Being a Customer Success Pro is no easy job, but this podcast will help. Remember that Customer Success is not a destination, but a journey and I am here to help you on your journey.

Enter the Planhat Giveway to win an all expense trip to Planhat Open: www.planhat.com/giveaway

In this episode of the Customer Success Pro Podcast, host Anika Zubair speaks with Guy Rahamim, a Senior Manager of Customer Success at Linear B. They discuss Guy's unique journey from studying dentistry to thriving in customer success, the innovative strategies he employs to reduce churn, and the importance of data-driven decisions in customer success. Guy shares insights on the Ideal Customer Behavior (ICB) metric, which helps in understanding customer engagement and retention.

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction

02:49 Guy's Journey to Customer Success

06:08 Understanding Linear B and Its Operations

09:29 Career Aspirations and Goals in Customer Success

11:53 Winning the Creative Customer Success Leader Award

14:12 Challenges with Churn and Customer Health Scores

15:11 Introducing Ideal Customer Behavior (ICB)

20:00 Building Cross-Functional Teams for Success

23:48 The Importance of Collaboration in Customer Success

24:16 Proactive Risk Management in Customer Success

30:27 Leveraging Data for Customer Engagement

36:38 Renewal Strategies and Customer Value

41:47 QuickFire Questions Round

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Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Connect with Guy Rahamim: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guy-rahamim/

Guy Rahamim is a dynamic leader in customer success, passionate about helping R&D teams achieve transformative business outcomes. With over a decade of global experience spanning EMEA, APAC, and LATAM, Guy combines strategic planning, leadership, and technical expertise to drive positive net revenue retention and high customer satisfaction.

Currently, Guy is a Senior Manager of Customer Success at LinearB. He is also a founding lead at CS Insider and a member of CS Angel, a syndicate of customer success experts investing in innovative technologies.

Guy holds a B.Sc. in Biomedical Sciences and an MBA and is recognized as a 2022 & 2023 Top 100 Customer Success Strategist. He is certified at all four levels of the Certified Customer Success Management Professional program, highlighting his dedication to continuous learning and excellence.

Guy’s ICB Framework: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1BTQBIKeWqfI4LfX6MlkcFkIFBEqvUqkxayJtSrsHpuI/edit#slide=id.g2cf81ef3f44_0_66

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In this episode of the Customer Success Pro podcast, host Anika Zubair speaks with Ejieme Eromosele, an award-winning customer success leader, about her journey from customer success to general management. They discuss the importance of customer advocacy in driving new sales, strategies for upselling and expansion, and the evolving role of customer success in the go-to-market strategy. Ejieme shares her insights on using data to drive urgency, the significance of a discovery-focused mindset, and the need for value-based storytelling in customer success. The conversation highlights key learnings and the future of customer success as a driver of sustainable growth.

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Don't forget to signup for CSM RevUP to help unlock your revenue potential: https://thecustomersuccesspro.com/csm-revup-academy/

Chapters

00:00 Introduction
01:56 Meet Ejieme Eromosele
03:22 Transitioning to a General Manager Role 
08:08 The Importance of Customer Advocacy in Sales 
14:44 Shaping Post-Acquisition Strategies for New Sales 
22:53 Building a Customer Growth Function 
28:02 Strategies for Upselling and Expansion 
37:02 Key Learnings and Future of Customer Success

Connect with Anika:

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Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Connect with Ejieme:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ejieme/

Ejieme Eromosele is an award-winning Customer Experience and Success Executive with over 15 years of experience in building high-impact customer programs. As the General Manager for EMEA at Quiq, Ejieme leads the company’s expansion across Europe, overseeing all aspects of business growth - including marketing, customer success, new business sales and partnerships.

Ejieme’s expertise spans customer-led growth, with a focus on transforming customer success functions into powerful drivers of business value. She is also the founder of Success in Black, a pioneering platform that promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion in customer success.

