Interview Guide for

Manager, Enterprise Customer Success

This comprehensive interview guide is designed to help you effectively evaluate candidates for the Manager, Enterprise Customer Success role at your organization. It provides a structured approach to assessing candidates' skills, experience, and fit for the position through multiple interview stages, including a work sample exercise and reference checks.

How to Use This Guide

To make the most of this interview guide and improve your hiring decisions:

Familiarize yourself with the job description, ideal candidate profile, and key goals before conducting interviews. This will help you better assess candidate fit and potential for success in the role.
Customize the guide to align with your company's specific needs and industry focus. You can edit questions or add new ones using Yardstick, ensuring the interview process remains relevant and effective for your enterprise customer success environment.
Use the same questions and scorecards for each interview stage to ensure consistency across candidates. This standardized approach allows for more accurate comparisons and data-driven decision-making.
Take detailed notes during interviews to support your evaluations. Yardstick's AI-powered note-taking feature can help capture key insights without distracting you from the conversation, especially during the strategic review meeting work sample.
Complete the scorecard immediately after each interview while your impressions are fresh. This helps maintain accuracy and facilitates easier comparisons between candidates, particularly when evaluating complex competencies like strategic leadership and analytical problem-solving skills.
Pay close attention to candidates' past performance metrics and their ability to articulate complex customer success strategies. The hiring manager interview section is particularly useful for diving deep into these areas.
Use the behavioral competency interview to assess adaptability and cross-functional collaboration skills, which are crucial for success in dynamic enterprise customer success environments.
Leverage the executive interview to evaluate candidates' ability to engage with C-level stakeholders and drive high-value, strategic customer relationships.
Conduct thorough reference checks to verify the candidate's claims about their customer success performance and team leadership abilities.
Use Yardstick's analytics to track the effectiveness of each element of the interview guide over time, allowing you to refine and improve your hiring process for enterprise customer success roles continuously.

Remember that this guide is a tool to support your decision-making process. Use your judgment and expertise to evaluate candidates holistically, considering both their qualifications and potential cultural fit within your organization's enterprise customer success team.

For more interview question ideas specific to this role, visit: Manager, Enterprise Customer Success Interview Questions.

Job Description

🌟 Manager, Enterprise Customer Success

🚀 About [Company]

[Company] is a leading provider of [Industry] solutions, trusted by category leaders and innovators. We're on a mission to enable every company to take control of [Value Proposition]. Join us and be part of a team recognized for its exceptional workplace culture!

💼 The Role

We're seeking an experienced Manager of Enterprise Customer Success to lead a high-performing team responsible for our largest and most strategic customers. In this pivotal role, you'll drive customer satisfaction, retention, and expansion while fostering a customer-centric culture within your team and across the organization.

🎯 Key Responsibilities

Team Leadership: Coach and mentor a team of Enterprise Customer Success Managers (CSMs) to achieve customer satisfaction, retention, and expansion goals.
Strategy Development: Create and implement scalable strategies for driving customer adoption, satisfaction, and retention among enterprise accounts.
Renewal Management: Own the renewal pipeline and develop strategies to optimize renewals and proactively address risks.
Customer Engagement: Act as an executive sponsor for key accounts, participating in strategic reviews and ensuring value realization.
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Sales, Product, and Professional Services to align customer success strategies with broader company objectives.

🧠 What We're Looking For

Proven experience in customer success leadership, preferably in a SaaS environment
Strong track record of developing customer relationships and driving engagement with complex products
Ability to lead with empathy, provide effective coaching, and motivate a team to exceed goals
Strategic mindset with the ability to manage both internal and external executive stakeholder relationships
Analytical proficiency with customer success metrics and familiarity with relevant tools and platforms
Exceptional communication skills and ability to influence at all levels of an organization

💫 Why Join [Company]?

