Customer Empathy

Comparing Level 1 and Level 2

Level 1

Level 2

Description

At Level 1, customer empathy begins with awareness. You’re learning who the customers are, what they’re trying to do, and why it matters. You begin to connect your engineering work to their goals—recognizing that even small technical choices can shape their experience. You start by listening—to customer stories, support pain points, and what the data shows about user behavior. You may not interact directly with customers yet, but you’re beginning to care about how your code, instrumentation, and reliability affect them.

Description

At Level 2, customer empathy deepens as you start to anticipate needs and advocate for users. You’re learning to balance technical priorities with customer impact—making trade-offs that align with their goals. You actively seek out feedback, refine your understanding, and begin to influence decisions with the customer in mind. You may collaborate with cross-functional teams to address pain points, improve experiences, and deliver value.

Key Behaviors

  • •
    Reads customer feedback, support tickets, or usage data to understand real problems
  • •
    Asks questions about how users experience the product
  • •
    Considers how code changes, bugs, or outages impact the customer experience
  • •
    Uses personas, use cases, or shared stories to understand context
  • •
    Begins to notice patterns in where users struggle

Key Behaviors

  • •
    Proactively seeks customer feedback to inform decisions
  • •
    Advocates for user needs during planning and review
  • •
    Balances technical priorities with customer impact
  • •
    Collaborates with cross-functional teams to address pain points
  • •
    Refines understanding of customer goals and challenges

Common Struggles

  • May focus on technical details without customer context
  • Might assume what matters without validating with data or stories
  • Can feel distant from customer needs or emotions

Common Struggles

  • May over-prioritize technical solutions without considering user impact
  • Might struggle to balance competing needs or constraints
  • Can find it challenging to advocate for customers in technical discussions

Success Indicators

  • Show interest in the customer’s experience and goals
  • Listen to feedback with curiosity, not defensiveness
  • Ask, "Who is this for?" and "How will it affect them?" regularly
  • Begin to factor customer impact into your day-to-day decisions

Success Indicators

  • Demonstrate a clear understanding of customer goals and challenges
  • Influence decisions with customer impact in mind
  • Collaborate effectively to improve user experiences
  • Advocate for customer needs in technical discussions

Mindset Shift

From:

"I write code."

To:

"I help solve customer problems."

Mindset Shift

From:

"I solve technical problems."

To:

"I solve customer problems with technical solutions."

Questions to Ask Yourself

  • Who is affected by this change—and how?
  • What feedback have we received on this feature or flow?
  • What would frustrate me if I were using this?

Questions to Ask Yourself

  • What trade-offs are we making—and how do they affect users?
  • How can we validate this solution with real customer feedback?
  • What’s the simplest way to deliver value to users?

Build These Habits

  • 1
    Read feedback or complaints regularly
  • 2
    Sit in on support or user research calls if possible
  • 3
    Keep a running list of observed customer pain points

Build These Habits

  • 1
    Regularly review customer feedback and data
  • 2
    Participate in user research or support calls
  • 3
    Collaborate with cross-functional teams to address pain points

Seek Feedback

  • "What’s been frustrating for customers lately?"
  • "How are users actually using the thing I built?"
  • "What parts of the product cause the most confusion or support load?"

Seek Feedback

  • "How well does this solution address customer needs?"
  • "What feedback have we received on this approach?"
  • "Are there simpler ways to deliver value to users?"

Signals You're Ready to Level Up

  • You consider customer impact by default, not as an afterthought
  • You bring up customer context during planning or review
  • Others trust you to care about the person on the other side of the screen

Signals You're Ready to Level Up

  • You advocate for customer needs consistently
  • You influence decisions with a clear understanding of user impact
  • Others trust you to balance technical priorities with customer goals

Focus Summary

  • Listen closely
  • Care deeply
  • Begin with the customer

At Level 1, customer empathy is about paying attention. You’re beginning to connect your work to real people—and that’s where meaningful software starts.

Focus Summary

  • Anticipate needs
  • Advocate for users
  • Balance priorities

At Level 2, customer empathy is about anticipation and advocacy. You’re learning to make decisions that align with user goals—and to influence others to do the same.