aligning with marketing, product, and customer success teams to create a seamless learning experience.
• Customer education plays a crucial role in understanding customer needs and challenges, and it should be driven by customer research and feedback.
• Leaders in customer education should advocate for the consolidation of learning efforts within an organization to improve efficiency and productivity. Customer education and product marketing share many similarities and synergies.
• Creating value-based messaging and understanding customer challenges are key aspects of both roles.
• Driving product adoption and delivering value-based education are crucial for customer success.
• Integrating customer education into other learning programs can lead to efficiency gains and stronger content.
• Knowledge management is essential for scaling organizations and ensuring continued growth.
• The future of customer education lies in tapping into new generations of job seekers and providing targeted education programs.
• Collaboration between product marketing and customer education teams can enhance storytelling and create stronger narratives.
• Customer advocacy and feedback play a vital role in shaping educational content and building credibility.
• The fluidity of knowledge transfer and the integration of different functions are crucial for success in the customer education field.

• The value of slowing down and creating space for deeper conversations
• The discussion covers several key topics, including:
• The limitations of relying on generic frameworks and maturity models
• The importance of understanding the specific business problems and opportunities
• Techniques for effective active listening, such as empathy, patience, and asking probing questions
• The need to balance formal and informal communication channels

Resources

• Books:
  • "Crucial Conversations" by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler
  • "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen Covey
• Online Courses:
  • Coursera, Udemy, Skillshare (search for communication and active listening courses)
• Articles and Resources:
  • "The Power of Active Listening" - Harvard Business Review
  • "The Art of Active Listening" - Psychology Today

• Adam Avramescu and Dan Ennis discuss the role of digital customer success in improving customer outcomes, emphasizing the use of proactive and reactive digital-led programs like email and in-app messaging to engage customers at scale.

• Ennis highlights the importance of measuring success through leading indicators such as adoption rates and performance metrics like open and click-through rates, stressing the need for continuous iteration.

• The conversation also explores the collaboration between digital customer success and customer education teams, with regular feedback loops ensuring alignment on goals and customer outcomes.

• Ennis invites listeners to connect on LinkedIn, encouraging collaboration in the digital customer success space.

We’re joined by Melissa Kruminas, a global enablement leader, now at Docebo, where she focuses on customer education that connects business outcomes with learning. Join us as we explore Melissa's approach to value-led, product-supported education, and how she’s driving initiatives in community learning and customer success.

Summary:

Melissa emphasizes that customer education goes beyond teaching product features; it's about helping customers realize the full value of their investment. She discusses her focus on scalable learning through experiential events, certifications, and knowledge management.

Melissa highlights the importance of balancing creativity with efficiency in customer education, drawing parallels to delivering a five-star meal versus providing quick, actionable resources. She shares insights on building communities, capturing institutional knowledge, and scaling learning solutions.

Ultimately, Melissa's work centers around helping customers achieve long-term success by aligning education with their business goals, while fostering a culture of collaboration and continuous learning.

We’re joined by Michele Wiedemer, Customer Education consultant and expert who’s hard at work to learn more and to expand her already impactful approach to learning in B2B SaaS.   Join us as we dive into the Learner-Centered Design approach that she and many of us leverage to build amazing content!

Summary for Part 2

• Michele Wiedemer discusses Michael Allen's framework for designing effective online learning experiences, which involves providing context, challenges, and activities to help learners solve problems and receive feedback.
• Wiedemer and Derington explore the idea of creating engaging, subscription-based learning content, similar to how people learn from video game tutorials and explanations.
• Wiedemer recommends several books and resources for customer education professionals, including "Non-Designers Design Book" by Robin Williams and Michael Allen's work on effective learning components.
• Derington praises Wiedemer's research program and encourages the audience to follow her on LinkedIn, emphasizing the importance of putting oneself in the learner's shoes.
• Overall, the discussion focuses on strategies for creating learner-centered, engaging, and effective customer education programs in rapidly changing business environments.

We’re joined by Michele Wiedemer, Customer Education consultant and expert who’s hard at work to learn more and to expand her already impactful approach to learning in B2B SaaS.   Join us as we dive into the Learner-Centered Design approach that she and many of us leverage to build amazing content!

Summary for Part 1

• Dave Derington and Michele Wiedemer discuss their backgrounds in computers, education, and learning technologies. 
• The importance of focusing on learning rather than just teaching, citing Malcolm Knowles quote about the need for lifelong learning.
• Michele’s experience and research interests around adult learning in a rapidly changing world, including the diffusion of innovations theory.
• Challenges of creating effective customer education programs in fast-paced business environments, 
• The importance of a learner-centered mindset, viewing learning experiences as valuable products, and gathering input from various stakeholders to inform the design.
• Strategies for creating structured content and onboarding programs, including topic-based authoring and repurposing existing materials.
• Tips on improving writing quality through editing, peer feedback, and testing with learners, as well as setting realistic expectations for program development.
• They discuss the use of visual design principles, templates, and AI tools to enhance the creation of engaging e-learning content.

Books Cited in this Episode:

Non-Designers Design - Robin Williams

Michael Allen’s Guide to E-Learning

Geoffrey Moore - crossing the chasm

Malcolm Knowles - Self-Directed Learning

So how do you get started? Should you even be trying to build such a program? In this "mini" episode, Adam Avramescu answers that question down including:

• Setting up certification programs, legal basis, and terminology
• Certification programs for complex software jobs
• Validity and fairness in certification exams
• Creating certification programs without high stakes
• Certification program legal risks and best practices

We've covered this topic a number of times here at CELab, so make sure you check out the following episodes:

• Episode 22 – The Myths and Misconceptions of Certification – Part 1
• Episode 23 – The Myths and Misconceptions of Certification – Part 2
• Episode 62 – Debbie Smith – Certification for SaaS Businesses

In addition, we recommend bookmarking and reading Debbie Smith's article (found on LinkedIn) called "The 13 Principals for Certification". Essential reading for anyone working towards developing their own certification!

Disclaimer: We are not giving legal advice in this episode. Make sure you consult with your company's legal team to understand their risk posture - especially if you're going to develop a legally defensible high-stakes cert.

Lila Meyer shares her journey at Gainsight, from early roles when the organization was new to her current position leading the Education Services team. We cover a lot of ground including the importance of developing transferable skills and collaboration within the customer education community.

Key points:

• Traditionally, customer education programs focused on vanity metrics like course completion rates.
• Gainsight is now connecting education data (LMS) with user data (telemetry) and customer data (CRM) to demonstrate the ROI of education programs.
• This allows them to see how training impacts product usage, retention, and customer health.
• This data is valuable for internal teams like sales and customer success, who can use it to demonstrate the value of education services to clients.
• This approach represents a significant shift in the way customer education is measured and valued within organizations.

In this episode we'll discuss Geoff's perspective for understanding different customer segments and adapting education approaches. We'll also get his take on balancing product knowledge with true customer empathy.

"Education starts with the student, not with the teacher. You're trying to change the behavior of the student, not trying to execute your own agenda."

And what about AI? Will it be our savior or our downfall in education? Stick around for the whole discussion - you don't want to miss his sage advice on connecting educators with executives to maximize impact. Make sure check out Geoff's books including Crossing the Chasm and Zone to Win.

• Transitioning from teaching to customer education leader at Notion.
• Customer education strategies for a consumer-grade product.
• Product education and user adoption strategies for a digital note-taking tool.
• Using education content to drive marketing goals
• Infusing education with storytelling and brand elements to make Notion content engaging
• Creating high-quality content for Notion, including visuals, guidelines, and community partnership for new feature launches
• Leveraging user-generated content in Notion's education programs
• Using education to drive product usage and measuring ROI through experimentation
• Product education and experimentation with different content formats
• Using AI for content development, including generating bullet points, expanding on ideas, and rewriting in a specific tone.
• Using Notion for content development workflows.

Here's a link to the Education Template mentioned in the episode!

Highlights? Here are just a few we cover:

• Around 86% of respondents said they had a positive ROI from customer education, with another 10% saying they at least broke even. This suggests that 96% are seeing a positive business impact from customer education.
• Customer education helps drive business outcomes like increased customer retention, spending, and decreased support costs. High success orgs saw a 372% ROI over 3 years, with a 7 month payback period.
• There has been a shift away from traditional workshops and certifications towards more asynchronous, mobile, and just-in-time learning approaches.
• Vendors are being used more strategically as partners, especially by high success orgs, to help raise maturity levels.
• Lack of tools, technical skills, and personnel were cited as top challenges. Budget constraints were also a factor in needing to do more with less resources.
• AI is being explored more for use cases like accelerating content creation, personalizing learning, data analysis, and assessment creation. But widespread adoption is still on the horizon.
• Key factors for success included data access, mobile accessibility, vendor partnerships, and having scalable platforms.

