REWORK

By 37signalsBusiness Management

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Typical duration
24 min
per episode

Based on Podcast App listening data

REWORK episodes

January 29, 2025Building a Community
There is a way to bring your customers together in a meaningful way. In this episode of The REWORK Podcast, host Kimberly Rhodes welcomes 37signals' Support Team members Merissa Dawson and Ashley Bowe to discuss how the Basecamp Community came to life. They describe how they've connected with Basecamp customers and how they've connected customers with each other. They also offer a few tips for anyone looking to start their own community of customers and company enthusiasts.
Key Takeaways:
00:40 – Meet Merissa and Ashley from Basecamp Support
01:54 – The Basecamp Community origin story
05:03 – The Community as a place for sharing and collaboration
07:20 – The 37signals team role within the Community
09:08 – Starting a community without fear of failure
13:27 – Tips for starting your own community of users and fans
Links and Resources:
Join the Basecamp Community
"Launch: 37signals Answers" from Signal v. Noise
How Decent Espresso uses multiple tools in a single Basecamp project
Books by 37signals
30-day free trial of HEY
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
19 min
January 22, 2025Support is a Feature
Customer support is more than just a department — it’s a core feature of any great product. In this episode of The REWORK Podcast, Kimberly Rhodes chats with Chase Clemons, Head of Customer Support at 37signals, about the company's view of support as a product feature. They discuss 37signals' approach to helping customers, the value of ongoing training, and how AI can fit into support strategy without sacrificing the personal connection.
Key Takeaways:
00:37 – Chase Clemons, Head of Support at 37signals
02:12 – Customer Support is a feature, not a cost center.
04:09 – Support should focus on the customer experience
06:36 – Using case studies to train your support team
07:49 – Team members are trusted to use good judgment
09:58 – Maintaining a friendly, conversational tone with customers
11:27 – Measuring success in Customer Support
14:12 – AI vs. the human element in Support
17:25 – Encourage customers to reach out
Links and Resources:
Books by 37signals
30-day free trial of HEY
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
21 min
January 15, 2025Hire When It Hurts
Wondering when it’s the right time to grow your team? In this episode of The REWORK Podcast, 37signals' co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson chat about their “hire when it hurts” approach as described in their book REWORK. They cover why you shouldn’t rush into bringing someone on board, how to know when there's a critical business need, and how to seize the moment when the right people show up.
Key Takeaways:
00:38 – Try tackling projects with the team you already have before hiring
02:43 – Some roles don’t call for a full-time position
07:33 – Knowing the difference between an actual staffing shortage vs. just being busy
09:48 – A workload spike doesn’t always mean it’s time to expand
12:33 – Snagging available talent early if you’re already planning to hire soon
15:35 – One open position can become multiple hires when the talent pool is just right
Links and Resources:
Books by 37signals
30-day free trial of HEY
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
20 min
January 08, 2025Seven Shipping Principles
How does 37signals decide when software is ready to ship? In this episode of The REWORK Podcast, 37signals’ co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson discuss the company's Seven Shipping Principles. They dive into when a product update is good enough to ship and the importance of making updates to solve actual problems.
Key Takeaways:
00:11 – We only ship good work.
03:36 – The problem with MVPs
04:41 – We ship when we're confident.
10:08 – We own the issues after we ship.
13:41 – We don’t ship if it isn’t right.
17:11 – Making sure your solution tackles a real problem
20:00 – We ship to our appetite.
Links and Resources:
“Seven Shipping Principles” from the 37signals website
Books by 37signals
30-day free trial of HEY
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
23 min
December 24, 2024Building to Flip is Building to Flop (replay)
In this episode (originally aired February 1, 2022), 37signals’ co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson sit down with Shaun Hildner to discuss the consequences of building a business solely with the intention to sell. They share their perspective on building a business for the long haul versus for an exit.
Key Takeaways:
00:46 – Building a company to sell can encourage mediocre output
07:14 – Taking shortcuts is a reflection of one's character
09:41 – Why it's better to have a commitment strategy than an exit strategy
11:21 – Not all businesses should become unicorns
14:58 – What the founders would do if they had to begin again
Links and Resources:
Books by 37signals
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
20 min
December 18, 2024The Biggest Customer Conundrum
Bigger isn't always better. In this episode of The REWORK Podcast, 37signals’ co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson share the drawbacks of chasing high-profile, enterprise deals. The two founders explain why they prefer their business model that's built around serving smaller clients.
Key Takeaways:
00:35 – The biggest clients can quickly become the biggest burden and the biggest risk
07:10 – The hidden costs of “whale-sized” clients
12:35 – Things to consider when defining your ideal client
17:02 – Knowing what types of clients you'll enjoy working with
19:53 – How venture capital funding can make a difference when choosing your ideal clients
Links and Resources:
"Don't have a biggest customer" from Jason Fried's HEY World
"A Static Business is a Healthy Business" from Jason Fried's HEY World
Books by 37signals
30-day free trial of HEY
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
23 min
December 11, 2024The End of Year Junk Drawer
As the year winds down, 37signals’ co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson join host Kimberly Rhodes to talk about the company's end-of-year routine. They explain their process for the last few weeks of the year that aren't part of a formal six-week cycle, and they share what they gain from this transitional period of "wandering."
Key Takeaways:
00:43 – The informal end of year process
05:24 – Self-directed work, bug fixes, and tying up loose ends
08:22 – Using the downtime for forward thinking and planning
12:43 – Viewing the year end as a shift to the next chapter rather than a fresh start

