In the B2B SaaS world, it's all about "-=+". In other words, how do you manage to use fewer resources to create more value, and satisfy the end customer?
This new paradigm of "doing better with less" is reshuffling the cards in Customer Success Management. The urgent need is to (re)structure CS divisions to adapt to the current economic context... while continuing to deliver the very best in customer success. But who can inspire us in this process? And what are the best practices for successful restructuring?
Find out our answers in this article. On the program:
- B2B SaaS: a necessary evolution for CS divisions
- Towards (re)structuring CS hubs: two inspiring case studies
- 5 best practices for restructuring your B2B SaaS CS strategy
B2B SaaS: a necessary evolution for CS divisions
In early 2024, Customerz co-founder Antonin Bigot declared on LinkedIn: "Cash infusions at will are a thing of the past in B2B. In the current economic climate, companies are thinking much more carefully about their spending... And in 2024, they will probably have to invest less. But they'll still be doing just as well. Or even better. (...) Because the paths to profitability are not the same as they used to be. "
A few months later, this reality was confirmed. A new economic and political climate has set in. And B2B SaaS companies are faced with a dilemma: invest less, but still do just as well, to satisfy customers and maintain the relationship. To generate good results with less expenditure, here's a pertinent strategic idea: to split up the Customer Success function.
"Scaling the Customer Success function means producing more while achieving economies of scale. And this "scalability" requires a Customer Success strategy (and team) structured differently, from what companies have known until now. The following actions become priorities:
- Rethink investments to prioritize customer retention.
- Limit mass hiring and redefine the role of CSMs CSMs (Customer Success Managers) already in place.
- Segment the customer base and create adapted customer paths (low touch, mid touch or high touch).
- Rationalization and packaging of customer support offers.
Don't panic, the rest of this article is devoted to these various initiatives (and more!), which are enabling B2B SaaS to lay the new foundation for customer success... one that combines profitability and sustainability. In fact, some companies in this ecosystem have already begun to structure and restructure their CS divisions, to adapt to market challenges. Let's talk about them.
Towards (re)structuring CS hubs: two inspiring case studies
For our Customerz podcast, we were honored to welcome two inspiring guests, concerned with the subjects of scalability and restructuring the Customer Success division. They are Philippe Lima, Head of Customer Success South Europe at Aircall, and Fabien Lerays, Vice President Customer Service EMEA at 360 Learning (and ex-People Doc).
What do our guests have in common? They have experienced and supported rapid growth in their companies. At the head of a Customer Success team, they had to reorganize strategy, processes, operations... and everyone's responsibilities.
At Aircall, the team has grown from 3 to 70 CSMs between 2018 and 2024. Customer Success Managers are responsible for tool adoption and expansion. In parallel, there is an onboarding team for implementation and a support team to manage issues. Recently, the company created a digital department, to enable certain customers to adopt a self-service approach (and relieve the CS teams). Processes have also been restructured: a "timeline" has been introduced for the teams, to enable them to perpetuate contractual relationships and encourage retention and expansion. CSMs know precisely when to contact customers, to organize annual reviews and renewal appointments.
Fabien shared with us his experience at PeopleDoc: when he arrived in 2010, he was the only CSM managing 4 customers. Then, he hired 2 multi-skilled profiles to manage the entire customer relationship (onboarding, CS, support, etc.). After raising funds in 2014, the company reorganized its teams to separate build and run. It also hired progressively specialized project managers and CSMs, then created a self-service division. When he left, 150 recruits made up the Customer Success team.
To absorb this growth (while trying to deliver maximum added value to customers, without overloading the available teams), Philippe and Fabien followed the same practice: redefining strategy and processes internally .
💡Discover our podcast episode with Philippe Lima & Fabien Lerays
5 best practices for restructuring your B2B SaaS CS strategy
1- (Re)defining the value of CSM
Having a CS team is good. Knowing exactly what its role is, and what value each CSM brings, is even better! Without this clarification of the CSM's added value and place in the company, it's hard to defend its stakes internally, with management and other teams. And it's hard to pursue scalability.
So, what's the role of your CSM team? At Customerz, we consider the Customer Success Manager to be someone who helps customers achieve their objectives, through the use of the SaaS solution they represent. They are not only experts in their product, but also in the market and in the customer's reality on the ground, so they can adapt their support accordingly.
According to Fabien Lerays (360 Learning and ex-People Doc), "the challenge of the CSM is to create a relationship of trust with the decision maker and not lose it".
According to Philippe Lima (Aircall), "the CSM is a consultant, not a mere executor.
In turn, take the time to define the role, objectives, scope of intervention and added value of your CSM team. Then communicate this to all internal teams... And regularly remind each CSM of his or her importance to the company.
2- Setting OKRs
An OKR (or Objectives & Key Results) consists in setting an objective AND results to be measured. This methodology is particularly useful in customer success teams, for monitoring and aligning performance with corporate objectives. The OKR method also helps CS teams to stay focused on precise, specific objectives, in order to avoid distractions (or the performance of low-value-added tasks).
Indeed, OKRs set the course, the vision and the priorities. In many SaaS companies, this methodology has become an indispensable asset: as the job of Customer Success Manager often consists of putting out fires, OKRs provide the necessary framework, to avoid getting burnt... And to deal with "hot" topics in order, step by step, strategically.
