84: Kristi Faltorusso - Aligning Customer Success and Product Management
11/17/24 • 47 min
Kristi Faltorusso, a CS executive and coach, joins me in this high-energy conversation about customer success-assisted onboarding, alignment, and the dreaded realities of cross-functional working with product & sales.
We explore effective onboarding strategies, the importance of aligning customer success with product development, and the necessity of quantifying challenges faced by customer success teams.
What’s the importance of defining effective KPIs for customer success, focusing on leading indicators rather than lagging ones? How DO we measure customer happiness? Is the NPS as useless as I believe it is?
takeaways
- Onboarding strategies must focus on delivering value quickly by measuring time to value.
- Consultative approaches to customer success add significant value.
- Customer success teams often act as advocates for product improvements.
- Focus on leading indicators for customer success.
- Customer segmentation should be based on use cases, not just size.
Chapters
04:45 Understanding Customer Success and Onboarding Strategies
09:48 The Role of Customer Success in Product Development
14:50 Bridging the Gap Between Customer Success and Product Teams
19:56 Quantifying Customer Success Challenges and Solutions
23:41 Understanding Product Impact on Business Metrics
28:19 Defining Effective KPIs for Customer Success
33:06 Measuring Customer Engagement and Value
38:07 The Myth of Customer Happiness
43:11 Data-Driven vs. Data-Informed Decisions
Kristi Faltorusso, a CS executive and coach, joins me in this high-energy conversation about customer success-assisted onboarding, alignment, and the dreaded realities of cross-functional working with product & sales.
We explore effective onboarding strategies, the importance of aligning customer success with product development, and the necessity of quantifying challenges faced by customer success teams.
What’s the importance of defining effective KPIs for customer success, focusing on leading indicators rather than lagging ones? How DO we measure customer happiness? Is the NPS as useless as I believe it is?
takeaways
- Onboarding strategies must focus on delivering value quickly by measuring time to value.
- Consultative approaches to customer success add significant value.
- Customer success teams often act as advocates for product improvements.
- Focus on leading indicators for customer success.
- Customer segmentation should be based on use cases, not just size.
Chapters
04:45 Understanding Customer Success and Onboarding Strategies
09:48 The Role of Customer Success in Product Development
14:50 Bridging the Gap Between Customer Success and Product Teams
19:56 Quantifying Customer Success Challenges and Solutions
23:41 Understanding Product Impact on Business Metrics
28:19 Defining Effective KPIs for Customer Success
33:06 Measuring Customer Engagement and Value
38:07 The Myth of Customer Happiness
43:11 Data-Driven vs. Data-Informed Decisions
Previous Episode
83: Tadas Labudis - Overcoming the fear of founder-led selling
Founder-led sales done well has a lot of power especially in product-led companies. Tadas Labudis shares his experiences with founder-led sales and how it helped him build confidence in the product and himself.
How to embrace your vulnerabilities and the importance of leaving a positive impression in sales interactions while getting insights you would never get just by looking at data.
How to balance product-led growth with effective sales strategies before its too late.
takeaways
- Sales can be enjoyable once you find your own style.
- Calculated risks in entrepreneurship are often misunderstood as reckless.
- Product-led growth can coexist with sales-led strategies.
- The definition of product growth is evolving. Founder-led sales is crucial for early-stage startups.
- Hiring salespeople too early can be risky.
Sound Bites
- "I learned to enjoy sales."
- "Entrepreneurship is not as risky as it seems."
- "You cannot hurry your clients."
- "Sales is about refining the ICP and messaging."
- "Product-led growth is about cost efficiency."
Chapters
03:09 Understanding Risk in Entrepreneurship
05:59 The Psychology of Product Development
08:48 Balancing Product-Led and Sales-Led Approaches
12:06 Navigating Early Sales Challenges
14:52 The Importance of Customer Retention
18:11 Building a Product That Sells Itself
21:00 The Role of Paid Pilots in Sales
23:57 Leaving a Lasting Impression in Sales
27:36 The Power of Founder-Led Sales
30:26 Misconceptions About Sales and Selling Styles
33:16 The Importance of Personal Sales Experience
36:19 Leveraging Sales Insights for Product Development
43:01 Refining Messaging and Understanding Customer Expectations
48:03 Balancing Product-Led Growth and Sales Strategies
Next Episode
85: Wes Kao - Strategies for communicating with leaders
The nuances of executive communication and the importance of building buy-in for ideas with Wes Kao. The role of credibility, understanding bandwidth in conversations, and strategies for framing discussions to enhance clarity and reduce cognitive load.
De-risking strategies to avoid surprises and the significance of celebrating good decision-making processes rather than just successful outcomes.
Takeaways
- Working autonomously means communicating more, not less.
- Surprises in the workplace are generally unwelcome.
- Celebrate the process of good decision-making, not just results.
- Make your proposals easy for others to present.
- Communication should be proactive, not reactive.
Chapters
01:51 Introduction to Wes Cowell and His Journey
02:51 Obsession vs. Discipline in Achieving Success
06:30 The Art of Executive Communication
07:51 Building Buy-In for Ideas
11:10 The Role of Credibility in Communication
15:24 Understanding Bandwidth in Conversations
19:34 Framing Conversations for Clarity
22:22 Reducing Cognitive Load in Communication
27:31 Cross-Functional Communication Strategies
30:51 Effective Communication in Leadership
34:06 De-risking Proposals and Feedback Loops
39:38 Celebrating Good Decisions Over Results
44:10 The Importance of Rigorous Thinking
54:30 Preparing Others for Success in Presentations
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