Prior to Quiq, she was Managing Director of Customer Experience at The New York Times and led The Times’ efforts to drive retention, loyalty and brand advocacy of its growing subscriber base.

Ejieme spent a decade in management consulting at PwC and Accenture. In these roles, she led CX programs across sectors.

Beyond her corporate work, Ejieme is a respected advisor, speaker, board member, and angel investor, known for her insights on customer experience strategy and customer success. She serves on the board of the Conversational Design Institute Foundation and the AI Council of Firstboard.io, where she contributes her expertise to discussions on responsible and ethical AI and the future of customer engagement.

Ejieme has a BA in Economics from NYU’s College of Arts & Science and an MBA in Strategy and Global Business from NYU’s Stern School of Business.

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YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/ @TheCustomerSuccessPro

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-customer-success-pro-podcast/id1733

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In this episode of the Customer Success Pro podcast, host Anika Zubair speaks with Stino, the head of customer success at whale.io. They discuss the evolving role of customer success in the SaaS industry, emphasizing the importance of a revenue-focused mindset. Stino shares his journey from being a tax attorney to a customer success leader, the challenges he faced in his first leadership role, and the strategies he implemented to drive revenue through customer success. The conversation highlights the significance of authenticity, team dynamics, and practical approaches to achieving customer outcomes and business growth. In this conversation, Anika Zubair discusses the importance of understanding customer personalities and building trust through personal connections in customer success. She emphasizes the need for a revenue mindset while maintaining authentic relationships with clients. Anika also addresses the challenges posed by budget cycles and economic constraints, highlighting the evolving role of customer success managers as strategic advisors. She shares valuable lessons learned in leadership and the significance of finding a supportive community in the profession of customer success.

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Don't forget to signup for CSM RevUP to help unlock your revenue potential: https://thecustomersuccesspro.com/csm-revup-academy/

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction 
01:56 Meet Stino: A Journey from Law to Customer Success
07:15 Understanding Whale.io and Its Revenue Focus
10:12 The Shift to Revenue-Focused Customer Success Leadership
19:48 Key Strategies for Transitioning to Revenue Leadership
25:57 Understanding Customer Personalities
32:04 Building Trust Through Personal Connections
36:46 Navigating Budget Cycles and Economic Constraints
40:39 The Evolving Role of Customer Success
43:34 Lessons Learned in Customer Success Leadership

Connect with Anika:

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YouTube

TikTok

Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Follow the Podcast YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCustomerSuccessPro Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IVZCeBTFUFl2iysDe9uJu Apple Podcasts:⁠⁠⁠ https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-customer-success-pro-podcast/id1733540749

Connect with Stino:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/stijn-smet-🐳-330435a9/

We F**ked Up So You Don’t Have To: https://open.spotify.com/show/2rMe4oQu8wgb3SHCRjEfoQ

Customer Success Hotline: https://open.spotify.com/show/3QL0NtH4s2Nakqgad4LsxF

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In this podcast episode, Anika Zubair interviews Jay Nathan, COO of Churnkey, about his extensive experience in the SaaS industry and the evolving role of customer success. They discuss the key metrics that drive growth in SaaS, such as retention, customer lifetime value, and profitability, emphasizing the need for agility in tracking and adjusting these metrics. Jay shares insights into his role as COO, the strategic importance of aligning CS with business goals, and the dual focus on customer and company needs. They also explore how customer success is shifting to a more strategic, revenue-driving function within SaaS companies. The episode provides practical advice for CS leaders who want to make a significant impact on their organization.