Opportunity to shape the success of enterprise clients in a high-growth industry
Competitive compensation package including [Pay Range]
Comprehensive benefits including health coverage and professional development opportunities
Collaborative and innovative work environment focused on continuous improvement

Hiring Process

We've designed our hiring process to be thorough and give you multiple opportunities to showcase your skills and experience. Here's what you can expect:

Screening Interview

‍An initial conversation to discuss your background and experience in customer success leadership.

Work Sample: Strategic Review Meeting

‍An opportunity to demonstrate your skills through a simulated strategic review meeting with a key enterprise customer.

Hiring Manager Interview

‍An in-depth discussion about your relevant work history and performance in customer success leadership roles.

Behavioral Competency Interview

‍A focused conversation about your past experiences and how they relate to key competencies for this role.

Executive Interview

‍A final interview to explore your strategic thinking and leadership approach in complex customer success environments.

We aim to provide feedback promptly after each stage and encourage you to ask questions throughout the process. We're excited to get to know you and learn how you can contribute to our team's success!

[Company] is an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive workforce.

Ideal Candidate Profile (Internal)

Role Overview

The Manager of Enterprise Customer Success will be responsible for leading a team of CSMs to drive customer satisfaction, retention, and expansion among our largest and most strategic accounts. This role requires a blend of leadership skills, strategic thinking, and customer-centric mindset to ensure the success of both the team and our enterprise clients.

Essential Behavioral Competencies

Strategic Leadership: Ability to develop and execute long-term customer success strategies while effectively coaching and mentoring team members.
Customer Advocacy: Skill in understanding and championing customer needs, ensuring their success is at the forefront of all decisions and actions.
Analytical Problem-Solving: Capacity to leverage data and insights to identify trends, risks, and opportunities, making informed decisions to drive customer and business outcomes.
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Ability to work effectively across departments, aligning various stakeholders to create a unified and exceptional customer experience.
Adaptive Communication: Skill in tailoring communication style and content to effectively engage with diverse audiences, from team members to C-level executives.

Desired Outcomes

Example Goals for Role:

Achieve a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year.
Increase the team's overall customer retention rate to 95% and expansion rate to 110% within 18 months.
Develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base.
Reduce the average time-to-value for enterprise customers by 20% through improved onboarding and adoption processes.
Cultivate a high-performing team culture, achieving an employee engagement score of 85% or higher and a voluntary turnover rate below 10%.

Ideal Candidate Profile

5+ years of experience in customer success or account management roles, with at least 2 years leading a team in a SaaS environment
Proven track record of driving customer satisfaction, retention, and expansion in enterprise accounts
Strong understanding of SaaS business models and enterprise customer needs
Experience in developing and implementing customer success strategies and best practices
Excellent analytical skills with the ability to derive insights from customer data and success metrics
Demonstrated ability to build and maintain relationships with executive-level stakeholders
Adaptable and resilient, with the ability to thrive in a fast-paced, evolving environment
Passionate about customer success and committed to continuous learning and improvement
[Location]-based or comfortable with remote work and occasional travel as needed

📞 Screening Interview

Directions for the Interviewer

This initial screening interview is crucial for assessing if a candidate should move forward in the process for the Manager, Enterprise Customer Success role. Focus on past performance, leadership experience, and key competencies outlined in the job description. Getting detailed information on customer success metrics and team management early is essential.

Ask all candidates the same questions to ensure fair comparisons. Take detailed notes during the interview to support your evaluations. Complete the scorecard immediately after the interview while your impressions are fresh.

Remember that this is just the first step in the process, so focus on gathering key information rather than making a final decision. The goal is to determine if the candidate has the potential to excel in this leadership role and should continue to the next stage of the interview process.

Directions to Share with Candidate

"I'll be asking you some initial questions about your background and experience to determine fit for our Manager, Enterprise Customer Success role. Please provide concise but thorough answers, focusing on specific examples and results where possible. Do you have any questions before we begin?"

