AMA: Gainsight Senior Director - Client Outcomes, Kiran Panigrahi on Establishing the Customer Success Function

The future of Customer Success is evolving beyond traditional retention-focused roles into a strategic, revenue-driving function with deep technical expertise. Based on my experience leading CS teams and scaling operations, I see the future heading in these key directions: 1. CSMs as Technical & Strategic Advisors CSMs will bridge the gap between product and business, offering technical consultations, best practices, and optimisation strategies. Their expertise won’t just drive adoption but will also contribute directly to customer efficiency and profitability, impacting net margin, not just ARR. 2. Revenue Ownership & Expansion Focus Customer Success will increasingly take on measurable revenue responsibilities, not just renewals but expansion, cross-sell, and monetisation of value-added services. CSMs will play a key role in identifying consumption-based opportunities, AI-driven efficiencies, and premium consulting engagements. 3. Integrated Customer Lifecycle Management Customer Success will no longer operate in a silo, it will be deeply embedded with Sales, Product, and Finance to drive long-term customer growth. CS-led revenue forecasting, pricing model optimisations, and margin-conscious technical consultations will become a standard practice. My Thoughts..! As the industry shifts, CS leaders must redefine customer value beyond retention, leveraging technical expertise, revenue accountability, and AI-driven insights to drive not just customer success but business success as a whole.

Retaining good Customer Success talent requires a mix of growth opportunities, strong culture, and meaningful work. Here’s how to keep your best people engaged and motivated: 1. Clear Career Pathways – Provide structured growth opportunities, whether into leadership, account expansion roles, strategic CS functions, ops and scale. Know more and align to the career trajectory per your company 2. Ongoing Learning & Development – Invest in training, mentorship, and exposure to cross-functional projects. Create initiatives, SME culture and push to learn more and share it with peers. 3. Empowerment & Autonomy – Give CSMs ownership over their accounts and the freedom to drive customer outcomes. However, review when needed to ensure one is on the right path or track. 4. Recognition & Rewards – Acknowledge wins, both big and small, through incentives, appreciation, and leadership visibility. Even a small appreciation note will bring in great motivation! 5. Balanced Workload & Tools – Equip teams with the right technology and processes to avoid burnout and drive efficiency. 6. Strong Team Culture – Foster collaboration, open communication, and a sense of purpose in driving customer success.

My focus is on learning, optimising, and driving impact. Here’s my structured 30-60-90 day approach: 30 Days – Learn & Align Deep dive into company goals, customers, and key metrics (ARR, GRR, NRR). Meet stakeholders (CS, Sales, Product, Support) & assess CS playbooks. Know your team - Listen & Learn Identify quick wins—engage with top accounts & address renewal risks. 60 Days – Optimise & Engage Strengthen customer health monitoring & playbooks for onboarding, adoption, outcomes and renewals. Build alignment with Sales & Product for expansion and feedback loops. Empower the CS team with training & automation to improve efficiency. Carve out initiatives and boost morale in the team. 90 Days – Execute & Scale Implement data-driven engagement strategies to boost retention & expansion. Establish a Customer Advisory Board (CAB) & enhance VoC programs - leverage Community Present a long-term CS roadmap with measurable business impact. Evaluate and Recognise. Success in CS isn’t a one-time plan/change...it’s an ongoing cycle of learning, improving, and evolving with customers!

CS is always the growth driver for the company! When I was the first Customer Success Manager back in those days, establishing the function, prioritisation is key to creating impact quickly. Here’s a simple framework to focus on what matters most: 1. Understand the Business and Customers * Align with leadership on company goals (retention, expansion, advocacy). * Identify key customer segments and map their journey. * Conduct customer conversations to uncover pain points and success drivers. 2. Build the Foundation * Define CS goals, roles, and responsibilities. * Establish a basic health tracking system using available tools (CRM, spreadsheets). * Create an initial onboarding and engagement framework. 3. Drive Early Wins * Focus on high-risk and high-value customers to prevent churn and drive expansion. * Improve handoffs from Sales to CS for a seamless experience. * Document repeatable processes to scale effectively. 4. Measure and Iterate * Track early impact using key metrics like retention and engagement. * Gather internal and customer feedback to refine processes. * Lay the groundwork for future automation and hiring. This approach led me to develop comprehensive playbooks, a knowledge repository, and community engagement strategies, all with a strong focus on scaling efficiently. Through this journey, I cultivated a growth mindset, continuously learning and evolving, which in turn helped shape my career progression. Create-A-Need, Take Ownership, and Achieve Your Goals! Serve Better.

