The Newest Jedi of the Tech Space: Customer Success
(Episode 1)
“A Jedi Knight? Jeez, I’m out of it for a little while, everyone gets delusions of grandeur!” — Han Solo
Can you remember the first time you watched Star Wars? Most likely on your family’s Magnavox television set, squeezed in on the couch between your siblings or demoted to the floor… When I think back to that scene, minus the fuzzy screen display and seemingly always broken antenna, the first and most vivid thing I remember is the sound of Obi-Wan Kenobi’s light saber {something along the lines of Zzhwwwooo}.
I remember thinking — where could I get this magical weapon that could cut or melt virtually any known object in its path and how could I become a Jedi knight?
Jedi exist in the system as purveyors of the realm, tasked to instill peace and justice by observing the force and improving the world around us through the tenants of focus, knowledge, and wisdom. Essentially, they are the ultimate universal warriors:
- Jedi are capable of achieving extraordinary feats by pulling on the force
- Jedi strive to acquire greater skill and expertise
- Jedi understand what is just and what is not
- Jedi’s don’t TRY, they DO
The Jedi knight is the equivalent of the modern day missionary and the tech startup industry needs an intuitive and benevolent Jedi leader driven not by monetary necessity but the development of successful user relationships. And in the startup world, can you think of a position that is specialized in the ideals of a Jedi knight?
Does there exist a position that is genuinely invested in the client relationship at all stages of the customer cycle and will fight like bloody hell to advocate for the needs of their user base? And is there an empathetic leader that is willing to become an expert in the businesses of their clients?
This is where Customer Success fits in. When scaling our businesses, if we lose sight of user engagement we are playing into avoidable failure. And a Customer Success Manager is the role you hire to not fall into that trap.
Don’t Become the Darth Vader of Your Market
Do you care about your users?
Of course you care. But to what extent do you care and can you prove that you care? Bringing in a Jedi knight/Customer Success Manager is the most efficient and impactful method of investing in the success of your user base. And it is the idea that when our clients win, we win that drives the overall business model.
Businesses may measure the health of their firm based on a set of specific KPI’s; however, can we successfully operate a business with unhappy clients?
It’s not that businesses have fully neglected users in the past but for the first time there should exist a designated team focused on nurturing the relationship amongst client, product, and firm that is transparently symbiotic.
Who Gets to Be Han Solo?
Mobilize.io, a San Francisco based startup and the pioneers of the Jedi analogy, draw the comparison of both personas as client centric and holistically minded; success teams are the modern day Jedi’s because their driving force is to put the client first. If you take care of your community, they will take care of you.
A Customer Success Manager should be brought on at pre-launch to not only manage the relationship but also optimize the overall engagement. Hiring a Customer Success Manager shows you value your user’s experience even after sales has closed the deal.
A Customer Success Manager is a Jedi, Customer Service is C-3PO, and the Account Executive is Han Solo.
So what does it take to become a knight of the intergalactic tech realm?
1. Trust
Trust is a sign of hard work and transparency.
As a Customer Success Manager you may also be regarded as a trusted advisor and an extension of your client’s team. Building out a trusted relationship is possible by setting honest expectations at the inception of the relationship and then taking the extra steps to show clients you are genuinely invested in their success.
Jedi’s draw their power from the force and once you have successfully observed this life source, a Jedi is able to trust its power and connection to life to fight the enemy.
2. Empathy
As a knight, putting others before yourself is a basic tenet of the Order.
And both Customer Success Managers and Jedi seek to understand one’s difficulties and share our knowledge to solve community issues. We are successful when we view things from another’s perspective.
3. Prowess
As a Customer Success Manager we care about the success of our client’s businesses, and in order to truly understand their goals and the way in which to build their success we need to become experts in their fields.
As a Jedi, training and learning are at the core of becoming a Jedi master. And we too must focus on becoming an expert in each part of our training.
4. Foresight
Jedi use precognition or danger sense to help them predict the moves of their opponents or as an indicator of impending danger.
In Customer Success we draw on measuring user behavior through specific data points. For success teams it is imperative to understand the key objectives of our users and if we can help clients achieve and iterate on their goals then we can proactively help them grow their businesses.
And the more proficient and dependent our clients are on our system or service the stickier we have become and the less likely our customers will churn.
5. Leadership
Success teams are at the center intersection of your company’s composition.
We are tasked with understanding the client’s needs, strategically accomplishing their goals, ultimately driving their experience and then reporting any perceptive information to the correct internal teams.
And as a Jedi and Customer Success Manager our communities look to us for insightful direction and follow our lead, as we are the backbone or utility players of our organization.
“Do. Or do not. There is no try.” — Yoda
A Jedi and Customer Success Manager are trusted leaders within your team that understand the vision of your cause and seek to establish strong relationships within the community through integrity and diplomacy.
We are the pulse of your business. And watch out, our light sabers are hot.
A special thanks to Nina Wilkinson with Mobilize for working with me on this piece from inception and crafting the idea of the Jedi analogy!
And a big shout out to all of the Success Managers who took the time to share their experiences with me, Episode 2 will dive deeper into your perspectives! Also thank you to my fellow comrades, Faisal Al-Khalidi and Ana Mason for your sketches and drafting help!
Help me spread the word of Customer Success to others Jedi’s! Click the 💚 below!
Connect with me on Twitter: @MallorySurpless