Grab your copy of the report and a beverage and listen in to this deep-dive that you won't want to miss.

Missed the 2019 report? You can find it here, and our coverage in Episode 41!

Tune in to as we discuss:

• Customer education and its broader definition beyond just training current customers.
• Founding and expanding HubSpot Academy, a driver of category creation.
• Tying customer education to business outcomes through partnerships and authentic storytelling.
• Shifting go-to-market strategies to prioritize people over software, channels, and algorithms.
• Creating helpful content for customers through storytelling and relationship-building.
• Using education to fuel business growth, with a focus on customer experience.
• Creating people-led growth through content and education.
• Marketing and sales strategies, focusing on the "people first" approach.

This episode dives deep into the world of customer education programs for software companies, featuring an EdTech expert. Here are some key highlights:

• Launching a Unified Academy: Learn how a company with 40+ products overcame language and product alignment challenges to create a single training platform.
• Pricing & Packaging Strategies: Discover how to price software training subscriptions based on contract value and explore tiered pricing models with real-world examples.
• Balancing Revenue & Customer Success: We discuss the importance of creating valuable training content that supports customer success, even when it impacts revenue generation in the short term.
• Merging Product Training & Professional Learning: Explore the benefits and challenges of combining product training with broader professional development programs.
• Sales & Marketing Alignment: Get insights on how to handle customer discount requests and ensure marketing and sales teams are aligned.

If you're involved in the EdTech industry or building customer education programs for software products, this episode is packed with valuable insights!

We welcome Mindy Barenblat to the show - an Austin-based an education & enablement strategist and consultant, formerly GM/VP of Education Service at Blackbaud and Eloqua. Tune as we discuss:

• Subscription-based learning model with ala carte options
• Integrating training with product sales
• Pricing and packaging for software products
• Integrating training with product sales.

Takeaways

• Put the customer first and prioritize their needs in customer education.
• Build a customer education program that scales and allows customers to self-serve.
• Collaborate with different teams in the organization to align on the customer journey.
• Listen to customers and use their feedback to improve and refine the education program.

We tackle the strategic and technical challenges of creating a frictionless user experience across learning management systems and community forums, sharing practical steps for incorporating single sign-on and prioritizing user experience in program roadmaps. The transformative potential of integrating community into educational strategies is not just a dream—it's a reality we're passionate about, and we want to share that passion with you.

Brian Oblinger is a revered community management expert with a wealth of experience dating back to the mid-90s. As the co-host of the In Before the Lock podcast, he shares his extensive knowledge to help others avoid past mistakes in community engagement. His expertise is rooted in building strategies that intertwine community and customer education, showcasing his proficiency in creating symbiotic relationships that enhance digital learning experiences.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Guest intro Brian Oblinger
• Brian’s favorite pasta
• CE use in businesses
• Fusion of community and customer education
• Brian shares wisdom on digital training
• Philosophy of customer-centric resource accessibility
• Tackling technical challenges for a frictionless user experience
• Unified experiences in customer platforms
• Seamless navigation between learning and forums
• Aligning community and learning within organizations
• Importance of flexible, customer-focused organizational design
• Weekly challenges and gamification in customer-led learning
• Long-term benefits of a strategic community-building approach
• Developing engaging community learning platforms
• Integrating social learning and user involvement in content creation
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Brian Oblinger LinkedIn

Before the Lock Podcast

Northpass

Thought Industries

TechSmith

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

In this episode we welcome Jesse Evans, Director of Customer Education at Honeybook - and Box and Meta alum. This is an action packed episode where we'll dive into all things Product and learn how to engage, collaborate, and develop your relationship with Product and Product Marketing to make a difference.

• Collaborating with product teams for customer education
• Product development and adoption challenges in SaaS organizations
• Overcoming objections and misconceptions in product development
• Customer education and product adoption
• Using marketing campaigns to boost product adoption
• Product education and in-app tours for enterprise software
• In-app education and collaboration between customer education and product teams.
• Product and education collaboration.
• Product release process and collaboration between education and product teams.
• Product education and its impact on customer success.
• Demonstrating value to product teams through customer insights.
• Customer education within product teams.

Julie provides a treasure trove of strategies for fostering behavior change within customer education. We delve into the COM-B model and how it dissects behavior into capability, opportunity, and motivation, shaping the design of customer education programs. We also highlight the significance of collaboration between UX and customer education in system efficiency, sharing firsthand experiences from financial applications to healthcare environments.

Gear up for an episode that promises to enrich your understanding of instructional design and arm you with techniques to enhance learning experiences across the board.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Intro and background - Julie Dirksen
• Julie's new book "Talk to the Elephant"
• Balancing compliance and autonomy in education
• Overcoming assumptions, understanding user barriers - long pants in the gym
• Long pants in the gym story
• COM-B model for customer education program design
• UX design's critical role in system efficiency
• Integrating UX and customer education for success
• Making behaviors easy within environments
• Defining behaviors, selecting appropriate granularity
• Kathy Sierra's influence, using examples, user testing
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Julie Dirksen LinkedIn

Books by Julie Dirksen

Usable Learning

Book: Badass: Making Users Awesome

Northpass

TechSmith

Videate

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Making training accessible is more than a box-ticking exercise; it's a strategic imperative that opens the door to a diverse audience, ready to engage with your product. Our conversation not only sheds light on the barriers to learning but also equips content creators with the know-how to craft learning experiences that welcome everyone to the table. Accessibility is a topic we've perhaps only touched upon on the CELab podcast, so Sharon shares why accessibility - particularly good accessibility, is also good customer education.  We discuss the kinds of platforms and tools you'll want to include in your planning, even as a very early-phase program.

So join us as we ‘access accessibility’ for Customer Education!

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Importance of accessibility in training programs
• Balancing content delivery speed with inclusive design
• Design choices affect learning experience, color, captions
• Accommodating diverse abilities and learning styles
• Utilizing tools, guidelines for accessible content creation
• Collaboration with disabled Subject Matter Experts essential
• Economic benefits of inclusive eLearning for businesses
• Pre-adjusting templates, style guides for accessibility
• Flexibility of eLearning platforms, Rise vs. Storyline
• Evaluating tools for WCAG conformance, accessibility levels
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Sharon Castillo LinkedIn

Okta

Docebo

Intellum

Thought Industries

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

So have you ever stumbled into a musical rabbit hole so deep, it turned into a blueprint for revolutionizing customer education? That's exactly what we did in our latest auditory adventure, as we celebrate our annual fun episode by drawing parallels between the unorthodox methods of the enigmatic band, Clown Core, and the innovative strategies in customer training. The discussion pirouettes from the band's chaotic yet captivating performances to how digital education platforms keep audiences both educated and entertained. Prepare for an electrifying conversation that dances between genres and redefines engagement in learning.

While our business is serious, we take inspiration from many different fields - including music. The band "Clown Core" blends genres from jazz, funk, electro, r&b, soul, and pop - metal too.  What kinds of insights will come of this episode?  Listen in and make sure you listen to the end to hear a special music session from Alan Koda and Dave. Happy New Year to everyone in our audience!  We look forward to another amazing year.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Clown Core's chaos linked to customer education
• Artistic authenticity vs. polished production
• DIY ethos encourages personal, impactful content
• Creative collaboration over perfection in education
• Blending genres for engaging learning experiences
• Game design principles applied to customer education
• Audience participation and music by Alan Coda
• Authenticity and immediacy in art/business
• Innovative educational strategies from diverse inspirations
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Clown Core

Northpass       

Videate           

Strigo

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

We cover a lot in this end-of-year extravaganza including:

• Customer education and AI in the workplace
• Leadership growth and team development
• Leadership, customer education, and podcast milestones
• Customer education trends and predictions for 2023
• AI in customer education, ROI calculations, and live training
• Customer education, digital success, and consolidation in the industry

And much, much more!

Stay tuned for our annual music episode - coming soon!