When setting up Customer Success from scratch or the base, the focus is on foundations, processes, team culture, and hiring the right people, all while staying agile and adapt to change. 30 Days – Establish the Foundation * Understand business goals and customers. Define what Customer Success means for the company, whether it is retention, expansion, or advocacy. * Map the customer journey to identify gaps in onboarding, engagement, and renewals. * Set expectations, define Customer Success roles, and establish a culture of customer obsession and collaboration. * Begin hiring the right talent to build a strong foundation for the team. 60 Days – Build and Optimise * Design playbooks and implement structured processes for onboarding, adoption, and risk management. * Set up metrics and reporting, defining key performance indicators such as gross retention rate, net revenue retention, and customer satisfaction scores. Establish a data-driven customer health score. * Train new hires on customer engagement best practices, proactive communication, and cross-functional collaboration. * Establish clear team goals and ensure each teammate is set up for success. 90 Days – Execute and Scale * Launch scalable Customer Success initiatives such as quarterly business reviews, voice-of-customer programs, and advocacy strategies. * Drive measurable impact by piloting expansion playbooks and optimising renewals. * Reinforce a Customer Success-first mindset where the team continuously learns, adapts, and improves. * Be accountable for the success of the team by providing continuous coaching, feedback, and career development opportunities. Setting up Customer Success is not just about processes and metrics. It is about hiring, training, and enabling a team to deliver exceptional value to customers while growing with the business.

A Customer Success team org structure depends on the company's size, business model, and customer segmentation. In my experience managing large CS teams, a structure that scales efficiently while ensuring high retention, expansion, and generating quick quantitative outcomes is ideal. Here’s a strategic org structure based on best practices: 1. Leadership & Strategy * VP/Director/Head of Customer Success (Oversees vision, strategy, and key business outcomes) * Extended Leadership - Sr.Manager/Manager/Team Lead of Customer Success (Manages execution, team growth, and alignment with Sales & Product) 2. Customer Segmentation-Based Teams Enterprise & Strategic Accounts: * Enterprise Customer Success Managers (CSMs) (High-touch, proactive engagement, QBRs, executive relationships) * CS Solutions Consultants (Handles complex implementations and technical enablement, guiding through best practises) Mid-Market & SMB Accounts: * Mid-Market CSMs (Hybrid model with tech-enabled touchpoints) * Scaled/Tech-Touch CSMs (Automated engagement for SMBs via playbooks, webinars, Touchpoints, In-app Engagements, Digital-EBR) * CS Solutions Consultants - On standby for any Risk Mitigation 3. Customer Experience & Operations & Scale * CS Operations Manager (Manages data analytics, customer health scores, automation, and reporting) * Onboarding & Implementation Specialists (Ensure smooth adoption and time-to-value) * Renewals & Expansion Managers (Dedicated focus on upsell, cross-sell, and reducing churn) * Community & Advocacy Manager (Drives customer advocacy, references, and engagement programs) 4. Cross-Functional Collaboration * Customer Support Team (Handles break-fix issues) * Product Liaison/CS Product Manager (Ensures customer feedback loops into roadmap) The key is to balance high-touch engagement for strategic accounts with scalable, tech-driven approaches for mid-market and SMBs, all while ensuring seamless collaboration across Sales, Product, and Support. Carve out a blend of Technical expertise in the CSM to add value and significant impact to our clients and business goals. Ultimately, a strong CS team is the backbone of retention, expansion, and customer advocacy, making it a critical driver of business success.

