How great product teams use customer insights differently with Jeff Lash

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Mar 23, 2026

Jeff Lash, VP of Product Management at Insperity and seasoned product leader with a UX and research background, shares perspectives on using voice-of-customer to guide decisions. He talks about asking better follow-up questions, balancing qualitative and quantitative signals, avoiding reactive roadmap traps, and using customer insight to align teams and foster a growth mindset.

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ADVICE

Spend First Weeks Listening Like Customer Research

Do treat your first weeks in a new leadership role like a research project: talk 10% and listen 90% to gather context and build trust.
Jeff recommends interviewing people across functions to surface consistent priorities before acting.

INSIGHT

Filter Feedback By Target Market And Persona

Insightful filtering starts by asking who your target market and personas are because much VOC can come from outside your intended segment.
Jeff uses target market and persona alignment first, then volume/intensity, to prioritize incoming feedback.

ADVICE

Use A Top Down Strategy To Prioritize VOC

Do prioritize top-down by linking requests to company vision, portfolio strategy, and product goals so VOC doesn't become a backlog hamster wheel.
Jeff recommends making conscious trade-offs and asking leadership to help prioritize when directives conflict.

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Episode web page: https://bit.ly/4bC3uCy

Episode summary:In this episode of Insights Unlocked, host Mike McDowell sits down with Jeff Lash, VP of Product Management at Insperity, to explore how product leaders can turn customer insight into smarter decisions and better outcomes.

Drawing on decades of experience across UX, product management, and consulting, Jeff shares practical advice on balancing voice of the customer with business strategy, avoiding common roadmap pitfalls, and building high-performing, customer-centric teams.

Jeff explains why product teams often misinterpret customer feedback, emphasizing the importance of asking better questions and digging deeper into the “why” behind what customers say. He also highlights how over-reliance on processes, artifacts, or quantitative data can obscure real insight—and why qualitative research remains a powerful, often underutilized tool.

The conversation dives into how teams can prioritize effectively, align around strategy, and avoid getting stuck in reactive “firefighting” mode. Jeff also shares how successful teams use customer insight as a unifying force across stakeholders, while maintaining a growth mindset that drives continuous improvement.

You’ll learn:

Why asking better follow-up questions leads to better product decisions
How to balance qualitative and quantitative customer insights
Common mistakes teams make when relying on roadmaps and feedback
How to prioritize effectively without getting stuck in reactive work
Why voice of the customer should act as a “great equalizer” across teams
How a growth mindset helps product teams continuously improve

Resources & links:

Jeff on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/jefflash/)
Jeff’s website (https://www.jefflash.com/)
The Insperity website (https://www.insperity.com/)
Mike McDowell on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/mmcdowell1/)
Nathan Isaacs on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanisaacs/)
Learn more about Insights Unlocked: https://www.usertesting.com/podcast