• Customer education and AI in the workplace
  • Dave and Adam discuss national holidays and make predictions for 2024.
  • Adam and Dave reflect on 2022, with Adam noting it felt like a continuation of last year's trends and Dave sharing his experience working in a services company.
  • Dave Derington shares insights on customer education and the importance of conferences for consultants.
• Leadership growth and team development
  • Adam reflects on his first year as a VP, sharing insights on his growth and new responsibilities.
  • Adam Avramescu: Leading a program as VP involves managing multiple aspects, from budget to culture.
  • Adam Avramescu emphasizes the importance of aligning teams towards common goals and reducing duplication of effort.
• Leadership, customer education, and podcast milestones
  • Adam Avramescu emphasizes the importance of contextualizing titles within an organization and focusing on scope of work rather than just the title itself.
  • Dave Derington and Adam Avramescu reflect on five years of CELab, a podcast they co-host, and highlight milestones achieved, such as reaching 100 episodes.
  • They discuss their approach to the podcast, including externalizing their thoughts and sharing valuable insights with their audience.
  • Adam and Dave reminisce about how they started their podcast, Customer Education Show, while working together at Selma and Cherry Street coffee in Belltown, Seattle.
  • They discuss how their podcast has evolved over time, still focusing on raising the profile of customer education and highlighting challenges faced by leaders in the field.
• Customer education trends and predictions for 2023
  • Dave Derington and Adam Avramescu discuss their podcast, See Lab, and how it has evolved over time, from a DIY approach to a more professional and regular schedule with sponsors.
  • They emphasize the importance of finding and highlighting diverse voices in the customer education industry, and invite listeners to join their forum and share their experiences.
  • Adam and Dave discuss their 2022 predictions, including more economic tumult and the importance of efficient customer education.
  • They reflect on their predictions, noting that growth at all costs is over and sustainable growth is the new focus.
  • Dave Derington and Adam Avramescu discuss the future of customer education, including the importance of proving ROI and the shift towards remote and async learning.
  • They also discuss the impact of macroeconomic factors, such as the pandemic and globalization, on the delivery of live training and the adoption of virtual and hybrid learning methods.
• AI in customer education, ROI calculations, and live training
  • Dave Derington and Adam Avramescu discuss the slow return of live training programs, citing cost-cutting measures and a lack of data to prove their effectiveness.
  • Vendors are not providing meaningful push to revolutionize ROI calculations, and there is a need for better alignment on low-hanging fruit to improve the platform.
  • Adam and Dave discuss the potential of AI in customer education, with Adam highlighting the limitations of LLMs and the importance of taking a balanced approach to adopting new technologies.
• AI in customer education
  • Dave Derington: AI in customer education is being used to train on specific tasks, but there's a need for more structured content and better connection of dots.
  • Adam Avramescu: AI is being sprinkled into existing products, but there's a need for more native AI products that fully address core use cases.
  • Adam Avramescu predicts AI differentiation in customer education, with thought industries sponsoring a robust tech platform.
• Trends in customer education and related fields
  • Consolidation of customer education functions within organizations, with a focus on digital success and community alignment.
  • Dave Derington and Adam Avramescu discussed the future of education technology, predicting that some trends, such as blockchain and Metaverse, will not take off as expected.
  • They also identified areas where education technology is likely to see growth, including the use of AR and VR in industries like healthcare and manufacturing.
  • Dave Derington and Adam Avramescu discuss the future of AI in customer education, predicting more extensions and evolution of existing solutions, but not a full AI LMS in 2024.
  • They expect to see more native AI products solving problems in the learning space, with a potential initial cohort of startups focusing on customer education specifically.
• Customer education, digital success, and consolidation in the industry
  • Automation and efficiency will be key themes in customer education programs next year, with a focus on using AI and workflow tools to drive outcomes and improve productivity.
  • Gainsight's acquisition of a customer ad platform will enhance customer education and proactivity.
  • Gainsight's acquisition of Northpass signals more consolidation between customer success and digital customer success, with CSMs shifting to digital training.
  • A customer success leader reflects on past approaches, acknowledging a lack of investment in scalable programs like customer education and community.
• Customer education and its importance in business
  • Adam and Dave discuss the importance of collaboration between departments in a SaaS company.
  • Candid conversations on customer education, leadership, and resilience.
  • Adam Avramescu and Dave Derington invite listeners to share their thoughts and feedback on the podcast through LinkedIn, with the goal of making the program more relevant and valuable to the audience.
  • The hosts thank listeners for their support over the past 5 years and encourage them to subscribe, leave reviews, and share the podcast with their networks to help expand its reach.

Lastly, we'll explore the transformative power of video in customer education and success. We'll examine various reports and studies that underscore the role of video in engaging and educating customers. You'll also get to hear us debate on the potential of video in replacing other modalities in education and how it can be utilized strategically to meet customer learning needs. This episode promises an exciting journey through the evolving landscape of customer education and the role of video in shaping customer success.

What do we need to pay attention to?  What can we safely ignore?  This is a great time to think through your 2024 playbook and ensure you're keeping pace with market changes.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• World Mental Health Day
• Overview of the TSIA State of Education Services 2023 report
• The role of mobile and customer engagement in education
• Thinkific Digital Learning Trends 2023 report
• Various reports and studies that highlight the role of video in engaging and educating customers
• Potential of video in replacing other modalities in education and how it can be strategically used to meet customer learning needs
• Delivering learning content on mobile devices and social media platforms
• Using video as a tool for customer success, customer experience, and customer education
• Video can increase engagement, reduce costs, and improve self-service options
• Understanding how people prefer to learn and using video strategically to meet their needs.
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

TSIA's 2023 State of Education Services

Thought Industries' State of External Enterprise Learning 2023

Thinkific's Digital Learning Trends 2023 Report

Videate's 2023 State of SaaS Customer Success and Product Training Videos

Intellum - 2023 Report - The State of Education Initiative Ownership

NorthPass

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Barry is the co-founder and CEO of Thought Industries, a company dedicated to revolutionizing learning experiences through technology. He brings over a decade of experience in the field, starting his journey at Berkeley College of Music where he was part of building an online music school with a focus on external learning, Thought Industries empowers businesses to enhance their learning programs, offering capabilities such as content delivery, monetization, integration, and more. Barry's passion for innovative learning solutions and his insights into AI, NLP (natural language processing), and headless technology positions him as a leader in the education technology sector.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• International Stout Day
• Barry’s intro and background
• AI and Natural Language Processing (NLP) in education
• Headless technology and its benefits - security, scalability, and customization
• Embedding learning directly into software platforms
• Learning at the moment of need
• Role of community in learning - peer-based communication and collaboration
• How AI is revolutionizing the way we learn, create content, and understand proficiency
• Natural language processing
• Transformative potential of Helium’s headless technology
• How AI and NLP can help in embedding learning experiences into software platforms
• Importance of community in education

Resources:

Barry Kelly

Thought Industries

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Meet Alessio Artuffo, a man with a fascinating journey from Italy to Athens, Georgia, who's been instrumental in transforming Docebo, an open-source tech entity, into a full-fledged SaaS company. As the President and COO of Docebo, Alessio has unique insights to share about the challenges of building an international business and the specific strategies needed to make that trans-Atlantic leap. We explore the intersection of technology and education, focusing on the role of AI. We dive into the acquisition of Adugo, a ChatGPT-based platform that’s shaking up interaction models for customers and employees alike. If you’re interested in how AI is changing the face of learning, customer advocacy and partner training, strap in for a fascinating discussion.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Alessio's journey from Italy to Athens, Georgia and transforming Docebo
• International Pirate Day and Butterscotch Pudding Day
• Building a mature and stable product and transitioning to remote work
• Challenges of building an international company and the growth of Docebo
• Importance of customer education and learning in the technology space
• Docebo acquisition of Adugo, a chatGPT-based platform
• The role of AI in partner training and customer advocacy
• Visiting the studio and the importance of collaboration
• Importance of educational content sharing between different teams
• The role of Docebo in customer education and partner training
• Alessio's view on being a generalist in the learning technology space
• The future direction of Docebo in the field of customer education
• Importance of community support in solving customer problems and inquiries
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Alessio Artuffo LinkedIn

Docebo

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Sourabh Bajaj is the co-founder of Uplimit and a former AI researcher at Google. He has extensive experience in computational chemistry and molecular modeling, and has played a significant role in the evolution of AI, particularly in the field of customer education. His work has centered around the transformative powers of AI, exploring its capabilities in automating mundane tasks, enhancing creativity, and improving user journeys. Saurabh is particularly knowledgeable about 'orchestrators', a technology that simplifies tasks and aids in creative direction. His insights shed light on the complexities of AI and the need for proper guidelines in its application. His experiences and expertise have enabled him to offer valuable perspectives on the future of customer education, driven by the power of AI.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Saurabh Ajaj's background in AI and its role in customer education
• Early use of AI in postal service for handwriting detection
• Exploring the emergence of AI and computational chemistry
• How AI is revolutionizing jobs and enhancing creative tasks
• 'Orchestrators' in AI helping automate mundane tasks for creativity
• Impact of AI on customer education and user journeys
• Complexity of AI from a customer education perspective
• Discussing AI's implications on privacy, data security and bias
• The necessity for guardrails in AI usage for customer education
• Practical uses of AI in customer education like task automation
• Role of AI in capturing and storing knowledge efficiently
• Evolution of customer education as a living organism through AI
• Challenges in creating an engaging customer education experience
• Exploring implications of AI in customer education and data security.
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Sourabh Bajaj

