In the final episode of 2025, Kyle sits down with someone who has been woven into her UX journey for nearly two decades: Amy Heymans — founder of Mad*Pow, founder of Beneficent, and co-founder of the Dignified Futures Conference. Amy and Kyle first met in 2006, when Mad*Pow was just a few people in a small Portsmouth, NH office. Over the next 13 years, Amy grew the agency into a nationally respected 70+ person consultancy known for its exceptional design work and its influential events, including HXD, the Center for Health Experience Design, and the Financial Experience Design Conference. But this conversation goes far deeper than Mad*Pow’s rise. In 2019, Mad*Pow was acquired — the “dream scenario” for many agency founders. Amy shares openly what that experience was really like: the financial realities behind acquisitions, the emotional complexity of letting go of her company, the personal circumstances that shaped the outcome, and the surprising truth that the big exit doesn’t always look like the fantasy many consultants imagine. After leaving Mad*Pow, Amy stepped into a prestigious role as Chief Design Officer at UnitedHealthcare, navigating an enormous 400,000-person organization. She talks candidly about why the move felt right, why it ultimately didn’t align with her values, and how she knew it was time to walk away. Today, Amy is the founder of Beneficent, where she focuses on systems thinking, futures design, and complex problem-solving across health, finance, and the public sector. She also co-leads the Dignified Futures Conference, a gathering dedicated to reimagining systems for social impact — and she shares what inspired it and how designers, policymakers, and innovators can get involved. This episode covers: How Mad*Pow really beganThe messy truth behind scaling a design agencyThe realities of selling a firm — financially, emotionally, and personallyWhy Amy returned to corporate — and why she leftHow she’s building Beneficent differently from Mad*PowHow ADHD shows up in her work as both a challenge and superpowerThe future of UX consulting in the age of AI and speculative foresightPractical advice for landing big clients and navigating uncertaintyThis is one of the most candid conversations ever aired on The UX Consultants Lounge — a deep, honest look at success, identity, reinvention, and the realities of leading a UX career across decades of change. Connect with Us: Host: Kyle Soucy | Usable Interface | Linkedin Guest: Amy Heymans | Beneficient Design | Linkedin- - - - - Links and Resources Mentioned: Dignified Futures Conference: https://www.designfordignity.com/ Submit a question or story: Have a question or topic that you'd like us to cover in a future episode and/or want to share an anonymous consulting story? Submit your questions and stories. Don't want to miss an episode? Be sure to sign up for the podcast newsletter. Thanks for tuning in! Don’t forget to subscribe and leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast platform. I can’t wait to have you back in the lounge for our next episode!
