In this episode of Path to Growth, Tracy sits down with Dave Boyce, Executive Chairperson and EVP of Product at Winning by Design. Dave shares insights from a diverse and accomplished career spanning startups, scale-ups, and public companies—and dives into the growth frameworks that guide high-performing teams today.

The conversation begins with a personal reflection on how formative experiences shaped both Tracy’s and Dave’s values around hard work and resilience. From there, Dave introduces the concept of “growth architecture,” emphasizing the importance of designing intentional systems at every stage of a company’s life cycle—from product-market fit to long-term optimization.

A major highlight of the discussion is Winning by Design’s “bow tie” model, which reimagines the traditional sales funnel to account for the entire customer journey, from acquisition to expansion. Dave underscores that effective growth comes from structured handoffs, strong communication, and, most of all, deep empathy—both in product design and marketing.

The episode also explores why most acquisitions fail, and Dave outlines the two integration models that tend to succeed: full and immediate absorption into the parent company or complete operational independence. Anything in between, he argues, is usually doomed to underperform.

On the topic of AI, Dave shares lessons from the recent AI GTM conference, calling out practical use cases that are actually working today—from AI-powered sales agents to onboarding frameworks for agents as hybrid teammates. He encourages professionals to become “AI native,” stressing that the most valued go-to-market professionals will be those who embrace AI as a force multiplier rather than a threat.

The conversation wraps with reflections on crisis leadership, the importance of alignment across teams, and parting advice for emerging leaders: pursue fit and happiness first, and let everything else—career opportunities, compensation, and recognition—follow from that alignment.

A thought-provoking and human-centered discussion, this episode is a must-listen for anyone navigating growth in a rapidly evolving business landscape.