The Company Road Podcast E84 Dane Maddams: Wading through the 'Messy Middle' of Culture and Product
In this episode of The Company Road Podcast, Chris Hudson dives into the heart of organisational success with Dane Maddams, Director of Product at Culture Amp and Amplitude Product 50 leader.
Dane specialises in the "messy middle": the ambiguous, unspoken tensions, and trust gaps that quietly hold firms back. Drawing on a fascinatingly diverse background from Toyota to the world of gaming, Dane shares his unique perspective on making high performance more human, actionable, and scalable. The chat explores the hidden costs of ignoring workplace psychology, the true nature of organisational change (spoiler: it's not a mere slogan), and how we can leverage AI to augment human connection, not replace it.
This is a must-listen for product leaders, managers, and anyone keen to learn about the subtle shifts that differentiate a good company from a truly exceptional one.
In this episode, you’ll hear about:
- The definition of the "messy middle" (trust gaps, unspoken tension) and why it's the single biggest blocker to company success.
- Why real organisational change is slow, deliberate work—not just a slogan or a major re-org.
- How to balance the power of AI in performance tools (like 1:1s and goals) with the essential need for human connection
- Lessons in efficiency, process, and human-centred design learned from Dane’s time at Toyota and in the VFX/Gaming industry.
- The critical importance of the "oxygen mask analogy" for leaders to prevent burnout and ensure sustained high performance.
- How to build performance tools that are truly human-centred and actionable.
Key Links
Dane Maddams' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danemaddams/
Culture Amp: https://www.cultureamp.com/
About our guest
Dane Maddams is Director of Product at Culture Amp and one of Amplitude’s Product 50 leaders. He spends his time in the messy middle of product, culture, and psychology, building tools that power performance, 1-on-1s, goals, and development. Dane is passionate about making high performance more human, actionable, and scalable. Drawing on his background in structured environments like Toyota and fast-paced industries like Gaming/VFX, he is deeply curious about the intersection of empathy, AI, and sustainable high performance.
About our host
Our host, Chris Hudson, is an Intrapreneurship Coach, Teacher, Experience Designer and Founder of business transformation coaching and consultancy Company Road.
Company Road was founded by Chris Hudson, who saw over-niching and specialisation within corporates as a significant barrier to change.
Chris considers himself incredibly fortunate to have worked with some of the world’s most ambitious and successful companies, including Google, Mercedes-Benz, Accenture (Fjord) and Dulux, to name a small few. He continues to teach with University of Melbourne in Innovation, and Academy Xi in CX, Product Management, Design Thinking and Service Design and mentors many business leaders internationally.
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