profile

Product Thinking Newsletter by Melissa Perri

How Gong is Transforming Enterprise Sales with AI

Published 9 months ago • 2 min read

​

​

Hi Product people,

​

AI is reshaping sales and product management. But what does it take to build an AI-powered product that people love?

​

This week on Product Thinking, I had the opportunity to speak with Eilon Reshef, co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Gong.

​

Eilon shared how Gong is transforming the sales industry with AI-driven solutions that empower salespeople to perform at their best.

​

"We realized that to succeed, Gong had to deliver immense value directly to the salespeople using our product, not just the organization at large. Our focus on the end-user ensured our survival and success."

We discussed the challenges of scaling a company like Gong during rapid growth and the unique organizational structures that help Gong maintain its edge. Eilon's insights into aligning product development with customer needs are invaluable for anyone looking to make an impact in their field.

​

Have you integrated AI into your product strategy? How has it influenced your approach? Let me know in the comments.

​

🎧 Listen to the full episode here: Apple | Spotify​

​

Looking forward to hearing from you!

See you in the new year,

Melissa Perri

Founder Product Institute, Board Member, and Teacher
​

​

Key Moments on the Podcast to Check Out:

  • 10:31 - Prioritizing Seller-Centric Value

Eilon discusses the importance of emphasizing value for the end user, the salespeople, rather than just delivering organizational value. This approach has been critical to Gong’s success, helping build a product that sales teams love and rely on.

  • 13:50 - Implementing a Customer-Centric Structure

Learn about Gong's unique pod structure, where product managers work closely with numerous design partners to receive continuous feedback and refine the product. This approach ensures that customer needs are always at the forefront.

  • 26:54 - Embracing AI in Product Management

Eilon provides advice for product managers on how to integrate AI into their work. He emphasizes the need to practice and understand AI capabilities to effectively incorporate them into product offerings.

​

Episode resources:

​

This episode was brought to you by Liveblocks

​Sign up for a free Liveblocks account​

​

Other Resources:

​

​

THE PRODUCT THINKING PODCAST IS SPONSORED BY

Product Management training at scale for teams and individuals, created by Melissa Perri.

​LEARN MORE​

​

​

​

Do you have a product dilemma you just can’t solve? Are you in need of some pointed career guidance? We’ve got a direct line to Melissa, so now’s your chance to ask her anything you’d like. You can record a voice message here, or you can submit a question via form below. Melissa just might answer it in a future Dear Melissa segment of the podcast.

​

​

​

​

The CPO Accelerator is a members-only live virtual course for product leaders taught by Melissa Perri. The move from product leader to VP or CPO can be challenging. It takes a whole new set of skills to succeed at the next level, and you may be the first person at your company to hold this seat at the executive table.

​

​

You are subscribed to this email because you chose to opt in to emails from Product Institute, Produx Labs, or Melissa Perri.

Want to receive this email less frequently?

​Change Your Email Preferences Here

Product Thinking is the newsletter of Product Institute, Inc. and Melissa Perri.

Product Thinking Newsletter by Melissa Perri

All things Product Management

Subscribe to this newsletter if you are a product manager or product leader interested in leveling up your strategy, process, and insights into technology. I send out emails once a week on Wednesdays.

Read more from Product Thinking Newsletter by Melissa Perri

Hello Reader, 2025 has been one of the most transformative years I’ve seen in my career, not just for product teams, but for organizations as a whole. AI had already entered the room but this year it took over the conversation. Everywhere I went, every leadership meeting, every conference talk, every team workshop… the same question kept coming up: “How do we use AI to accelerate everything we do?” And while the enthusiasm is well-placed, this year made something abundantly clear: AI can...

9 days ago • 4 min read

Hi Product people, How do you design an organization that supports product management teams to deliver real customer value effectively? This week on the Product Thinking Podcast, I explored this topic in depth. We discussed how critical it is to structure teams around value streams instead of architecture, ensuring that every team is strategically aligned with delivering customer value. This Dear Melissa episode highlighted the importance of having platform teams that work collaboratively...

15 days ago • 2 min read

Hi Product people, How is AI reshaping the role of product managers into product builders? This week on Product Thinking, I had the pleasure of speaking with Srini Raghavan, Chief Product Officer at FreshWorks. Srini shared how AI is transforming product management by enabling product managers to take on more integrated roles that go beyond traditional boundaries. "AI has acted as a catalyst for product managers to become more product builders. It allows them to conduct user research, design,...

22 days ago • 2 min read