Interview Questions

Tell me about your most successful year in customer success. What were your key achievements and how did you compare to your peers?

Areas to Cover:

Specific customer success metrics (retention rate, NPS, expansion revenue)
Ranking or performance compared to team
Strategies or approaches that led to success
Types of customers and products/services managed

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What was your target retention rate that year and by what percentage did you exceed it?
How did you achieve such strong results compared to your peers?
What was your average customer lifetime value and how did you impact it?

Walk me through your approach to developing and implementing a customer success strategy for a complex enterprise account.

Areas to Cover:

Steps in strategy development process
Methods for understanding customer needs and goals
Strategies for engaging multiple stakeholders
Approach to measuring and communicating value

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you align your strategy with the customer's business objectives?
What challenges did you face during implementation and how did you overcome them?
How did you measure the impact of your strategy on customer outcomes?

Describe a situation where you had to lead your team through a significant change in customer success processes or tools. What was the outcome?

Areas to Cover:

Change management approach
Communication and training strategies
Team motivation and support
Results and lessons learned

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you gain buy-in from resistant team members?
What specific changes did you make to your leadership approach during this process?
How did this experience inform your future change management strategies?

How do you approach coaching and developing customer success managers on your team?

Areas to Cover:

Coaching philosophy and methods
Performance evaluation process
Career development support
Examples of successful team member growth

Possible Follow-up Questions:

Can you share a specific example of how you've helped a CSM improve their performance?
How do you tailor your coaching approach to different skill levels and personalities?
How do you balance individual development with team performance goals?

Tell me about a time when you had to use data and analytics to improve customer outcomes. What actions did you take and what was the result?

Areas to Cover:

Data analysis process
Insights derived from data
Action plan development and implementation
Impact on customer success metrics

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What tools or technologies did you use for this analysis?
How did you communicate your findings and recommendations to stakeholders?
How has this experience shaped your approach to data-driven decision making?

How do you collaborate with other departments like Sales, Product, and Professional Services to ensure customer success?

Areas to Cover:

Cross-functional communication strategies
Joint planning and goal-setting processes
Conflict resolution approaches
Examples of successful collaboration outcomes

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How do you align customer success goals with those of other departments?
Can you describe a situation where you had to navigate conflicting priorities between departments?
How do you ensure a seamless customer experience across different touchpoints?

Are you legally authorized to work in [Location] without sponsorship?

Areas to Cover:

Current work authorization status
Any restrictions or limitations on employment
Timeline of work eligibility if applicable

Possible Follow-up Questions:

When does your current work authorization expire?
Are there any travel restrictions we should be aware of?

Interview Scorecard

Relevant Enterprise Customer Success Experience

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Less than 3 years of enterprise customer success experience
2: 3-5 years of enterprise customer success experience
3: 6-8 years of successful enterprise customer success experience
4: 8+ years of exceptional enterprise customer success leadership experience

Customer Success Performance History

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Consistently falls short of customer success targets
2: Occasionally meets customer success targets
3: Consistently meets or exceeds customer success targets
4: Consistently ranks in top 10% of customer success team

Strategic Leadership Skills

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Limited evidence of strategic thinking or leadership
2: Demonstrates basic strategic planning and team leadership
3: Strong strategic leadership skills with clear examples
4: Exceptional strategist and leader, drives innovative customer success initiatives

Coaching and Team Development

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Limited experience in coaching or developing team members
2: Some success in coaching and developing CSMs
3: Strong track record of effective coaching and team development
4: Exceptional at building high-performing customer success teams

Data-Driven Decision Making

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Minimal use of data in decision making
2: Basic application of data analysis in customer success
3: Regularly uses data to drive decisions and improve outcomes
4: Advanced data analytics skills, consistently leverages insights for strategic advantage

Cross-Functional Collaboration

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Struggles to work effectively with other departments
2: Adequate collaboration with some cross-functional partners
3: Strong collaborator across multiple departments
4: Exceptional at driving cross-functional alignment and joint success

