What to Look for in a Candidate Transitioning into Customer Success?

According to the 2020 Emerging Jobs Report by LinkedIn, positions posted on LinkedIn for a Customer Success Manager grew by 34% in 2018. Customer Success is a new type of position and has greatly evolved over the last 10 years to one of the fastest growing careers in the country. The more jobs in Customer Success that are created, the more people will transition into Customer Success.

Customers are the bread and butter of businesses and Customer Success is a client facing function. Companies using SaaS or other newer technologies to run their business need help with implementing and adopting these platforms. Client Success Managers exist to help with adoption and drive success so that an ROI can be realized. This is critical to retain and ideally have the client renew the following year.

Therefore, looking for a few key skills is important when looking for Customer Success professionals. Not many people “grew up” in Customer Success, many have transitioned over the last five years and will continue to transition into this growing function. It is important to focus on the experience that candidates have and can learn as we continue to hire customer success professionals at the speed we need them.

Melo Associates has had great success in helping companies hire strong Customer Success professionals. In doing so, the hires we have found with the greatest success in their role possess the following attributes:

Being Coachable

It is critical to find candidates that are coachable. We are working in a time when the needs of a business change daily and new technology is born by the minute. Therefore, we need customer success professionals that can work internally and externally with their Customers in an agile environment. To do this, Client Success Managers need to actively listen, be creative, and provide results to their client. The more coachable a candidate is, the more they will be able to adjust to company and client changes.

Analytical

As business needs change, the one thing many of us rely on is data. Many of our Customers in the SaaS world have a data focused product or rely on providing important data to their Customers. Data helps us understand the current state and helps us make important decisions. It is important to find someone that has interest or experience in being analytical and understand the story the data is telling us. The reason I specify “interest or experience” goes along with the first attribute. Sometimes individuals do not have opportunity to gain these skills at work, but it does not mean they do not have the aptitude for it. Providing opportunities for individuals to hone their skill set, not only helps the company directly, but also reinforces the company is a place of continued growth and learning for the employee and increases employee retention.

Strong Communicators

Customer Success Managers are ambassadors to your business and often the primary voice your customer hears. Having strong communication skills is imperative. These individuals need to be able to actively listen, present in presentation or webinars, create relationships via phone and video calling, ask clarifying questions to ensure they completely understand a request or concern quickly, and relay that back internally. All of this combined creates strongly supported customers and requires strong communication skills.

Feel Connected to the Product

Customer Success Managers live in the product day in and day out. It is important that they can relate to the product on a personal level. I have seen that products that interest potential candidates for personal use, they have industry knowledge in, or if they are genuinely intrigued in the innovation make the best mutual fit amongst company and candidate. When the future Customer Success Manager is genuinely interested in the technology and how it can benefit companies or individuals, they are more inclined to want to learn the software and its intricacies, which helps them grow as a professional and add more value to their Customers.

Do you need help hiring strong Customer Success Professionals? You are in the right place! Reach out to us through our website at meloassociates.com or swati@meloassociates.com and we’ll reach out to set up a time to get to know each other.

Thank you!

Swati Garg
Managing Director, Melo Associates