Techsmith

Videate

Docebo

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Nevo Peretz from Strigo and Dan Braithwaite from Mediaocean join the conversation to discuss the future of remote training, specifically exploring Strigo's revolutionary Virtual Classroom platform. They delve into the resurgence of instructor-led training, the transition to virtual classrooms, the financial and customer perception challenges of remote training, and the limitations of previous platforms. The discussion also focuses on the importance of seamless customer education and how Strigo's platform is changing the game for software companies, IT training companies, consulting firms, and LND teams involved in digital transformation processes. Nevo and Dan also share personal experiences, including how Mediaocean leveraged Strigo to address their training needs.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• National Corned Beef Day
• Intro and background - Nevo Peretz from Strigo and Dan Braithwaite from Mediaocean
• The resurgence of instructor-led training and its advantages
• The transition from traditional training to virtual classrooms
• Financial and customer perception challenges of this shift
• Importance of seamless customer education for customer life cycle
• Strigo's platform - used by leading software and IT companies
• Strigo - active, engaging, and hands-on learning experience
• How Mediocean used Strigo for training needs
• The secure, private environment and instructor control offered by Strigo
• Strigo's impact on business through customer comfort and trust explored
• Virtual classroom - the potential of remote training
• Chat features and closed captions to reach more learners
• Exciting upcoming news and a call to action
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Dan Braithwaite LinkedIn

Nevo Peretz LinkedIn

Mediaocean

Strigo

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

You’ll hear about the evolution of education, the rise of mutant learning, and the role of AI in this evolution. Muller shares his experience of breaking free from corporate learning silos and leading digital transformation in education. The discussion includes insights on the importance of agile thinking, customer education, and embracing diverse learning styles. Muller also introduces his new venture, Spark, designed to empower individuals to share their unique stories and ideas.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• National Hot Dog Day and Cellphone Courtesy Month
• Treion’s journey from corporate learning to education
• The siloing phenomenon and its limitations on business growth
• Gainsight acquisition of an LMS platform
• The importance of customer education in breaking free from silos
• Stephen Covey's Franklin Covey work
• A shift towards digital training and AI
• Agile thinking, iterative processes, and 'mutant learning'
• Treion’s new venture, Spark, aimed at empowering individuals
• The necessity of having experts in the field
• Comparing products and tools in the tech stack
• Automaticity and its impact on learning
• TV, media, AI, machine learning
• Treion introduces his book, The Rise of the Mutant Learner
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Treion Muller LinkedIn

Book: Rise of the Mutant Learner

The Modern Learning Architect

Northpass

Intellum

Thought Industries

Mobile Coach

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• National Best Friends Day
• Cohort learning and its applications in customer education
• Learning modalities in a cohort setting
• Impact of the pandemic on traditional training programs
• Shellie’s journey to corporate training
• Virtual program design
• The power of gamification in learner engagement
• Video assessments - producing job-ready individuals
• Adapting training programs during the pandemic
• Overhauling the Master Architect Program at ServiceNow
• The use of social media-like features to drive engagement
• The role of AI and machine learning
• How cohort learning can equip people with necessary skills
• Important moments that matter in the learning journey
• Setting goals and objectives for cohort learning
• Reach out to Shellie
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Shellie Grieve LinkedIn

Thinkific

Videate

Docebo

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

• What is change management and how does it work?
• The difference between change management and marketing.
• Building the mindset and creating a buzz around change management.
• The importance of having a formal center of excellence.
• Understanding the three phases of change.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• National Garfield the Cat Day
• Guest intro and background
• The power of change management in organizations
• Mourning the lost way vs. embracing the new
• Change management in customer education
• How change management impacts productivity with new platforms
• Technical vs. end-user education
• Clear value propositions in change management
• Change management practices in SaaS for effective tool rollout
• Creating an atmosphere of excitement around change
• Continuous communication and engagement during tool rollout
• Successful product roll-outs and a formal ‘Center of Excellence'
• The role of customer success manager in understanding customer needs
• “Sustainable enablement” and monitoring outcomes after rollout
• Certification systems to keep customers knowledgeable
• Book recommendations
• Change management and productivity
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Alessandra Marinetti LinkedIn

Asana

Book: Managing Transitions

Book: Switch

Book: Hooked

Book: The Heart of Change

Book: ADKAR

Northpass

Thought Industries

TechSmith

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• National Croissant Day
• Ironclad's customer education program and customer success structure
• Innovative use of Learning Experience Design team
• Ironclad's Training Delivery team and training methods
• Customer enablement vs. customer success
• The structure of Ironclad's digital success team
• Transformative solutions delivered by Ironclad's digital success team
• Pitfalls of siloed customer education teams
• Pricing and customer success
• Aligning customer education and digital success
• Customer education as digital success
• Balancing understanding with management skills
• Collaboration and alignment - customer education, digital success, and product teams
• Ironclad's customer enablement team
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Caitlin Wood LinkedIn

Ironclad

Docebo

Thinkific

Strigo

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

You’ll hear Nick, Steve, and Dave delve into the intersections of customer education, success, and communities, the role of digital customer success for scaling businesses, and the potential of blended online communities for enhancing customer relationships. The discussion also highlights the importance of integrating customer education and success, the impact of customer education on retention rates, and the challenges and opportunities in implementing customer education.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• National Book Lover’s Day!
• Customer education and industry leaders
• Creative ways to solve customer problems and enhance experiences
• Digital customer success and its benefits
• Customer success teams and their collaboration
• The role of blended online communities in enhancing customer relationships
• The new book 'Customer Communities'
• How customer education can increase NPS scores and retention rates
• Challenges and opportunities in implementing customer education
• Building effective customer education programs
• How customer education, success, and communities interconnect to help customers
• Success metrics of time to first value and the orchestration of customer education, success, and communities.
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Nick Mehta LinkedIn

Steve Cornwell LinkedIn

Gainsight

Book: Customer Communities

Previous Episode with Nick (#76)

Northpass

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

You’ll hear a little bit about each of Mayer’s 12 Principles, from not overwhelming the learner’s

‘Cognitive load’, to the best combinations of text, audio, and images, to personalizing voices and imagery for the learner.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Richard E Mayer's background - research in multimedia learning
• Reviewing Mayer’s 12 principles for learning
• Cognitive load- less is more
• Highlighting relevant or important information
• Images and audio - best for learning, without text
• Contiguity - space and time
• Pre-training - multimedia is more effective if learners know the basic tenets
• Modality - controversial methodology
• Multimedia - learning is easier with a certain amount of multiple modalities
• Personalization - text should be informal
• Voice & Images - natural, conversational human voices and
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Richard Mayer @ UCSB

Book: Multimedia Learning 3rd Ed.

Skilljar

TechSmith

Northpass

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

The conversation explores the difference between customer education platforms and employee learning solutions, emphasizing the importance of aligning learning systems with the specific needs and objectives of the learners. John also touches on the necessity for rapid product changes, the role of metrics, reporting, and analytics, and the reasons behind switching LMS.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Intro and background - John Leh
• Exploring the complexities of customer education platforms and learning management systems
• The evolution of the learning systems marketplace 
• Understanding learners' needs before choosing a system
• Independent verification of LMS
• Differentiating between customer education platforms and other learning systems
• Employee vs. customer education systems
• The role of metrics, reporting, and analytics in customer education
• Reasons for switching learning management systems
• The need for rapid product changes in learning systems
• Strategies for developing high-end content for superior learning experiences
• Finding the right product-market fit
• Multiple learning systems and transitioning between them
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

John Leh LinkedIn

Talented Learning

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Strigo

Docebo

Intellum

You’ll hear Matt and Troy discuss the transformative power of project-based learning and customer education. They delve into TechSmith's tools like SnagIt and Camtasia that enable individuals to create and share powerful visual messages. The episode explores how technology and creativity intersect to drive project-based learning, the concept of multimodal learning, and the impact of AI and machine learning on customer education. Mat and Troy share insights on TechSmith's Academy platform that is revolutionizing video production learning and the potential of project-based learning to foster innovation in customer education. Enjoy!

