Customer Discovery: Learning to Listen for Opportunity

The Customer Discovery for Startups workshop was a hit! Aspiring entrepreneurs poured into the Skandalaris Center to participate in an engaging and hands-on workshop led by designer, educator, and entrepreneur Kate Edgar Owen.

Kate brought a wealth of experience to the room, drawing from more than fifteen years in product design, research, and innovation across a wide range of organizations. During the workshop, she shared her experiences, explained the purpose of customer discovery, and offered practical and accessible tips. The most valuable part of the session was the opportunity for participants to interact with one another. They tested their concepts, talked with peers, gathered feedback, and experienced the real rhythm of customer discovery in action.

After the workshop, Kate shared more about her motivation and what she finds most meaningful about this work. See what she had to say below!

What motivates you to volunteer at the Skandalaris Center?

The people, obviously! I have loved every individual I have met here. The interdisciplinary approach and real practice feel truly special. I have taught at Sam Fox, but here you have folks from Sam Fox, engineers, and others all bringing their own methodologies to solve problems and I love that.

What do you enjoy most about customer discovery?

I appreciate the human aspect! When you go out, listen, and learn from others, you gain something every single time. I love that experience. The process is challenging but fun in a good way, and I love the challenge of creating something, putting it into the world, and seeing how people react!

What advice do you most want participants to walk away with from your workshop?

Just get out there and talk to people and listen and observe. Not just talk at people, but truly listen. It does not have to be a perfect process or a checklist. Just go out there and chat!

Thanks again to Kate for sharing her time, insight, and support with our community of aspiring entrepreneurs. More workshops are on the way, so stay tuned!