CELab: The Customer Education Lab

CELab
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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.

  1. 4D AGO

    CELab - Ep 179 - How Jess Katz Built an AI‑Powered Customer Education Org as a Team of One

    In this episode of the Customer Education Lab, we sit down with Jess Katz, Senior Customer Education Manager at Forter, to unpack how she built an AI‑powered customer education function as a team of one. Jess walks us through her journey from joining Forter with a blank slate and an aggressive launch timeline, to orchestrating a “swarm” of more than 20 specialized AI agents that now support everything from research and course design to writing, video scripts, and brand voice. 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 ...

    1h 17m

  2. 4D AGO

    CELab - Ep 179 - How Jess Katz Built an AI‑Powered Customer Education Org as a Team of One

    In this episode of the Customer Education Lab, we sit down with Jess Katz, Senior Customer Education Manager at Forter, to unpack how she built an AI‑powered customer education function as a team of one. Jess walks us through her journey from joining Forter with a blank slate and an aggressive launch timeline, to orchestrating a “swarm” of more than 20 specialized AI agents that now support everything from research and course design to writing, video scripts, and brand voice. 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. Here's the link to Jess's LinkedIn Article, "How I Built a Scalable Customer Education Engine as a Team of One Using AI Agents". We're also very interested to learn from you! 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 ...

    1h 16m

  3. APR 3

    CELab - Ep 178 - From Order Taker to Trusted Consultant: How Action Mapping & Brainstorm Transformed Customer Education at Quickbase

    In this episode, we are joined by Ashley DeKerlegand, Director of Customer Education and CX Enablement at Quickbase, to unpack how she transformed Quickbase University from “optional training” into a core driver of expansion and reduced churn. Ashley shares her journey from manufacturing and product training into SaaS, how she built and now leads a 12-person global team, and why Quickbase’s customer education program is tightly woven into the company’s onboarding and Failure-to-Launch strategy. 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 ...

    53 min

  4. MAR 4

    CELab - Ep 177 - How Kevin Lee Turned “Scrappy” Video into a Scaled Customer Education Engine

    In this episode of CELab, we welcome content creator Kevin Lee to unpack how “scrappy” social-style video can transform Customer Education and scaled Customer Success. Kevin shares his journey from running a Rubik’s Cube meme account and a 200K-subscriber YouTube channel to launching Atlassian Answered, a video series that has generated over 2 million organic impressions and hundreds of thousands of views—without paid promotion. Along the way, he explains why most B2B content fails to land, how to “earn” attention instead of assuming it, and why simplifying corporate jargon is like teaching calculus to someone who’s still in geometry. 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

    51 min

  5. FEB 20

    CELab - Ep 176 - Uplimit - From Hype to Outcomes — AI Enablement That Actually Changes Behavior

    Customer education has outgrown the LMS era. In this episode of CELab we down with Zayd Badwan, Chief Revenue & Customer Officer at Uplimit, and Yash Tekriwal, who leads education and cohort programs at Clay, to ask a hard question: if your main metric is still course completion, are you already behind? Together, they unpack how AI, cohort-based learning, and practice-first design are transforming customer education from “check-the-box training” into a true lever for product adoption and revenue. You’ll hear how Uplimit and Clay are using AI to automate the admin work that slows teams down, generate practice experiences at scale, and actually measure behavior change and skill improvement—not just time spent watching videos. The conversation ranges from cohort-based onboarding for enterprise customers, to AI-powered role plays and rubrics, to tying learning programs directly to product usage and activation metrics. If you care about Customer Education, Customer Success, or Enablement, this episode is a blueprint for moving beyond the hype and building programs your CFO—and your customers—will love. 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: Free...

    1h 1m

  6. JAN 29

    CELab Ep 175 - From Click-Paths to Conversations: Roberto Aiello on AI, Localization, and Customer Education

    In this episode of the Customer Education Lab, Adam Avramescu sits down with his Personio teammate and Senior Learning Experience Designer Roberto Aiello for a deep dive into what modern customer education really looks like in 2026. They unpack how an international company with an English working language and a massive German market grapples with localization, terminology, and tone—including why “just translate it” fails, and how to design for truly native experiences instead. Roberto shares concrete stories from Personio’s Voyager Academy, like localizing character names, handling UI screenshots in multiple languages, and deciding what not to translate. 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 custom...

    1h 4m

  7. JAN 15

    CELab - Ep 174 - From Course Library to Learning OS: LearnWorlds and the Future of Customer Education

    Customer education is outgrowing the idea of “just an LMS.” In this episode, Dave Derington sits down with Mia Čomić, Product Marketing Manager at LearnWorlds, to unpack how the platform is evolving from a traditional course host into a true learning operating system for modern SaaS. Mia shares how her background in Comparative Literature, localization, and academy building shaped her perspective on learning as a continuous product experience—not a one‑off content drop. 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)

    1h 28m

  8. JAN 6

    CELab - Ep 173 - From Helldivers 2 to St. Vincent: Surprising Lessons for Customer Education Leaders

    In this end-of-year special, Adam Avramescu and Dave Derington look back at 2025 through the lens of the things they love most outside of work: video games and live music. They unpack how titles like Helldivers 2, Peak, and Megabonk model great onboarding, community-based learning, and continuous engagement—and what Customer Education and Customer Success teams can steal from modern game design. 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.”

    1h 1m
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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.

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