Adam has been instrumental in helping us grow our Applied AI business in education… from strategic advice to nuanced guidance on applying AI.
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What leaders say about growth with enablinginsights
Adam has been an exceptional partner in helping Grammarly create a strategic AI vision… driving revenue, partnerships, and shaping our AI enterprise offering.
Adam is one of the most exceptional strategy consultants I have ever worked with… wide market insight, operational pragmatism, and relentless customer focus.
Adam played a pivotal role in our transformation to a leading technology provider… shaping our digital-first strategy and mentoring teams to deliver.
Adam’s deeply analytical mindset and decades of experience helped power Perlego’s rapid growth… from business models to product design and customer insight.
Adam is a rare edtech leader who blends innovation with go-to-market execution… spotting winners and scaling them through relentless customer focus.
Adam quickly sharpened our market analysis and go-to-market strategy… incisive, fast, and highly actionable. In just days, he delivered high-value recommendations.
Adam’s expertise transformed how we operate and where we invest… his relentless customer focus and data mindset made us laser-focused on what matters.
Adam brings market prescience and decades of edtech experience… [he is] unique in combining business expertise, innovation, and passion for learning.
Adam helped us build a superior schools product, faster and at lower cost… [his] strategy-to-UX reviews and data insights changed our approach forever.
Adam provides that rare blend of strategy and execution… ensuring any strategy drives customer value and competitive difference for our business.
Adam quickly understood our challenges and helped us sharpen our strategy… visionary, wide expertise, and operational know-how for getting things done.
Adam brought a gifted strategic mind and proven commercial success… instrumental in helping us become a customer-centric, data-driven edtech provider.
Adam’s incisive analysis and advice guided us through rapid growth… extraordinary breadth of edtech experience combined with practical, tailored solutions.
Adam traverses all facets of business strategy, market analysis, and edtech design… disciplined, inspiring, and focused on the few things that matter.
Adam quickly understood our business and helped define strategy around impact… turning high-level ideas into practical plans and fast progress.
Adam stood out as the only edtech leader with courage to realize a revolutionary vision… among the very best I’ve worked with—4 of whom have won Nobel Prizes.
Adam blends vision, market knowledge, and practical experience… helped us hone strategy, evidence customer success, and deploy an operational framework globally.
Adam is an edtech visionary and strategist… transforming businesses by crystalizing vision, articulating strategy, and enabling fast, practical progress.
Six ways we enable edtech growth
Proven strategies to scale smarter and faster
Why enablinginsights?
Insights that enable. Strategies that scale.
Because edtech growth requires more than great ideas—it requires insights you can act on.
I founded enablinginsights to give edtech and education companies the clarity and confidence to grow. With three decades of experience—driving product, strategy, and data at Pearson and Macmillan, and advising 160+ edtechs—I know how to spot opportunities, sharpen strategy, and scale what works.
I’ve advised AI leaders such as Faculty AI, Sana Labs, and Grammarly, philanthropic ventures like the Gates Foundation, and disruptive edtechs including Perlego. Clients value my blend of strategic depth, market foresight, commercial realism, and hands-on execution.
I’ve led the development of products used by 65 million learners and grown multi-hundred-million-dollar businesses. Today, I help edtechs apply AI, strategy, and evidence to differentiate, prove impact, and scale. A former astrophysicist, I bring analytical precision and a passion for education to every engagement.
News & insights
Clear perspectives on what’s next in edtech
Sana acquired by Workday for $1.1B: Congratulations to Joel and the team
Sana, enablinginsights’ first client, has been acquired by Workday for $1.1B. Founder Adam Black reflects on Sana’s bold vision, pioneering work in AI-learning, and their extraordinary talent.
How AI agents can transform the profitability of educational publishing
Leaders face pressure to increase profits today and invest in tomorrow. Discover how AI agents deliver step-change efficiencies and readiness.
Stop building AI features and start onboarding AI agents
Why edtechs should pivot to AI agents and how to deploy them successfully
Guides & frameworks
Practical tools to help you differentiate and grow
How to design edtech dashboards: part 2—design examples
Here's a short deck illustrating how to design more actionable edtech dashboards for educators applying the eleven principles I've previously published (combining practices from data visualization, education research, and cognitive science) to a fictional higher-education courseware product
How to design impactful edtech: evidence levels to guide why, when, and how to invest in efficacy research
Investing in efficacy research can sound like an indulgence for an edtech startup that’s moving quickly and staying lean. But from experience taking many major edtech products to market, I’ve found that smart investments in efficacy research will help you to design edtech that’s more impactful and more competitive—and faster. Here’s a short deck showing how to use levels of evidence to frame your competitive ambition, investment case, and roadmap.
Designing a compelling Impact Strategy: example—Grammarly’s 2024 Impact Report
In a market flooded with product options and inflated claims, edtech companies need to find ways to build trust with their target customers. My recommendation is this: if you want to grow to be an edtech market leader, measure and report your impact as a cornerstone of building your brand. It was hugely rewarding to be invited by Grammarly to help them define their Impact Strategy and to construct their first public Impact Report. Click on the link below to download the full report.
How to design a persuasive Impact Mission: example—Perlego’s 2022 Impact Report
An Impact Report helps build trust with customers by sharing your ambitions to do good. But too often the Impact Mission of an edtech business is independent from their Strategy. Annual Impact Reporting is then an exercise in whitewashing. By contrast, a learner-centered Impact Mission attracts great talent. And if your Impact Mission is your Business Strategy, it can propel teams to achieve outsized results. It’s a privilege to help Perlego design their Mission and Reporting.
How to design edtech dashboards: part 1—eleven principles
Edtech can deliver powerful insights to teachers and learners. But, as data gets richer, edtech designers have to work harder to make it understandable and actionable. Here's a short deck of design principles I've developed over two decades (combining practices from data visualization, education research, and cognitive science) and recommended reading.
Outcomes-driven design
Outcomes-driven design puts your customer first. It keeps you and your teams focused on what your customers are trying to achieve. It enables you to engineer edtech to deliver greater value. It’s a paradigm changer. Here’s a powerful visual ana…
Coverage & commentary
enablinginsights and conversations on edtech and AI
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One call. Clear insights. Sharp next steps.
Kick-off call
45 minsIntroduce your business, vision, and growth challenges. We’ll provide initial observations and market insights.
Discovery
1 hourDeep dive with your leadership team into priority areas. This will allow us to sharpen our understanding of your ambitions.
Enabling options
1 weekWe’ll prepare a phased proposal of proven tasks and options for how we can help—aligned to your scope, speed, and budget.