For Fabien Lerays (360 Learning and ex-People Doc), the OKR method is the logical extension of team specialization. The idea is to create micro OKRs for each specialization, to enable each person to understand his or her role, objectives and expected results.
For Philippe Lima (Aircall), OKRs are accompanied by a precise timeline with milestones, to structure the teams' work. For example, a CSM must carry out an annual business review at the end of a 6-month contractual relationship, schedule a renewal meeting at M+9, and then obtain a signed contract at M+10.
This framework encourages expansion and limits the risk of churn. At the same time, it enables CSMs to focus their efforts in the right direction, on high value-added tasks.
3- Better equip your teams with digital CS
Digital Customer Success (or DCS) is the strategic use of technology and automation to offload teams and increase customer autonomy. To put this strategy and (good) DCS tools in place, we recommend the following steps:
- Have (or implement) a CRM, which includes an up-to-date customer scorecard and centralizes the following elements: ETA on the customer account, action plan implemented by the CS or in tandem with a KAM, for example, renewal date, CSM assessment of the relationship, opportunities and risks on the account... To track the customer's life, CRMs like Salesforce or Hubspot are suitable.
- Deploy alerting and reporting functionalities: these alerts and reports enable the CSM to be proactive about its customer accounts. For example, have you considered setting up an alert system as soon as a user uninstalls your SaaS solution? Or when a drop in usage is observed? These alerts and reports can be deployed in a Customer Success Platform (CRP), synchronized with your CRM. And by analyzing the various alerts and reports, the CS can draw on data from customer trends and practices, to improve its support.
- Use call recording and transcription tools : on a day-to-day basis, these tools are particularly useful, to facilitate the sharing of reports between different teams, and to obtain customer feedback on what CSM offers (resources, support methods, etc.). Gong or Modjo are particularly effective.
Of course, to use these tools effectively and boost the CS team's performance, they need to be trained to use them. At the same time, the more mature the team is in dealing with customer success issues, the easier it will be to integrate digital CS into its daily routine.
4- Divide divisions and specialize teams
We often talk about "divide and conquer". In Customer Success, this saying is gradually being applied... to specialize teams, for better performance.
But before a restructuring project, it's quite normal to have a generalist CS team, where each team member takes care of implementation, onboarding, support, guidance during the success phase and subscription renewals... In short, a "Swiss army knife" team makes for an efficient launch.
Then, as time goes by, it becomes necessary to specialize the teams. To enable the CS to generate more value for the customer, we recommend splitting up the various functions, to obtain :
- A specialized implementation team or recruit
- A specialized support team or recruit
- A team or recruit specialized in customer onboarding
- A team or recruit specialized in Key Account Management
- A team or recruit specialized in customer success
Or an onboarding, support and Customer Success team, as at Aircall. The maturity of a SaaS company can even give rise to new functions, such as CS Ops, which boosts Customer Success activity by implementing tools, dashboards and alerting systems to facilitate operations and data tracking. For low value-added tasks, automation can be an excellent productivity lever.
Contrary to popular belief, this separation of roles does not multiply internal expenses. It's a cost-effective reorganization, enabling CSMs to concentrate on what they do best: advising, supporting and providing expertise to customers on any sticking points (lack of adoption, results at half-mast, insufficient usage, etc.).
For Cécile Beaussant Le Gentil (co-founder of Customerz), "The more we structure, the more we specialize, the more we standardize an expert posture and a high level of advice".
5- Align all teams to facilitate adoption of change
Companies often (wrongly) think that restructuring their Customer Success strategy and organization... only concerns the Customer Success team. But it's not!
Defining the role and added value of CSMs, setting OKRs, using digital CS as a tool and specializing teams are crucial steps in the life of a company, and they have an impact on the rest of the teams. For this impact to be positive, the change must be understood by all.
Indeed, "structuring" is synonymous with "rationalization" and "standardization". Whereas CSMs initially did everything to satisfy all customers, they are gradually moving towards packaging offers by type of customer (with or without content). This new organization is not only changing the daily lives of CSMs, but also those of other teams, such as sales. Involving sales in this restructuring is therefore essential, to enable more efficient scalability. Just as it is essential toinvolve the CSM from the pre-sales stage onwards, to benefit from a winning strategy.
What's more, depending on the type of customer, the level of support required differs widely. A large account with several subsidiaries and connectors will need a premium level of support, while a small account may be satisfied with a reactive support team. Here again, Ops, support and even product teams need to be aligned with the new organization, to help deliver the most personalized and relevant experience possible.
Finally, for this new structuring to be a success, alignment between the CS and the other teams is important... But it's not enough. The CS itself must be aligned with its new role! It's essential for Heads of CS to remind their teams of the importance of their role, and to value it. In today's SaaS environment, CSMs need to be positioned as experts, with a prescriptive and challenging posture... And not as executors, with a simple reactive function, dedicated to support.
Moreover, this posture is invaluable in the eyes of customers, and has a huge impact on growth... So, what if it was time to bill end-customers for CS support in SaaS, by switching to "billable CS"?billable CS"? Read on in this dedicated article.