Want to win a free pair of airpod pros, sign up for a demo with Vitally: vitally.io/cspro

Timestamps: 
00:00 - Introduction to Jay Nathan & His Journey
04:16 - The Role of a COO in a Startup
08:17 - Key Metrics for SaaS Companies
13:35 - Understanding Gross Retention vs. Net Retention
18:28 - Customer Lifetime Value & Strategic Decision-Making
24:03 - Metrics to Track in Day-to-Day CS Operations
32:30 - Adapting Metrics as Your SaaS Business Grows
43:30 - Quickfire Round

Connect with Anika:

LinkedIn

YouTube

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Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Follow the Podcast YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCustomerSuccessPro
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IVZCeBTFUFl2iysDe9uJu
Apple Podcasts:⁠⁠⁠ https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-customer-success-pro-podcast/id1733540749

Connect with Jay Nathan:

Linkedin

Check out his newsletter, GrowthCurve

Jay Nathan has over 20 years of experience in the software industry, having held leadership roles at prominent technology companies such as Blackbaud, Higher Logic, PeopleMatter, and now Churnkey. He has hands-on experience in bootstrapped, VC-backed, private equity-owned, and publicly traded software companies. In 2017 he launched a management consulting firm focused on SaaS companies and in 2018 launched the popular Gain Grow Retain customer success community, growing it to over 15,000 members worldwide. Jay has spoken and written extensively on leadership, sales, marketing, product, and customer success in the software industry. While his ultimate goal is to launch a Jimmy Buffett cover band, for now, he is focused on helping B2B SaaS companies grow and thrive.

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Being a Customer Success Pro is no easy job, but this podcast will help. Remember that Customer Success is not a destination, but a journey and I am here to help you on your journey.

In this episode of the Customer Success Pro podcast, host Anika Zubair discusses with Carly Agar, founder and CEO of Carly Agar Training, about effective strategies for landing promotions in customer success. The conversation covers the importance of aligning customer success strategies with business objectives, identifying upsell opportunities, and the nuances between a standard CSM role and an enterprise CSM role. Carly shares her insights on strategic account planning, self-advocacy, and building professional development skills. This detailed dialogue aims to provide CSMs with actionable steps to elevate their careers and excel in enterprise roles.

00:00 Introduction
02:04 Guest Introduction: Carly Agar
03:16 Carly's Career Journey
07:44 Services Offered by Carly Agar Training
10:29 Advocating for Yourself in Your Career
14:12 Differences Between CSM and Enterprise CSM Roles
18:25 Skills Needed for Enterprise CSMs
20:37 Steps to Transition to an Enterprise CSM Role
24:37 Advocating for Promotion: Key Strategies
25:07 Planting the Seed for Promotion
26:59 Self-Advocacy Tips for Different Personalities
29:34 Showcasing Your Value Across the Business
35:45 Proving Your Readiness for Enterprise Accounts
41:38 Quick Fire Questions with Carly

Connect with Anika:

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TikTok: tiktok.com/@thecustomersuccesspro

Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Connect with Carly Agar:
Linkedin
Website

As Founder/CEO of Carly Agar Training, Carly runs two coaching programs for customer success job seekers (one for experienced CS pros and another for career transitioners), and hosts the Customer Success Career Coach podcast. Before this, she spent 10 years growing her own career in customer success, primarily in hyper growth SaaS companies, where she did a LOT of hiring of CSMs over the years. She also served as a Customer Success Enablement Manager, designing interview processes and career paths for CSMs. Carly has always been passionate about taking ownership of your career, being intentional about career choices you make, and maximizing what you get from your career - whether that be work/life balance, financial freedom, or contributing to an important mission. 

Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net/

Being a Customer Success Pro is no easy job, but this podcast will help. Remember that Customer Success is not a destination, but a journey and I am here to help you on your journey.

The podcast episode features Alex Turkovic discussing the integration of AI in customer success routines. Key topics include practical applications of AI, tools for customer success professionals, and tips for using AI effectively. The episode aims to provide insights on how AI can save time and enhance customer value, with a focus on real-world examples and best practices.

