7 reasons to not take that Customer Success Manager job.

You have applied for a new Customer Success Manager or Customer Success Director role within a kick-ass start-up. You are feeling hopeful but also nervous, will I get the job!? Who is my competition? Do have the right profile and fit for the company?

Slow down there!

When you go for a new Customer Success job here are some questions that will help you decide if YOU want to work for the company. If the company answers NO to all of these questions then I would suggest you think log and hard about CS being a role that is values and appreciated in the company.

• Question 1: Do you have a chief customer officer?

• Question 2: Do you have hard metrics that define the success of the customer success organisation?

• Question 3: Are the CS metrics presented to the Senior VP of the territory?

• Question 4: What frequency does the VP of CS review accounts in the territory you will work in?

• Question 5: Are CS and presales hired at the same career level as the sales reps?

• Question 6: Has a CSM been promoted in the last 6 months to a more senior position such as a CSM moving into a CSD role?

• Question 7: Can you confirm that the CSM is not measured on sales revenue?

Question 1: Do you have a chief customer officer?

The Chief Customer Officer or CCO is a key member of the executive team. It demonstrates a companies commitment to the Customer, the success of the customer, and the functions that drive value for the customer i.e. customer success. If a company does not have this role then there is a risk that the CS function is essentially a “support” function, one that does not have strategic importance to the organisation’s growth.

Question 2: Do you have hard metrics that define the success of the customer success organisation?

At the beginning of CS, some considered it a philosophy versus a serious business function that delivers value to the organisation. If your prospective employer does not have clarity about the value of the role for the business then think again about joining them.

Question 3: Are the CS metrics presented to the Senior VP of the territory?

Even if the organisation has measurements about the success of the CS function. If these metrics are not rolled up to the weekly cadence to the managing executives it tells us that the function of CS is not valuable to the senior executives in the region where you will be working.

Question 4: What frequency does the VP of CS review accounts in the territory you will work in?

In order for you to be effective in your role and supported to improve you need to participate in regular reviews. Again, a lack of interest in your performance on a regular basis would be a cause for concern.

Question 5: Are CS and presales hired at the same career level as the sales reps?

When you consider working for a new company as a CSM you may work closely with the Sales rep and the Presales consultant. Each performs their role to a high degree of competency. An organisation that distributes titles and career banding to the sellers above all other functions highlights (to me) that the seller is seen as more important than the other roles. Note that it is perfectly acceptable for the Sales folks to be paid well based on their excellent performance but this doesn’t mean that they are professionally more competent than the rest of the team.

Question 6: Has a CSM been promoted in the last 6 months to a more senior position such as a CSM moving into a CSD role?

When you join a new organisation and you want to be sure that there is career progression. Validating that your colleagues are considered for more senior roles is a good indicator of a career path.

Question 7: Can you confirm that the CSM is not measured on sales revenue?

The question is worded to understand if the CSM holds a revenue quota similar to a Salesperson. If the CSM does hold a revenue target for new license revenue then the CSM is essentially a BDM (business development manager). One of the values of a CSM is to create client relationships that are not based on money. These relationships allow the CSM to be a trusted advisor to the client.

In summary

In summary, this list of questions provides you with some guidance about which companies would be good future employers. Please reach out to me if you would like to discuss these points or talk about the types of questions that CSMs get asked during interviews.