Customer Success Field Guide

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Underrated CS Skills Part II: Project Management

Brian LaFaille

There are certain undeniable traits that make an excellent CSM. Coupled with two well developed skills, Customer Success Professionals can become one of the top performers in their org.

This is the second of a two-part series exploring underrated skills in the CS profession: Data Analysis (which we talked about in Part I) and Project Management (which we’ll talk about in here).

The day to day balancing act for CSMs is no easy task. Every day they have to come into work and manage reactive and proactive motions, internal initiatives, external customer meetings and more.

It’s a multifaceted, dynamic, and unique role. That’s why many CSMs love it. No two days are the same. But with that level of context switching, balancing of priorities, timelines, stakeholder alignment and more… when you think about it, this reality of the role requires good project management skills.

My argument is not that CSMs are Project Managers.

But, the best CSMs can be excellent Project Managers.

These individuals may not be Six Sigma or Scrum certified, but every great CSM has the ability to manage a set of deliverables against a timeline while continuously rebalancing priorities…. Every customer onboarding is a small project. Managing an excellent QBR or EBR is a project. Driving expansion of a new use-case is a project. Managing the promotion and adoption of a new solution and business outcome is a project. And, overlaying each of these mini projects, the CSM must master his or her time. Which is the ultimate project.

We ask CSMs to do a lot, and in the future I believe it will be more important to train them on how to effectively manage projects. I anticipate project management becoming a core skill set for successful Customer Success Managers in the future. Fortunately, like Data Analysis, there’s a number of free online resources to help develop these skills (often for free):

Happy PM-ing!

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