Work Authorization

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Requires sponsorship with significant restrictions
2: Requires sponsorship with minor restrictions
3: Authorized to work with time limitation
4: Fully authorized to work without restrictions

Goal: Achieve a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to achieve target scores
2: May partially achieve target scores
3: Likely to achieve target scores
4: Likely to exceed target scores

Goal: Increase the team's overall customer retention rate to 95% and expansion rate to 110% within 18 months.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to achieve retention and expansion targets
2: May partially achieve retention and expansion targets
3: Likely to achieve retention and expansion targets
4: Likely to exceed retention and expansion targets

Goal: Develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to develop and implement effective strategies
2: May develop and implement partially effective strategies
3: Likely to develop and implement effective strategies
4: Likely to develop and implement highly innovative and impactful strategies

Goal: Reduce the average time-to-value for enterprise customers by 20% through improved onboarding and adoption processes.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to achieve time-to-value reduction
2: May partially reduce time-to-value
3: Likely to achieve 20% time-to-value reduction
4: Likely to exceed 20% time-to-value reduction

Overall Recommendation

1: Strong No Hire
2: No Hire
3: Hire
4: Strong Hire

🎭 Work Sample: Strategic Review Meeting

Directions for the Interviewer

This work sample assesses the candidate's ability to conduct an effective strategic review meeting with a key enterprise customer. It evaluates their preparation, data analysis skills, strategic thinking, communication abilities, and customer advocacy.

Best practices:

Provide the candidate with background materials 24 hours before the exercise
Limit the role-play to 30 minutes
Take detailed notes on specific behaviors and statements
Provide a brief opportunity for the candidate to self-reflect after the exercise
Offer both positive and constructive feedback on their execution
If time allows, discuss potential follow-up actions after the meeting

Directions to Share with Candidate

"For this exercise, you'll conduct a mock strategic review meeting with a key enterprise customer. I'll play the role of the customer's CIO, [Customer Name] at [Company Name]. Your goal is to review the account's performance, identify opportunities for growth, and address any potential risks. The meeting will last about 30 minutes, followed by a brief discussion. You'll receive background information on the customer account, including usage data, NPS scores, and renewal timeline, 24 hours before the exercise. Please prepare a brief presentation or discussion outline for the meeting. Do you have any questions?"

Provide the candidate with:

Overview of your product/service
Customer account background (company size, industry, current product usage)
Usage data for the past 12 months
NPS scores and trend
Renewal timeline (e.g., 6 months until renewal)
Any other relevant account information

Interview Scorecard

Preparation and Research

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Minimal preparation, unfamiliar with account details
2: Basic preparation, general understanding of account
3: Well-prepared with relevant account insights
4: Extensively prepared with deep account understanding and tailored approach

Data Analysis and Insight Generation

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Minimal use of data in discussion
2: Basic data presentation without meaningful insights
3: Good analysis of data with relevant insights
4: Advanced data analysis with actionable, strategic insights

Strategic Thinking

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Focuses only on immediate issues without strategic view
2: Demonstrates basic strategic thinking
3: Shows clear strategic thinking and planning
4: Exceptional strategic vision with innovative ideas for long-term success

Communication Skills

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Struggles to articulate ideas clearly
2: Communicates adequately but lacks polish
3: Communicates clearly and engagingly
4: Outstanding communication, adapts style effectively to audience

Customer Advocacy

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Focuses solely on company interests
2: Attempts to balance customer and company needs
3: Strongly advocates for customer while aligning with company goals
4: Exceptional at creating win-win scenarios for customer and company

Value Articulation

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unable to articulate product/service value clearly
2: Basic explanation of product/service value
3: Clearly articulates value aligned with customer needs
4: Compellingly communicates unique value proposition with specific ROI examples

Goal: Achieve a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to drive NPS and CSAT improvements
2: May achieve some improvement in NPS and CSAT
3: Likely to achieve target NPS and CSAT scores
4: Likely to exceed target NPS and CSAT scores

