Customer Success Manager

Job Overview

This is a people-management role for an experienced B2B SaaS Customer Success leader who can coach team members, manage commercial performance, and operate effectively without constant direction.

You will be accountable for the results produced by your team, including renewals, retention, growth, employee development, account escalations, and insights shared with senior leadership. The role requires someone who can set direction, address performance issues directly, and build practical solutions in an evolving environment.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead a pod of five to seven Customer Success Managers.
• Conduct structured one-to-one meetings, coaching sessions, performance reviews, and career development conversations.
• Set clear performance standards for CSMs at different experience levels.
• Own customer retention and growth results across the pod’s assigned book of business.
• Support escalations, at-risk renewals, and strategically important customer accounts when leadership involvement is needed.
• Convert department-level priorities into practical team goals, workloads, and operating expectations.
• Develop high-performing team members and address underperformance early and directly.
• Maintain appropriate documentation in accordance with People Team performance-management processes.
• Identify trends across customer accounts and present findings to senior leadership.
• Recommend solutions when surfacing risks, patterns, or operational challenges.
• Encourage and model practical AI adoption across Customer Success workflows.
• Identify ways AI can improve team efficiency, customer support, account planning, and internal processes.
• Help the team maintain performance and morale during organizational or commercial change.

Required Qualifications

• Between 24 and 36 months of people-management experience in a B2B SaaS Customer Success environment.
• Demonstrated experience developing Customer Success Managers rather than only assigning or monitoring their work.
• Previous commercial accountability involving gross revenue retention, net revenue retention, or closely related retention and growth targets.
• Ability to connect customer success activities with measurable renewal, retention, and expansion results.
• Experience leading teams through organizational changes, operating-model adjustments, or ambiguous business conditions.
• Ability to maintain team performance and morale during periods of change.
• High level of autonomy and the ability to operate without daily supervision.
• Ability to identify risks early and bring informed recommendations to leadership.
• Practical experience using artificial intelligence to improve Customer Success operations.
• Ability to explain specific ways AI has changed team workflows or performance.
• Comfort participating directly in customer escalations, renewal conversations, or high-value account discussions.
• Strong coaching, communication, and performance-management skills.

Leadership Approach

• Focus on outcomes rather than visible activity alone.
• Set the operating agenda for the assigned Customer Success pod.
• Hold team members accountable while providing clear, constructive coaching.
• Develop employees through call reviews, direct feedback, and structured growth conversations.
• Treat Customer Success as a retention and growth function.
• Remain effective when priorities shift or operating processes are still being developed.
• Model AI-supported working practices for the team.
• Approach leadership discussions with potential solutions, not only observations.

Core Focus Areas

• Customer Success team leadership.
• Customer retention.
• Account expansion.
• Gross revenue retention.
• Net revenue retention.
• Renewal management.
• Customer escalations.
• CSM coaching and development.
• Performance management.
• AI adoption in Customer Success.
• Commercial account strategy.
• Organizational change leadership.

Work Arrangement

• Remote position within the Americas.
• Leadership responsibility for an Americas Customer Success pod.
• Regular collaboration with senior Customer Success leadership and the People Team.
• Virtual interviews are conducted through Zoom using video.
• Final employment offers are provided in writing on official Customer.io letterhead.

Compensation and Benefits

The starting annual salary range for this role is $120,000 to $140,000 USD, or the equivalent amount in local currency. Final compensation depends on relevant experience and may be adjusted according to local market rates.

Eligible team members may receive benefits including:

• Full premium coverage for medical, dental, vision, mental health, and supplemental insurance for employees and their families.
• Sixteen weeks of paid parental leave.
• Unlimited paid time off.
• Remote-work stipend.
• Wellness stipend.
• Professional development budget.
• Additional benefits based on location and eligibility.

Hiring Process

• Recruiter Screen: 30 minutes.
• Hiring Manager Interview: 45 minutes.
• Leadership Case Presentation: 60 minutes.
• Final candidates must complete a background check and employment verification before hiring.

About Customer.io

Customer.io provides a messaging automation platform used by more than 9,000 companies. Its technology helps businesses send email, push notifications, in-app messages, and SMS using real-time customer behavior and data.

The platform is designed to help teams deliver more relevant automated communications across different customer channels.