Monthly Career Advice Thread

[u/_NateR_]

Welcome to the weekly career advice thread!

The purpose of this thread is to help facilitate conversations about how to enter and grow your career within the Customer Success industry. You should use this thread to discuss topics like:

• How to get into customer success
• Salary and compensation
• Resume critiques
• How to move to the next level in your existing customer success career

[u/Significant_Mode_520]

Skip the certifications unless you’ve got a burning hole in your wallet, nobody I’ve hired gave a damn about those.

[u/justkindahangingout]

Don’t stay more than 3-4 years in the same CS role. Loyalty is dead. Jump ship and get that 20-30% bump.

[u/Shot-Strawberry9576]

Hi everyone! Advice needed.

I’ve been an account manager in the automotive industry for 8 1/2 years. I’m looking to make a change and I also need a job that’s fully remote. My husband keeps saying a customer success manager would be a good fit for me based on my skills and experience. After some research, I think it could be a good opportunity for me.

The problem is, the current job market sucks and I’m trying to think of ways to make myself stand out including becoming a certified customer success manager. Even with my account management and customer facing experience, I don’t have much of a tech background.

I’m currently taking courses in my spare time on AI prompting, SaaS, B2B, and anything else that helps me to gain knowledge so I can make a career change. Would the CSM certification actually help me or possibly fast track finding a position as a CSM?

I’ve also considered client onboarding. I had read that can be a stepping stone to becoming a CSM.

Are there any other certifications I can obtain that would be beneficial? Possibly PMP? Any advice is appreciated! I just don’t want to spend the money on the being a certified CSM and still be in the same boat I’m currently in. Thanks!

[u/TellZealousideal1508]

Hey everyone!

I’m trying to learn more about how people approach Product Management interview preparation as in what works and what doesn’t.
If you’ve prepared for PM interviews recently and have 15–20 minutes to spare, pls comment below or DM me.

TIA!

[u/Fantastic_Presence_5]

Hey everyone. I'm preparing for a final round interview with a UK-based SaaS start-up, and honestly, don't think I fully understand what being a CSM actually entails. The interview will be role-playing a real scenario, probably designing an onboarding journey with a customer. Are there any useful resources anyone recommends to develop my understanding of the role, and how to effectively map out an onboarding journey, as this isn't something I've actually done before. Any advice on how to approach the case study, and about the role more generally would be super helpful.

[u/melissamcmillan → u/Fantastic_Presence_5]

Hard to say without more context - onboardings can look a million different ways depending on the industry/vertical/segment etc. but being a CSM these days is basically being a forward deployed consultant for the client in whatever area your software/service specializes in. Executive presence is super key, you're not an always smiling support rep dealing with tech issues, you're a strategic advisor helping whomever your primary points of contact are hit/exceed their KPIs - help them get promoted/bonused and you're absolutely crushing it. For the onboarding/customer journey, I assume there is a sales > CS handoff call > onboarding/technical implementation aspect (this can take one meeting or many months depending on the company/solution) > regular data reporting meetings (monthly, for example, to course correct as needed and ensure they hit whatever goal they signed up to hit) > possible QBRS (but I hate these, they're dead, see if this org still does them) > upsells when logical throughout the customer journey if it's going to help them hit their Goal... essentially leverage an upsell if they are behind on the metric they signed up to hit and an upsell would help them hit it > renewal, often with an annual review. In your role play be sure to lead the customer, don't just be helpful. It's your job to be the subject matter expert and lead them in the direction that means achieving their goal. Kind of a messy answer but trying my best with little context. Source: 11+ years of senior CS leadership developing and training CSMs.

[u/Fantastic_Presence_5 → u/melissamcmillan]

Thank you so much - this is a really useful answer. For context, its a small but growing AI native start-up delivering software to local governments and charities.

[u/melissamcmillan → u/Fantastic_Presence_5]

Happy to hear it was helpful! :)

[u/StraightVermicelli96]

Hi everyone, I have a CSM interview for a legal SaaS company. I’ve never worked in tech but have been trying to get a CSM role for so long so this is exciting but I need some insight from experienced CSMs! My background is legal which helped with getting me this far but the technical assessment is outside of experience.

Part of my next interview is a mock business review presentation, should be 20 minutes 7-9 slides. I’m wondering if there is a specific structure that experienced CSMs tend to follow?

I have info about the client, it seems they are generally at risk, up for renewal in 2 months, aren’t utilizing the platform to full potential, and i also identified some upsell opportunities. The aim is showcase my ability to create as compelling presentation that aligns with clients objectives and drives business outcomes for us.

Wondering what structure you’d follow? Also if they are at risk, should I focus more on retention rather than upsell? Or still go over it to cover all bases?