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Intro and backgrounds
• Tools like Snagit and Camtasia for creating and sharing powerful messages
• National Camera Day, World Industrial Design Day, and Bomb Pop Day
• The intersection of creativity and technology in project-based learning discussed
• Audiate, a tool by TechSmith
• AI and machine learning's impact on customer education
• TechSmith's Academy platform for video production learning
• Project-based learning
• Affordability and ease of use in tools for customer education
• Multimodal learning combining audio, video, and text
• Combining video and text on a single page for SEO
• How project-based learning enhances software understanding and engagement
• Customer education and experiential learning
• Embracing innovation in customer education
• Appreciation of C-Lab listeners and the importance of educating, experimenting, and finding one's people
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, peers, and network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Troy Stein LinkedIn

Troy Stein TikTok

Matthew Pierce LinkedIn

TechSmith

TechSmith Build a Great Video

TechSmith Camtasia

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Skilljar

Docebo

Intellum

Adam and Stephanie give an unfiltered view into the industry as hiring managers. They talk about the importance of ‘selfless listening’, meaningful conversations for successfully pivoting into the customer education field, connecting with industry professionals, and engaging in informational chats before the interview. The episode also highlights the value of hiring candidates with non-traditional backgrounds and finding the right fit for a team, as well as effective interview techniques and research strategies. Stay tuned for Part II of this important conversation coming soon.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Celebrating National Pistachio Day and effortful learning in instructional design
• Discussing customer education job interviews and hiring manager perspectives
• Importance of selfless listening and meaningful conversations for job seekers
• Connecting with industry professionals before interviews for valuable insights
• Acknowledging the value of hiring non-traditional backgrounds in customer education
• Finding the right fit for your team based on background and experience
• Importance of self-awareness and authenticity in interview conversations
• Connecting the dots between experience and the desired role
• Demonstrating understanding of the business and its needs
• Researching the company and asking meaningful questions during interviews
• Avoiding faking knowledge and focusing on being coachable and agile
• Comments on effective interview techniques and research strategies
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Stephanie Pellegrino LinkedIn

Gong.io

Adam Avramescu LinkedIn

Docebo

Intellum

In this episode, we are speaking with Aaron Morin, Senior Manager of Community at Thinkific. Thinkific is a software platform that enables entrepreneurs to create, market, sell, and deliver their own online courses. Thinkific offers a course builder designed for Creator Educators. It’s simple and gives creators the ability to build their entire course without a big learning curve. Thinkific and Thinkific Plus offer a design and build experience that is approachable for everyone.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

•       Aaron Morin intro and time with Thinkific
•       We’re recording this on National Pizza Party Day, NASCAR day, and more
•       Aaron’s career journey before joining Thinkific
•       Thinkific’s culture
•       Thinkific Plus
•       Customer success focus, revenue generation, and the market
•       Offering paid products filters your audience
•       Estimating and tracking ROI
•       Coaching – how it works at Thinkific
•       Thinkific Community, a private Facebook experience
•       Vancouver Customer Education Conference – first time ever
•       Thinkific’s networking event
•       Video with Castos
•       And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Aaron Morin LinkedIn

Thinkific.com/plus

Link to Episode 102 – Thinkific Pt I

Customer Education

Talented Learning

Dave Derington Twitter

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Intellum’s team of award-winning learning practitioners, consultants, content experts, engagement professionals, developers, and engineers help the largest and fastest-moving brands in the world successfully educate their customers, partners, and employees.

Docebo is one of the industry’s fastest-growing and most innovative learning technologies and employs over 700 global innovators who serve over 2800 customers around the world. Docebo is currently used by some of the best brands in the world, including L’Oreal, Zoom, Kiehl’s, ZipRecruiter, Samsung, and more. Docebo believes that learning is for everyone, and always put the customer first. In October of 2019, Docebo successfully launched their first IPO on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: DCBO), followed by the launch of NASDAQ (NASDAQ: DCBO) in December of 2020.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Exploring customer education with Intelum
• Combining tech, content, and marketing elements
• Neuroscience behind gamified learning effectiveness
• Engaging learners through games and psychology
• Avoiding trivialization of game-based learning
• Designing for different learner personas
• Creating a "gamer DNA" for behavior change
• Importance of social learning and diversity
• Goals and rules of game design
• Gamifying reputation building and learning
• Using challenges, rewards, and badges
• Designing engaging and purposeful learning experiences
• Balancing complexity and time for learner engagement
• Organizational education and scalability with Intellum
• Leveraging existing resources for content creation
• And - please - if you’ve found value in this podcast, share with your friends, your peers, and your network to help us “Find the Others”!

Resources:

Shannon Howard LinkedIn

Michelle Ellis LinkedIn

Intellum

Docebo

Customer Education

Talented Learning

Dave Derington Twitter

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Join us as we talk with Mark Hellinger about this amazing product. Mark is the Co-Founder and COO of Videate - Videate enables SaaS companies to scale video production by making more how-to videos with fewer resources. Videate keeps your videos up-to-date with every software release and uses machine translation to globalize your content across all the languages you support.

About the Show

CELab is the Customer Education Lab for Innovative Customer Success, Enablement, and Marketing Teams. Our mission is to explore how to build Customer Education programs, experiment with new approaches, and exterminate the myths and bad advice that stop growth dead in its tracks.

Listen in as we discuss:

• Video content is hard, but AI is here to help
• Screen recording and its software limits
• Frequent software changes, a shortage of expert video resources, and the move from long-form to short-form video
• Getting more content without adding more staff
• Globalizing, updating, and maintaining your content for customers
• Videate.io - how it works
• Screen recording, voiceovers, avatars, and machine translation 
• Share with your peers, help us find “the others”

Resources: 

Mark Hellinger LinkedIn

Videate

Camtasia

Customer Education

Talented Learning

Dave Derington Twitter

Dave Derington LinkedIn

Are you wondering how to move from K-12 to Customer Education? Or academia to corporate learning? In this episode, we’re diving into how Customer Education professionals get into the business. Many professionals make a move into Customer Education from teaching, K12 or academia. Others move from Customer Success to Customer Education. Today’s guest has actually worked in each of those worlds! So tune in for a discussion with Monica Sindwani from AgentSync.

Monica made the move from teaching to Customer Success and Customer Education. In this episode, she shares tips for teachers and academics making the move into instructional design or corporate learning. We discuss the paradox of transferable skills and how intellectual humility plays a big part in reskilling. And we talk about how programs like Salesforce Trailhead and other credential programs can be a huge asset for anyone looking to move into the technology field.

Episode Links:

Pivoting out of Edu Podcast

Join us for Part 2 of our crossover with another great podcast: He Said, Dee Said with Dee Kapila from Miro and Ryan Roch from Cisco. We continue our Pop Culture thread on how Video Games, Music, and Video does or doesn’t apply to Customer Education. We range far and wide with this final episode of 2021!

Happy New Year from CELab and all of us in the Customer Education community!

And as always, check below for a full transcript of the show!

In previous years, our year-end episode is where we like to kick back and have some fun! We’ve done episodes on what Radiohead and David Bowie can teach us about Customer Education.

But this year we thought we’d mix it up and do a crossover with another great podcast: He Said, Dee Said. Where the Dee in question is our friend Dee Kapila, who leads Customer Education at Miro! And the He in question, is her husband Ryan Roch who a Customer Success Executive at Cisco.

Join us for Part 1 where we share a Pop Culture topic – something we’ve enjoyed in the last year (or in the pandemic) and debate how it does/doesn’t apply to Customer Education!

We range wide over a ton of subjects and there are true gems! Make sure you catch He Said, Dee Said too. How are Roguelikes like Enterprise SaaS software? Well … you’ll just have to listen to find out!

It’s one thing to say that you “Lead with Data” (emphasize air quotes).  It’s another thing entirely to build the kind of dashboards and reports that will allow you to do it.

In this episode Christy Hollingshead, Senior Director of Customer Education at Heap, guides us into safely into that territory. While many of us lean on metrics like Completion Rates or attempt to use the Kirkpatrick Model to assess the performance (and value) of their content which doesn’t take into account how one’s educational material impacts the business.

In B2B Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) businesses we gauge performance through a different kind of vocabulary, using terms such as Adoption, Churn, Retention, which are often new and perhaps alien concepts to those new to the discipline of Customer Education. Focus on these kinds of metrics can and do earn Customer Education and Enablement leaders a seat at the executive table.