00:00 - Introduction to the Podcast
04:43 - Alex's Early Stages of Customer Success
09:22 - AI Tools and Techniques
14:03 - Daily Uses of AI in Customer Success Tools
18:45 - Comparisons and Evaluations of AI Tools
23:26 - Deep Dive into Useful AI Tools
32:47 - Strategic Implementations of AI
42:29 - Quickfire Questions

Connect with Anika:

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Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Connect with Alex:

Alex’s podcast episode about AI

Linkedin

Podcast

With over 15 years of experience in customer success leadership, professional services, and customer education, Alex is passionate about creating and delivering impactful and engaging customer experiences for products and services. As the Global Director of Digital Customer Success at Flexera, he combines digital and scaled customer success strategies with customer education programs to ensure optimal customer lifecycle engagement and outcomes. Alex is the host of 'The CX Podcast', where he explores different aspects of building and maintaining world-class digital customer success experiences, with guests who are in-field and executing.

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Learn more about our show sponsor CSM RevUP Academy: https://thecustomersuccesspro.com/csm-revup-academy/

Being a Customer Success Pro is no easy job, but this podcast will help. Remember that Customer Success is not a destination, but a journey and I am here to help you on your journey.

In this episode of the Customer Success Pro Podcast, host Anika Zubair speaks with Madelyn DePrey, VP of Customer Success at Aircall. Together, they dive into how leading with value can contribute to customer and revenue growth, the integration of sales strategies in customer success, and the importance of continuous learning. Madelyn also shares her journey from hospitality to customer success and how she navigates her role as VP of Customer Success at Aircall.

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction 
01:11 Welcome Madelyn 
03:21 Madelyn's Journey to Customer Success 
06:32 Aircall's Customer Success Strategy 
09:12 Leading with Value in Customer Success 
12:56 CSMs and Revenue Responsibilities 
20:09 Training and Sales Tactics for CSMs 
23:07 Top of the Funnel in Customer Success 
28:31 Advice for CSMs Embracing Revenue Targets 
31:08 Quick Fire Questions

Connect with Anika:

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Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Follow the Podcast:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCustomerSuccessPro Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IVZCeBTFUFl2iysDe9uJu Apple Podcasts:⁠⁠⁠ https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-customer-success-pro-podcast/id1733540749

Connect with Madelyn DePrey:

LinkedIn

As Global VP of Customer Success for Aircall, Madelyn manages a sizable revenue-generating team with a focus on driving adoption, advocacy and growth across a largely SMB customer base. Throughout her tenure at Aircall, Madelyn has been instrumental in developing a segmented end to end customer journey, leveraging a combination of product-led engagement, automation and human touch. Prior to her time in tech, most of her career has been spent in hospitality, from her first job playing Spongebob at a Nickelodeon theme park, to hotel management, to building customer success from scratch at a B2B hotel tech company, Madelyn is passionate about all things customer relations!

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Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net/

Being a Customer Success Pro is no easy job, but this podcast will help. Remember that Customer Success is not a destination, but a journey and I am here to help you on your journey.

In this episode, Anika Zubair talks with Daphne Costa Lopez, Director of Customer Success at HubSpot, about strategies for driving and growing customer retention at scale. They explore a range of models from renewals to segmentation, customer success qualified leads (CSQLs), and automating success plans and QBRs.

00:00 Introduction and Welcome 
01:03 Introductions of Daphne Costa Lopez 
02:12 Daphne's Background and Career Journey 
03:59 Building and Scaling Customer Success at HubSpot 
28:08 CSQLs and Automation in Customer Success 
38:55 Dynamic Segmentation Strategy 
46:51 Quickfire Question Round

Connect with Anika:

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Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Follow the Podcast:

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheCustomerSuccessPro
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IVZCeBTFUFl2iysDe9uJu
Apple Podcasts:⁠⁠⁠ https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-customer-success-pro-podcast/id1733540749

Daphne Costa Lopes

Linkedin

Over the last decade, Daphne has helped Start-ups, Scale-Ups and Fortune 500 businesses build and scale global Customer Success teams to service 200K+ customers and $2B+ ARR.

Her journey in Customer Success started with a eureka moment she had in 2011: “When we deliver value to our customers, we won’t just retain their business... We will capture more of their demand.”