Transitioning from a company where Customer Success is well-established to one where you have to build it from scratch comes with a mix of challenges and unexpected realizations. Here are some of the biggest surprises: 1. No Clear Definition of Customer Success At an established company, CS is a known function with clear goals, metrics, and processes. In a new setup, you often have to define what Customer Success means for the business, align stakeholders, and educate teams on why it matters. 2. Lack of Existing Data & Processes In mature CS organizations, you inherit customer health scores, playbooks, and renewal frameworks. When building from scratch, you might find: * No structured customer journey * Limited or missing customer data * Inconsistent account ownership between Sales, Support, and Product You have to build everything from the ground up, often without historical benchmarks. 3. Hiring, Training, and Defining Team Culture is Critical In an established setup, the team understands their role and has structured KPIs. In a new CS function, you must hire the right talent, set expectations, and create a customer-first culture. Team etiquette, internal collaboration, and proactive engagement need to be ingrained from day one. 4. Resistance to Change from Other Teams Other departments..especially Sales, Product, and Support may not be used to working with CS. Common surprises include: * Sales fearing CS will own renewals and impact commissions - Who Owns What? * Product seeing CS as just another feedback loop - a lot on the table? * Support assuming CS will handle all customer issues - Expectation setting? Educating stakeholders and establishing clear roles and collaboration models is crucial. 5. Proving Value Without Immediate Results At a mature CS org, success is measured by retention and expansion. In a new CS setup, leadership might expect quick wins, even though CS is a long-term play. Aligning short-term impact (customer engagement, risk mitigation) with long-term value (GRR, NRR growth) is key. Final Thought Success comes from defining clear goals, getting buy-in, hiring the right people, and continuously iterating based on customer needs and business objectives. Moto needs to be - i'm all in...let's do it!

My focus is on learning, optimising, and driving impact. Here’s my structured 30-60-90 day approach: 30 Days – Learn & Align Deep dive into company goals, customers, and key metrics (ARR, GRR, NRR). Meet stakeholders (CS, Sales, Product, Support) & assess CS playbooks. Know your team - Listen & Learn Identify quick wins—engage with top accounts & address renewal risks. 60 Days – Optimise & Engage Strengthen customer health monitoring & playbooks for onboarding, adoption, outcomes and renewals. Build alignment with Sales & Product for expansion and feedback loops. Empower the CS team with training & automation to improve efficiency. Carve out initiatives and boost morale in the team. 90 Days – Execute & Scale Implement data-driven engagement strategies to boost retention & expansion. Establish a Customer Advisory Board (CAB) & enhance VoC programs - leverage Community Present a long-term CS roadmap with measurable business impact. Evaluate and Recognise. Success in CS isn’t a one-time plan/change...it’s an ongoing cycle of learning, improving, and evolving with customers!

While the mission of CS in any org, irrespective of small and large company, needs to be "Client Needs = CS = Business Outcomes" In a small or early startup culture, Customer Success will be hands-on and reactive, with CS teammates wearing multiple hats across onboarding, support, and renewals. The focus will be on building relationships and proving value quickly. Get them cross the line! In a large or matured org, CS is well-structured and data-driven, with specialized roles, automated processes, and segmentation-based engagement. The focus shifts to scalability, expansion, and proactive risk management across a broader customer base.

As per me, a startup should hire its first Customer Success Manager when it secures recurring revenue and has at least a few paying or subscribed customers. This is typically around Series A or earlier if customer retention and onboarding are key to growth. The goal is to drive adoption, reduce churn, and turn early customers into advocates. And also to promote as much as possible of their product in the external market. I'd also have a flavor of having playbooks in place to ease up the war coming ahead.

Sure thing! Start by deeply understanding the customer journey... Identify: identify gaps in onboarding, adoption, and renewals. Define: List out clear processes and playbooks to ensure consistency while staying flexible as the company scales. Leverage: Make use of technology automation and data early to track customer health and engagement. Align: Collaborate closely with Sales, Product, and Support to create a seamless customer experience. The base for the above is to construct a customer centric culture within the team to drive long term success.

Customer Success and Sales should align on shared metrics like customer retention, growth, and satisfaction. To be able to come up with common KPIs such as renewal rates, expansion revenue, and customer health metrics. Define a clear transition process to ensure smooth transitions from sales to post-sale engagement. Regular communication, shared data, and collaborative planning help drive alignment and accountability across both teams. One Team...One Goal!

Before implementing a Customer Success platform, renewals, expansion, and customer health can be tracked manually using spreadsheets, CRM reports, and regular check-ins. A structured renewal tracker with key details like contract dates, expansion opportunities, and risk indicators helps maintain visibility. Manual reporting works well for up to 50–100 accounts, though in my experience, my team has handled more, depending on complexity. However, as the business scales, manual tracking becomes a challenge, leading to data inconsistencies and missed opportunities. When tracking shifts from proactive to reactive or when automation can significantly improve insights and efficiency, it’s time to invest in a dedicated Customer Success platform. Building these processes manually also creates opportunities for team growth and career progression, allowing team members to develop problem-solving skills and operational expertise. Ultimately, empowering front-line teams with better tools and streamlined workflows drives greater efficiency and helps achieve business goals more effectively.