We think that anybody can easily work with data they have about their program to build helpful Reports and Dashboards or simply gain insights into how customers’ are using educational material to help their businesses

We’ve covered Instructional Design 101 topics on CELab before, but what about more advanced techniques? Once you’ve covered the basic frameworks, what are other evidence-based concepts that you can incorporate into your learning programs?

In this episode, Mike Di Gregorio, PhD, Director of Client Onboarding at Top Hat, walks us through how he incorporates advanced instructional design techniques to educate an audience of higher education professionals. We discuss the differences and similarities between traditional Instructional Design and the more modern face of Learning Experience Design, and how each of them play into the Customer Education world. We also discuss one of the key skills for any instructional designer: managing cognitive load for your learners, and making sure that they are not overwhelmed with too much information to process. We cover techniques that enhance learning transfer – in other words, getting learners to actually do what you taught them to do – and how you can incorporate them into your learning design. And finally, we talk about everyone’s favorite topic: Assessments! Specifically, how to go beyond “smile sheets” and how assessments can inform the way you iterate on content and drive your KPIs.

One of the most common questions that those new to the field of Customer Education ask about when beginning to develop a program is, “What kind of equipment and/or software do I need?” What’s a good microphone? What do I use to edit and record audio? Should I buy a high-end video camera?

In this episode we have a candid discussion on what kinds of products we have used in various environments, chat about pros and cons, and give you a place to start in confidence. Remember – in Customer Education, getting started is the most important thing! Listen in as we rap about the products that make a difference and get you started off on the right foot!

In Episode 66 of the CELab Podcast we discussed Best Practices for keeping your Customer Education content up-to-date despite the rapid-pace of change that we experience in Software-as-a-Service businesses.  

But what happens when you also have a highly-configurable product?  

Charlie writes:

I have been tasked with creating a customer education program at our software company. I am devouring your book and podcast episodes. I am trying to create a strategy for implementation based on your guidelines, but the sticking point I keep getting stuck on is that our software is configured for each customer. We have many functions that are fairly standard, but every implementation looks and acts a bit different. I know that I can create education material for more advanced topics that our customers would consume without any customization, but our basic user training is the main thing we are trying to standardize, and I am struggling to determine the best way forward. Thanks for your brains!

The hypothesis we’ll challenge today is:  We are able to create content at scale that meets the needs of most customers without any customization.

Thank you Charlie for your submission and if you have a question, use this form to send one in for us to consider and answer on the show!

We are back from Summer Break and are entering Season 3 of the CELab Podcast!

In this episode. we start to get beyond the Fundamentals into more Advanced material by empathizing with your first “aha!” (and potentially, “ouch”) moment as a Customer Education team or leader.

Building content is easy. Keeping your content up to date? Well, that requires some different strategies. In Software as a Service Companies where products change quickly, it’s one of the key processes you have to get sorted out fast! With limited resources and time, finding ways to make your process scale is the lifeblood of an efficient Customer Education program.

Who should I hire for my customer education team?

This isn’t a new question. In fact, we first covered this topic on the show – if you can believe it – nearly three years ago! But there’s been new research in this area, and the market has changed quite a bit in that time. We’re seeing more new customer education teams form than ever before, and the people hiring for those roles are all asking who they should hire.

In Adam Avramescu’s book, “Customer Education – Why Smart Companies Profit by Making Customers Smarter”, he first introduces that, “Customer Education is your scale engine for Customer Success” (p 11).  This concept – the Scale Engine – is novel in that it channels the fundamental challenge of many rapidly growing Software-as-a-Service businesses:  All your processes need to scale as the business grows.  That includes how you educate your customers!

Dave speaks here on some of his early experiences in the field of Customer Education where he was embedded at Gainsight, building foundational programs.  We as a community realize that all growing businesses reach an inflection point where it’s time to build efficiencies into your Customer Success function.  

Many Customer Success leaders may know, but may not quite know what to do when all that 1:1 customer training your CSMs do begins to really drain your team’s time and energy.  This is where a Customer Education program is your best approach to support your customer success growth — not hold it back. In this episode we’ll talk about what successful, scaleable Customer Success looks like from the perspective an education program, the role Customer Education plays in customer success, and how Customer Education can scale CS by “building a flywheel of information and getting that to the customer when they need it”.  

Many thanks to Cutler Bleeker and Amy Davidson (and the great folks at Skilljar) for the invitation to this great webinar!  For the full video version, please visit Skilljar’s website here.

A key part of CELab’s role in the Customer Education Community is to keep you updated on the research and reports coming out of the Customer Education world, especially when they address the state of our industry. This episode covers two great reports: TSIA’s 2021 State of Education Services and Thought Industries’ 2021 State of Customer Education.

We like these reports because they come at the research from different angles, whether it’s a third party like TSIA, the Technology Services Industry Association, coming at things from a more independent perspective, or a Customer Education company like Thought Industries who can combine third-party reporting with their own customers’ trends.

Dave interviews Debbie Smith, who is Sr. Manager of Smartsheet University and an expert in credentialing and certification programs.

For many Customer Education professionals, we first begin working on certification programs when a senior leader asks us to, but the definition of certification can vary wildly from person to person. It’s crucial to know what you intend to build, what outcomes it will generate, and how much maintenance it requires.

The hypothesis that Dave and Debbie explore this episode is: “Certification programs for SaaS can be delivered in much shorter timelines, but with caveats.”

When some people say they want to develop a certification, what they actually mean is “some learning modules with a quiz at the end.” But to create a legally defensible certification that can be used for hiring, firing, and other high-stakes situations, you need something far more rigorous, fair, and accurate. This means it’s going to take time and money.

In this episode, Debbie walks us through the project management required to build and maintain a certification. She takes us through how to build a JTA (Job Task Analysis) which defines what the job being certified actually is, and what the skills involved are. This means you need to meet with SMEs to understand what is being certified and what skills are involved to do the job.

Then it’s on to item writing – and by “items” here, we mean questions. Writing valid and fair questions is extremely difficult, and there’s an art to it! Debbie suggests some techniques for item writing workshops and writing better multiple-choice questions. And getting the right SMEs in, especially if they are billable and their time comes at a premium, is difficult. But you can also reward them for their efforts by giving them a certification, a badge, or other perks for participating in the program as an expert.

Debbie also shares tips for beta testing, and how many people you need to participate in a beta process.

Keep in mind that for SaaS businesses, whose products constantly change, writing a certification also means that you’re signing yourself (and your SMEs) to update the certification constantly and keep it in tune with your product.

Overall, certifications go to a much deeper level than you may expect if you haven’t built one before. These concepts are helpful to share when an executive asks you to build a certification, because you can help educate them on what’s actually involved in the process. If you’re not ready to commit the time, effort, and resources to build a formal certification, maybe a lighter-stakes credential like a badge is a better offering! If you’re just making a test with no proctoring or controls, you can call it something other than a certification.

Listen to the episode and find out more of those “201”-level techniques.

Continuing in our Customer Success series, we dive deep into the thoughts of Sam Cummings, Author, Data Scientist, and Customer Success professional, currently working as an Enterprise CSM at LinkedIn. 

Education takes many forms in the world of B2B SaaS Software and Sam takes us on a journey:  How to Inspire, Cultivate, and Distribute Success.  Beginning by telling human stories, anchored in data we can inspire – or connect – with our customers.  Then, we Cultivate the seeds of success, and Distribute that through champions to other networks of people.  

We also delve into what Sam calls “b2c-ification”. This maps to discussions that many of us in both Customer Success and Customer Education are seeing. While we talk about Social Selling or Digital Selling, at the core of this is the human factor.  We connect and share our experiences on LinkedIn, YouTube, and many other platforms

Enjoy this great discussion!

In this episode, we return to our Instructional Design 101 series, where we informally cover key concepts from the instructional design world and apply them to customer education.

In previous episodes, we’ve covered frameworks like the Kirkpatrick Model of Evaluation, which helps you measure the effectiveness of your course, and Bloom’s Taxonomy, which helps you define what types of knowledge or skills you’re actually teaching and how you’d expect the learner to put them into practice.

But neither of these models answer a key question we hear from Customer Education professionals every day: how should I think about structuring my course?

Steve Cornwell is CEO and Founder of Northpass, the LMS that powers learning experiences for some of the top SaaS, sharing-economy, and subscription-economy companies. He joins us for the return of our CEO series, where we get CEO-level perspectives on the Customer Education market.

In our discussion, Steve talks about the Evolution of Customer Education, pointing to the ways that it is maturing as a category. As the subscription economy matures, building healthy recurring business is more important than ever, which places a premium on companies’ user experience. One effect of this has been the rise of Customer Success as a more defined function. The onboarding and learning experience for users can also make a huge difference.

