Customer Success at a Tipping Point: 4 Practical Tips for Getting Started Now

Q&A with TSIA's Phil Nanus

Customer Success (CS) adoption is on the rise and has reached a tipping point: more than 52 percent of the companies surveyed by TSIA in a 2017 study have established CS practices within their organizations. No doubt, many more will follow in 2018 as the business case for CS is undeniable. Recently, I had the chance to catch up with Phil Nanus, TSIA's VP Research, Customer Success, to discuss the survey findings and get his advice for Cisco partners in the early stages of CS adoption.

Q: What are most businesses hoping to gain out of a Customer Success practice today?

Phil: CS teams are being born out of sales and support directives, but ultimately they rally around one of these three charters: Adoption, where teams focus on helping customers extract value from the technology already purchased; Renewal, where teams concentrate on retaining customers beyond the point of existing contracts; or Expansion, where the CS emphasis is to grow the existing relationship with customers to include new licenses or cross-selling a new piece of hardware/software related to the original solution. Adoption and Retention remain the primary charters for most CS organizations (at about 90 percent between the two), however many organizations use their CSMs for lead generation and other expansion activities.

Q: Where does Customer Success best fit in the organizational structure?

Phil: There is no steadfast rule. In our most recent Compensation Study, 34 percent of respondents said CS reports to the services organization, followed by a COO or a business unit leader 33 percent of the time. At TSIA, we believe that CS is a service capability with a sales result. Over time we expect it to evolve into a customer growth organization with C-level leadership, working in close collaboration with sales, education, and support. No matter where it resides, the companies that make a strong effort to evangelize CS internally are best able permeate it into their cultures.

Q: What should Cisco partners consider when mapping out the role of the Customer Success Manager (CSM)?

Phil: The land phase of the customer lifecycle will always fall within the domain of the sales organization, but we encourage businesses to move from defense to offense when exploring how to better support the customer beyond the initial point of sale. It is here that we see CSMs taking more ownership of customer adoption, renewal, and expansion. Today, CSMs work with other service groups, such as education and support teams, to facilitate user actions that encourage service adoption (for example, through onboarding and user analytics). But CSMs are also playing a larger role in retention and expansion, supporting lead generation of cross- and upsell opportunities. The convergence of CS, particularly in relation to sales and marketing, can represent more cost-effective sales motions for companies throughout the entire customer lifecycle.

Q: What are the must-have skills that partners should seek out when hiring a Customer Success Manager?

Phil: The CS skillset is really three-fold and starts with a ubiquitous customer service mindset, including strong people skills and the ability to directly interact with customers on a day-to-day basis. Secondly, he/she has to be a super user of your technology. They don't have to be able to implement technology at great technical depth, or troubleshoot break/fix type problems, but they do need an in-depth grasp of the ins and outs of your technology set. Finally, CMSs require a functional skillset. The more vertical/industry-specific your tech is, the greater the need to match that up to the CSM profile so individuals can help intersect the customer's business goals against the day-to-day usage of your technology.

On-Demand Webinar: Learn more about Customer Success compensation models

As you go about building a CS practice, compensation models will most certainly be top of mind. Watch the on-demand webinar, 'Trends in Customer Success Compensation ', to hear Phil cover the topic in detail in this first SuccessTalk webinar of the year.

Lastly, be sure to take advantage of the partner-focused programs, tools, insights, and methodologies on SuccessHub. Cisco has invested in these resources to help our partners fast-track their CS initiatives to gain a competitive edge, increase customer retention, and drive profit and revenue. The business case for Customer Success is clear, and we stand ready to help you get started.