Backed by this belief, she spent the following 4 years helping build a 'CS-as-a-Service' business. We generated thousands of SuccessQLs for our customers and proved early on that Customer Success could be a revenue driver.

By focusing on Customer-Led-Growth, She has helped the businesses she worked with achieve 130%+ NRR. Today, She head up Customer Success at HubSpot where her teams serve thousands of customers worldwide.

Since that light-bulb moment, she has invested my energy into building and scaling Customer Success teams to be the second engine of growth for tech businesses and helping others do it too.

Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net/

Being a Customer Success Pro is no easy job, but this podcast will help. Remember that Customer Success is not a destination, but a journey and I am here to help you on your journey.

In this episode of the Customer Success Pro podcast, hosted by Anika Zubair, guest Jared Orr, a Senior Customer Success Manager and copywriter, shares his journey overcoming job loss and finding success in a challenging job market. Jared discusses his experiences with layoffs, the importance of networking, and strategies for preparing for interviews and handling homework assignments. He also emphasizes the critical nature of investing in coaching and adapting to market changes. This episode offers practical advice for CS professionals navigating their career paths and how to find and land their next job in Customer Success.

Timestamps:

00:00 Introduction to the Customer Success Pro Podcast 
01:03 Meet Jared Orr: A Journey Through Startups and Layoffs 
03:05 Jared's New Role 
07:59 Navigating Job Loss and the Tough Job Market 
13:39 Starting a Copywriting Business 
20:43 Job Hunting Tips and Horror Stories 
23:29 Sharing a Personal Interview Experience 
24:34 Advice for Hiring Managers 
26:49 Preparing for an Interview 
30:05 Handling Homework Assignments 
34:11 Networking and Landing a Job 
39:28 Reflecting on Job Hunting Strategies 
41:29 Quickfire Questions

Connect with Anika:

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Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Connect with Jared:

LinkedIn

YouTube

Website

Article: https://www.csinsider.co/email/how-to-ace-your-mock-qbr-interview

Jared has been a CSM since 2018. He's been heavily involved in startups throughout most of his career. Currently, he works as a Senior CSM at vCom Solutions and lives in Queen Creek, Arizona with his wife and daughter.

Music by AudioCoffee: https://www.audiocoffee.net/

Being a Customer Success Pro is no easy job, but this podcast will help. Remember that Customer Success is not a destination, but a journey and I am here to help you on your journey.

In this episode of the Customer Success Pro podcast, host Anika Zubair interviews Erica Villareal, a strategic customer success manager at Eptura and a top 25 CS influencer of 2023. Erica shares her journey from Mexico, to becoming a strategic CSM in Dallas, highlighting her use of personal branding on LinkedIn to advance her career. She discusses the importance of translating customer data into actionable insights, the role of strategic customer success managers, and how they differ from other CSM roles in terms of customer engagement and responsibilities. Erica shares her secret sauce for organization and proactivity, emphasizing success plans and business reviews as essential tools for demonstrating value and securing customer success. The conversation also explores Erica's career ambitions, the skills essential for a strategic CSM, and tips for managing workload and showcasing value to achieve promotions. Additionally, Erica's eBook, 'Raising the Bar: How to Excel in Your Enterprise CSM Role,' is discussed, offering insights into further advancing in the customer success field.

Connect with Anika:

LinkedIn

YouTube

TikTok

Website: thecustomersuccesspro.com

Coaching with Anika: CSM RevUP Academy

Connect with Erika:

Linkedin

Erika Villarreal is a Customer Success enthusiast, a thought leader, and an influencer in the CS space.  She is an engineer at the core, curious by nature, and a process addict. Currently, she is the Strategic Customer Success Manager at Eptura, a leading workspace management solution where she helps her customers drive adoption and achieve their own definition of success. Erika is also very involved with the Customer Success community, where she shares content that helps other CS professionals succeed in their roles, she has her own newsletter and contributes to multiple CS blogs.

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