Just as Customer Success as changed and matured over time, Customer Education is growing and changing as well. It’s not just something you do when you’re one of the huge industry players; you can increasingly invest in Customer Education from earlier stages with fewer resources to begin with. In fact, for many companies, effective Customer Education programs can help them accelerate their growth from earlier stages. With improvements in technology to produce and host learning, it’s easier than ever to get started.

But your Customer Education program isn’t just about producing content. It needs a strategy too. Steve talks about the evolution of Customer Education strategy, and how it has moved from a competitive edge to table stakes for many businesses. You simply need to be educating your customers if you want them to stay. This has also spurred the rise of Customer Education within Marketing departments, where efforts to educate customers aren’t solely tied to feature usage or retention; Customer Education is also used to drive pre-sales efforts, including industry or category education. As Steve points out, Customer Education is really about a company’s products, services, and best practices – not just features. It’s a way to supercharge the customer journey with directed pathways, interactivity, and even achievements.

Steve also talks about Customer Education breaking through boundaries. For one, Customer Education is outgrowing the classic “Academy” model where everything lives in a single portal or homepage. Now, Customer Education spans multiple properties and is increasingly embedded in the product experience.

As Customer Education increasingly spans multiple properties and involves more technologies to drive its strategy, Northpass has been a proponent of Learning Ops: a discipline of driving learning across the org to support multiple use cases (such as internal and customer education), integrated and in-app learning, and analysis of learning-related data.

Listen to this episode to find out more about Steve’s perspective on the industry!

Does Onboarding Matter?  That’s what Donna Weber, veteran Customer Education professional and President of Springboard Solutions firmly asserts in her new book, Onboarding Matters! She says: “Onboarding is the most important part of the customer journey, yet many B2B companies fail to act proactively at the start of the relationship.”

In her book, she outlines the reasons why onboarding is a crucial motion for B2B companies, especially those who experience churn or attrition later in their customer lifecycles. Improper onboarding contributes to low adoption, low satisfaction, and ultimately unhealthy business.

Brian Childs, a customer education leader with experience at Moz, TapClicks, and more, has developed a Maturity Model that emerging Customer Education teams can use. In this interview, he describes how you can use the Training Maturity Model to scale your customer education team faster. Brian Childs has been building customer and adult education programs for over 20 years. In 2020, he developed the Training Maturity Model to understand the common challenges faced by training team leaders and what drives scale. The secret is something many training practitioners know inherently but don’t have articulated into a repeatable framework. The secret is: Scaling a training program relies on capabilities across the whole organization. 

On this episode of CELab we continue both our CEO Series and Customer Success Series as Michael Harnum, CEO of ESG Success, walks us through his journey to Customer Success as a Service. Typically, Education Services used to be standalone activities where customers would consume training credits, but that approach often left customers without access to proper training and providers with revenue recognition issues. In a world of SaaS software where training is a constant activity, that doesn’t cut it for most businesses anymore. 

Product-focused afterthought! – that’s what most Customer Success clients get wrong about Customer Education according Lincoln Murphy of Sixteen Ventures. 

But what does this mean, exactly? 

In recent episodes, SaaS executives and investors perceive Customer Education as a growing and integral part of scaling their organizations.  This begins our “Customer Success Series” where we’ll talk with prominent leaders in the Customer Success space, starting with Lincoln Murphy – Customer Success Growth Expert, Consultant, and Thought Leader.

Customer Education, as we know it today, is undergoing the same kind of Category Creation that Lincoln experienced in the early days of the Customer Success industry.  And it’s even more critical as COVID-19’s “been like five years of change and evolution” to the Customer Success market.

In Episode 55 we explore: 

• how we have in common with Customer Success leaders the role of playing detective to uncover our customers’ core needs
• how customer education fits into a customer success strategy
• whether CSMs do training, or do we centralize that function into a Customer Education team?

And, of course, we get back to the question of what is product-focused afterthought!

Listen in for another great episode, or enjoy the full transcript below!

What are venture capitalists thinking about the potential for Customer Education and Customer Success? As the industry becomes more profitable, we’ve seen more investment activity in the space. Eugene Lee from OMERS Ventures joins us to talk about his view on investing in this market, and what he wants to see from Customer Education and Customer Success companies as the market develops.

Eugene Lee, a Principal at OMERS Ventures, a venture capital fund with $1B under management and 50+ investments in B2B and B2C tech companies including Contentful, Crunchbase, Hootsuite, Klue, Rover, Shopify, Vidyard, and Wattpad.

Prior to joining OMERS Ventures, Eugene was a VP of Business Operations at Copper, Google’s #1 recommended CRM.  Prior to that, he founded and led the business operations team at Pinterest. Before that Yahoo and Pixate.

One theme that’s on the minds of many Customer Education professionals is learning how to “bridge the divide” between our teams and other education-focused teams. In Episode 19 (Sharing with Others) we kicked off this discussion. Growing organizations in the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) marketplace follow standard patterns, and begin to introduce Learning and Development (L&D), Sales Enablement, and Customer Education.   

Ted Blosser, CEO of WorkRamp, continues our “CEO Series” into 2021, sharing his experiences as a relatively recent entrant into the Customer Education category. If you’re like us, you soon become (sometimes painfully) aware that you are not alone on the journey to help your customers.  Unfortunately, many of us may be a bit “siloed” or so focused upon our own universe that we miss a golden opportunity in exploring consolidated learning strategies.  In other words, the democratization of our education process.  

Cross-department collaboration provides distinct advantages to all of us, leading to measurable savings of time, hassle, and money.  Listen in as we discuss “Centers of Learning Excellence”, tying education to business outcomes, and the role that Customer Education will play in the coming years!

In 2019 we did our first “pause and reflect” style episode over the holidays, which was one of our top five episodes of all time. With this episode we, once again, let loose and do a “fun” episode to close out the year and start off the new one. And after this year, we definitely need to let loose a bit!

To bridge the end of 2020 and the beginning of 2021, we’re going to continue our tradition of asking what music and art can teach us about Customer Education.  What can David Bowie teach us about Customer Education?  And to honor our subject just a bit more, we’ve waited just a bit to celebrate his birthday (January 8th, 1947)!

Listen in as we relate the journey of David Bowie as he practiced his art over a lifetime. We all can relate to the changes he went through, forging through different styles before developing something unique and characteristic. Then continuing to experiment and grow to meet the changing demands of the market. Enjoy!

NOTE: We discuss the legendary interview Bowie gave to Jeremy Paxman on BBC Newsnight about the future of technology, which you can see for yourself here.

On October 6th, we presented – live – at Thought Industries’ COGNITION 2020. This was a great event with many leaders from our Customer Education category.

In this recording we unveil our Customer Education Manifesto. This is composed of six guiding principles that we believe can help Customer Success organizations strategically accelerate account and user growth. 

Most Customer Success organizations know, or soon discover, that acquiring customers is hard. But retaining those hard-won customers is even harder. Did you effectively onboard?If not, that translates to churn. Do you help your customers realize value? Again … that causes churn. Are you retaining and expanding your accounts? That churn can be slow and even more painful.

Just how many thousands, if not millions of dollars has your company spent to acquire customers and drive adoption? Surely, you’re focused on customer marketing and drip campaigns. You may have thrown a flotilla of CSMs at the problem, requiring them to perform ad-hoc trainings.

The simple, uncomfortable truth is this: Your customers don’t succeed if they don’t learn.

Listen in as we share the new face of Customer Education. We help growing XaaS businesses to change customer behaviors, reduce barriers to value, and improve the way people work.

Haven’t yet seen the Customer Education Manifesto? Check it out here!

Missed COGNITION 2020? The event is still online in on-demand form. For a quick recap, check out Episode 49 where we cover -in detail – the top events from 2020! If you’re a veteran or new Customer Education Professional, you’ll want to mark your calendars for 2021! We hope next year brings a return to in-person conferences and hope to see you there.

In this episode, we’re celebrating some milestones from CELab! First, we are celebrating two amazing years of working out loud. We kicked off our very first episode, “Getting Started with Customer Education” on November 11th, 2018. Like many of you who have found yourselves here – in this field and listening to this podcast – we dove in head first and in – understanding isn’t necessarily where you have to begin

Bill Cushard, the host of Helping Sells Radio, has said – most podcasts don’t make it past episode 11. Thanks to an amazing community – we’ve hit our 50th episode!

