Manager, Customer Success - Teamed Model and Escalations

About the RoleWe are seeking an experienced and proactive Manager to oversee our Teamed Model Customer Success Managers (CSMs). This leader will ensure smooth operations across both proactive and reactive engagements, manage customer escalations, and partner closely with internal teams to deliver exceptional customer outcomes. The role has a player-coach element — while the majority of time will be spent leading the team, this individual will also maintain reduced customer engagements to stay close to the customer experience and support high-priority engagements. This role is a critical enabler of the new pooled delivery model for SMB and Digital accounts within the Customer Success organization. The ideal candidate is skilled at balancing day-to-day management with strategic oversight, while fostering a culture of accountability, collaboration, and customer advocacy.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead and coach a team of CSMs in the Teamed Model, ensuring they deliver timely, high-quality engagements for all customers in their segment.
• Manage daily workloads, prioritization, and distribution of proactive and reactive Customer Success Platform CTAs.
• Partner closely with Customer Success leadership to align on strategic priorities, ensure KPI achievement, and support ongoing operational excellence.
• Drive successful attainment of Teamed CS KPIs, including Gross Revenue Retention (GRR), Net Revenue Retention (NRR), SLA adherence, CSAT, and CSQL goals.
• Provide regular feedback, career development support, and performance reviews.
• Serve as a player-coach, maintaining a limited number of direct customer engagements to remain hands-on and support key relationships.

Customer Escalation and Retention

• Serve as the primary escalation point for complex or high-priority customer issues.
• Partner with the Renewals team to develop and execute “save plays” that protect revenue at risk.
• Work directly with customers when needed to resolve challenges, reinforce value, and maintain relationships.

Operational Excellence

• Oversee triage processes to ensure all CTAs (Standard, Adoption & Intervention, and Case-driven) are acted on within SLAs.
• Identify and remove operational blockers to improve customer response times and satisfaction.

Maintain clear documentation of escalation procedures and playbooks for consistent execution.Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with Support, Sales, Product, and Professional Services to coordinate solutions for customer needs.
• Collaborate with Digital Customer Success to ensure coordinated, scalable engagement strategies across customer segments.
• Communicate recurring customer themes and feedback to Product for roadmap consideration.
• Collaborate with Sales to identify and support expansion opportunities uncovered by the Teamed Model CSMs.

Data and Reporting

• Track team performance against operational metrics such as time to resolution, CSAT, and retention.
• Provide leadership with regular reporting on customer health, trends, and risk areas.
• Use data to drive process improvements and resource allocation decisions.

What You Bring

• 5+ years in Customer Success, Sales, or a related customer-facing role, with at least 1 year of leadership or team management experience.
• Strong background in managing customer escalations and retention strategies.
• Proven ability to work effectively in a matrixed, cross-functional environment.
• Skilled in prioritization, delegation, and operational oversight for pooled teams.
• Experience using Customer Success Platforms (e.g., Gainsight, Planhat) and CRM tools (e.g., Salesforce).
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with an ability to present to customers and executives.
• Strong team player who thrives in a collaborative environment.
• Ability to support transformation initiatives and drive change management with empathy and clarity.

Success in This Role Looks Like

• Consistent execution of the Teamed Model with high adherence to SLAs
• Reduced escalation resolution times and improved customer satisfaction.
• Strong collaboration between CSMs, Digital CS, and cross-functional partners leading to better customer outcomes.
• Measurable retention improvements (GRR/NRR) within the segment.

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