Links and Resources:
30-day free trial of HEY
Books by 37signals
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
19 min
December 04, 2024A Product Pivot
Before introducing a new product feature, it’s essential to first understand the problem you're trying to fix. In this episode of The REWORK Podcast, 37signals’ co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson share a recent experience designing a new feature in HEY. During the process, the team pivoted and changed direction, resulting in a better design.
Key Takeaways:
00:44 – The original product design plan and what changed along the way
02:31 – The difference between specifying the outcome and diagnosing the actual problem
06:27 – The design meeting where the team got to the root of the problem
08:32 – Why executive involvement early in the process adds value
13:39 – Pivoting on an original idea while maintaining the original appetite
16:04 – Creativity often comes when you've hit a roadblock
20:07 – The power of Power Through New

Links and Resources:
30-day free trial of HEY
Books by 37signals
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
23 min
November 27, 2024Your Competition is Your Costs
Remaining profitable in business is a simple equation — sales revenue exceeding operating costs. In this episode of The REWORK Podcast, 37signals’ co-founders Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson explain why controlling costs should be a bigger focus than what your competition is doing. They share some simple strategies for analyzing costs and share why operating without a formal office space might be worth considering.
Key Takeaways:
00:37 – Why you should stop worrying about what everyone else is doing
02:26 – Focusing on the things within your control
06:58 – Analyzing your business' cash cows, dogs, and shooting stars
11:21 – Budgeting doesn’t always mean being frugal
12:24 – Weighing cost against value
16:16 – What the company gained by letting go of a physical office space
18:31 – Aesthetics of a well-run, profitable business
21:06 – The biggest expenses entrepreneurs often overlook
Links and Resources:
"You only compete with one thing" from Jason Fried's HEY World

"Our cloud-exit savings will now top ten million over five years" from David Heinemeier Hansson's HEY World
37signals' meet-up expenses
Books by 37signals
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
30 min
November 20, 2024AI, Employee Equity, and Other Listener Questions
Every week, we invite listeners to send in their questions for 37signals’ co-founders, Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. In this episode, they tackle a fresh set of asks, covering topics from managing multiple product lines, the company’s bonus structure, and their thoughts on incorporating AI into their tools.
Key Takeaways:
00:37 – How 37signals' looks at AI and using AI while exiting the cloud
03:47 – How to prioritize work when managing multiple product lines
11:33 – Deciding what problems to tackle first
18:49 – The company's take on equity and the structure of their profit-sharing plan
Links and Resources:
37signals' Employee Handbook
Basecamp classes with live Q&A
Books by 37signals
Sign up for a 30-day free trial at Basecamp.com
HEY World | HEY
The REWORK podcast
The Rework Podcast on YouTube
The 37signals Dev Blog
37signals on YouTube
@37signals on X
26 min

About REWORK

From the publisher's feed

A podcast by 37signals about the better way to work and run your business. The REWORK podcast features the co-founders of 37signals (the makers of Basecamp and HEY), Jason Fried and David…