This is the time of year where we see conferences like DevLearn (which we spoke at last year), The Guild’s Learning Conference, and this year, for the first time ever, we had a three-week run of Customer Education conferences!

Now, these were all online conferences since we’re in the midst of Covid-related travel and gathering restrictions, but in a way this may have enabled us to see what we saw this year - three customer education conferences in a row!

So what were the conferences?

The fun started with CEdMA’s annual conference, continued with Skilljar Connect next week. We’ve spoken at both of these conferences before, and they were joined by a new, third conference - Thought Industries COGNITION.

Instead of recapping each conference individually, this episode is a rollup of all three featuring some of the themes and trends we saw along the way!

The Shift to Online Conferences

In this episode we begin by exploring the Pros and Cons of our Shift to Online Conferences.  

Online or Virtual conferences are hard to pull off.  The main uptick for most attendees is that we have a lot more flexibility.  Recordings are typically available for all sessions, so this really helped many of us with busy schedules pick and choose and catch up if we missed anything.  

Of course, there are cons.  New technologies and the complexity of working with many integrated technologies, and even our own Internet (or lack thereof) caused some issues.  We personally experienced some of this, but as Customer Education folks we rolled with the punches.

CEdMA Connect 2020

CEdMA’s Connect 2020 event was the first stop on our tour where we presented our Customer Education Manifesto for the first time (and do a to a live audience!).  

We enjoyed the keynote from Bill Cushard - “The Next Big Thing in Customer Education”.  The “7 Habits of Inclusive Leaders” from Melissa Majors was a great addition that injected much-needed DE&I content.  Alessandra Marinetty delivered a great case study on the development of Box’s event-based Certification Program, and much more.  

Skilljar Connect 2020

Of all the events we attended, Skilljar Connect 2020 takes the prize for being the most social - leveraging Hopin to satisfy the missing puzzle piece of networking.  

Skilljar executed well on this event - deploying a content track in addition to more traditionally table steaks of material focused on leadership, strategy, monetization, and more.  For example, Debbie Smith from Braze was a huge hit (worth watching if you couldn’t make it).  Randon and Kyle from JAMF dropped sage advice on creating content at scale.

Beyond this we experienced some great material from OSISoft on Training a Global Audience, the LinkedIn education teams (and yes, there are many) talked about aligning across several product lines, and the Slack team shared how they assembled their Study Guide for their new Certification.  

We did our first ever Live Mailbag episode based on the popularity of our previous mailbag episodes. We had so many questions that we'll be hosting another mailbag episode very soon!

Thought Industries - COGNITION 2020

Last, but certainly not least, was COGNITION 2020!

We iterated on our “6 Principles” and presented again at COGNITION 2020, Adam presented “So you’ve created a customer education program - now what?” and both Adam and Dave participated in panels throughout the session.

Even so we attended some of the sessions too!

Daniel Quick’s Customer Education Playbook.  We review our take on this but you should certainly download and read this for yourselves.  If you’re new to Customer Education this is important as it aligns with the idea that you need to have both a strategy and a goal for your program … and leads you down the road to determining it!

One session that we thought was a great addition was Barry Kelly’s talk with Mark Roberge - the former CRO of Hubspot.  For those of you in Customer Success, this is an amazing tale of the magic that can happen when you align cross-functionally to build amazing material.

And as with other events, Thought Industries welcomed Vernā Myers - VP of Inclusion strategy from Netflix who brought us back to the crucial trend of focusing more on diversity,inclusion, and belonging in our programs.  We value this because of the implicit need - particularly as educators - to internalize ways to implement positive changes 

Summary

There’s much more to talk about with these customer education conferences so make sure you listen to the episode in its entirety and make your plans for 2021! 

We’re really pleased to see very strong options in 2020 for Customer Education teams.  We’ve moved beyond Leaders and now there’s much more practical content for Practitioners too.  Many of these events are open to everyone - not just customers.  Keep up the great work in delivering powerful and impactful content

We can’t wait for 2021 and hope to see everyone in person!

In this episode we’ll answer some questions that may be on your mind too including:

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

• What advice do you have for those that are working with one other employee, or manage a very small team, on how to take the next step and grow their impact, have more employees, and ultimately get their own CE department?
• What’s the ideal “mixture” of video lessons and text lessons in an online course? Mostly video? Both to keep students engaged?
• How can we tie training attendance to product usage and product adoption? Any best practices on how to measure this so we know training is working and can continue to invest in the right methods of training?
• How do you approach the strategy and plan for mass documentation and training updates when the product visually changes, especially for small teams? What are common pitfalls or things to watch out for?

Listen in as we’ll share the insight we’ve gleaned from direct experience and from others in our network!  Remember – Customer Education is both new and not new.  CELab is committed to learning and sharing the best practices for Customer Education and your questions are invaluable.  

Thanks to Randon, Norma, Corinne, and Laura for the amazing questions. And a big thanks to Skilljar for inviting us to this amazing conference. A recap episode is coming soon!

If you have a question or things you want to share please feel free to contact us with your ideas. Also, if you want to hear more from us – sign our mailing list and our brand new Customer Education Manifesto!

In this “mini” episode, we focus on microlearning and share some things we learned from one of the industry experts on the subject. At DevLearn 2019, we had the great opportunity to talk with Carla Torgerson, the Director of Instructional Design at Bull City Learning immediately following her “Create Effective Microlearning” course. We covered our experiences at DevLearn in Episode 28.

What does microlearning entail? How can a Customer Education team benefit from using it in their Education Strategy?

A hint? A micro format “with particular, targeted focus on something a customer wants to do“, maps well with our mission in Customer Education to help get customers up-to-speed quickly, and helps to increase adoption / avoid churn of our products.

Customers get to choose if or when they’re going to consume your content. This “micropodcast” will give you some other tools to think about adding to your toolkit.

Welcome back to Instructional Design 101, where we’ll ask whether Customer Educators need to care about Bloom’s Taxonomy. What’s that, you ask? Bloom’s Taxonomy, created in 1956 by educational psychologist Benjamin Bloom, is used by many K-12 educators and instructional designers to categorize learning objectives by what the learner is expected to know or do.The taxonomy has been revised since its original creation, but today it categorizes whether learners will be expected to do things like:

• Remember a piece of information
• Understand a concept
• Apply a skill
• Analyze information or data
• Evaluate information or scenarios
• Create something new

These skills often build upon one another, and require different levels of evaluation and assessment. As Customer Education instructional designers, we can use Bloom’s Taxonomy to take a learner-centric approach to our materials, instead of a content-centric approach. Too often, we jam-pack our courses and articles with “nice-to-know” instead of “need-to-know” information, or ramble on about features instead of focusing on how the customer will actually use them — and give them opportunities to practice.In this episode, Adam argues that Bloom’s Taxonomy still has a place in Customer Education, and it helps us focus our materials on driving relevant outcomes for learners. Listen to the full episode to find out more about how it can be used, as well as potential challenges!

Missed our first Instructional Design 101 episode on the Kirkpatrick Model? Check out Episode 21!

Photo by Arlington Research on Unsplash

Here, we’re diving deeper into monetization strategies which our listeners and the network that we’re in as Customer Education Professionals are interested in getting more help with.  Customer Education tends to “niche down” from where we end up in much larger, mature organizations where we often have true Educational Services teams.

In this episode we talk with Chip Ramsey – Founder and CEO of Intellum and one of the early pioneers in our field with the first ever platform for Customer Education.  We talk about the transition to creating a great platform and how Chip says to “start with science” to make amazing material that helps both your customers and your business.

Many Customer Education Professionals may know Intellum as the platform that powers incredible customer and partner education and customer experience programs such as Facebook Blueprint, Google Academy for Ads, Google Retail Training, Twitter Flight School and most recently have acquired Appitierre, who make the Evolve rapid-dev content tool.

Part 2 of our Customer Education Mailbag episode continues the conversation with our listeners.  How do Content Developers become more self-sufficient with their LMS? How many people can we expect to join a new program? Where does Customer Education Belong? Listen in to find out!

This podcast and website are not about our opinions and perspectives.  We focus on our community of Customer Education professionals.  All of us are learning and growing from the experiences we have helping learners understand our products, particularly for Software-as-a-Services companies where that product is – quite literally – changing under our feet.

If you have a question, email us at learn@customer.education!

We’re finally brushing the dust off all those envelopes and open some of the letters that have been coming in. We actually asked our listeners to record their questions, so listen into this episode to hear it in their own voices!

We hope to do this periodically, so if you want to send in your questions you can contact us in our Slack Community or send us an email at learn@customer.education!