The Superpower of Relentless Empathy in Product Innovation

Have you ever found yourself in a room filled with people with empathy, care, and deep concern for their customers and the products they build? It's a quality that goes beyond technical competency and requires an innate ability to listen, understand and address the needs of others.

As a US citizen, nevetheless born and raised in Vietnam with a diverse experience of working with people from over 80 countries, I learned that the power of relentless empathy in product innovation could be a superpower you were naturally born with. Nevertheless, it is a treasured and cultivated gift with hard ( inner) work to gain self-awareness and keep that humility over time.

According to Kein (2019), In her insightful contribution to the MIT Sloan Review, Laura Klein sheds light on the indispensable role of relentless empathy in innovation, highlighting how it sets product leaders and managers apart from their peers. In my product experience, It's the ability to combine analytical thinking and product sense with a deep understanding and care for customers and their experiences. It's about listening and connecting with people on a human level, understanding their needs, and addressing their pain points, even in the face of adversity. And it's a quality I possess naturally, without the need for showboating or convincing.

My innate ability to coach and mentor others and my natural tendency to reach out and connect with people have allowed me to cultivate this quality of empathy. It's a quality that has driven me throughout my career and has enabled me to deliver remarkable results for my clients.

As a product innovator and leadership coach, I'm passionate about bringing out the best in my team and guiding them to develop the same integrity and grit that have driven me. I'm excited to continue to innovate and push the boundaries of what's possible in the world of product development.

If you're interested in connecting or collaborating with me, please get in touch with me via LinkedIn. We can create products that solve problems and connect with customers emotionally, ultimately leading to tremendous success and impact.

Avva Thach, CIO of Avva Thach LLC

Reference

Klein, L. (2019). Why Relentless Empathy Is Needed for Innovation. MIT Sloan Review. Retrieved from https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/why-relentless-empathy-is-needed-for-innovation/