Goal: Increase the team's overall customer retention rate to 95% and expansion rate to 110% within 18 months.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to improve retention and expansion rates
2: May achieve partial improvement in retention and expansion
3: Likely to achieve target retention and expansion rates
4: Likely to exceed target retention and expansion rates

Goal: Develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to develop effective new strategies
2: May develop partially effective strategies
3: Likely to develop effective, scalable strategies
4: Likely to develop highly innovative and impactful strategies

Goal: Reduce the average time-to-value for enterprise customers by 20% through improved onboarding and adoption processes.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to impact time-to-value
2: May achieve some reduction in time-to-value
3: Likely to achieve 20% reduction in time-to-value
4: Likely to exceed 20% reduction in time-to-value

Overall Recommendation

1: Strong No Hire
2: No Hire
3: Hire
4: Strong Hire

👔 Hiring Manager Interview

Directions for the Interviewer

This interview focuses on the candidate's relevant work history and performance in customer success leadership roles, particularly in enterprise environments. Ask the following questions for each relevant previous role, adapting as needed for time and the number of relevant roles. Ask all questions on the most recent or most relevant role. Probe for specific examples and quantifiable results. Pay attention to the progression of responsibilities and achievements across roles, especially in relation to team leadership, strategy development, and customer engagement.

Directions to Share with Candidate

"I'd like to discuss your relevant work experience in customer success leadership in more detail. We'll go through each of your previous roles, focusing on your responsibilities, achievements, and lessons learned. Please provide specific examples and metrics where possible, especially related to team management, strategy development, and customer engagement."

Interview Questions

Of all the jobs you've held in customer success, which was your favorite and why?

Areas to Cover:

Motivations and preferences in customer success roles
Alignment with current Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role
Self-awareness and understanding of strengths in customer success leadership

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What aspects of that role do you hope to find in this position?
How did that experience shape your approach to customer success leadership?
What did you learn about yourself as a leader in that role?

Tell me about your role at [company]. What attracted you to this customer success leadership opportunity?

Areas to Cover:

Company background and product/service overview
Target enterprise customer profile
Customer success process and methodology used
Team structure and size
Key performance indicators for the team

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you structure your team to serve enterprise customers effectively?
Walk me through your typical customer success process from onboarding to renewal.
What were the main challenges your team faced in serving enterprise clients?
How did you measure the success of your team and individual CSMs?

What were your key achievements in this customer success leadership role?

Areas to Cover:

Team performance metrics (e.g., retention rates, NPS scores, expansion revenue)
Personal contributions to strategy and process improvements
Major enterprise accounts retained or expanded
Awards or recognition for team performance
Development and growth of team members

Possible Follow-up Questions:

Can you provide specific metrics on how your team's performance improved under your leadership?
What was your most significant strategic contribution, and how did it impact the business?
How did you approach developing and mentoring your team members?
Can you describe a particularly challenging enterprise account you helped retain or expand?

Tell me about a time when you had to develop and implement a new customer success strategy for enterprise accounts. What was your approach, and what were the results?

Areas to Cover:

Analysis of enterprise customer needs and market trends
Development of the strategy and stakeholder buy-in
Implementation process and change management
Measurable outcomes and lessons learned

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you involve your team in the strategy development process?
What challenges did you face during implementation, and how did you overcome them?
How did you measure the success of this new strategy?
What would you do differently if you were to implement a similar strategy here?

Describe your approach to managing the renewal process for enterprise accounts. How did you ensure high retention rates?

Areas to Cover:

Renewal pipeline management process
Risk identification and mitigation strategies
Cross-functional collaboration for renewals
Upsell and expansion strategies during renewals

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How far in advance did you typically start the renewal process for enterprise accounts?
Can you give an example of a high-risk renewal you successfully turned around?
How did you collaborate with sales or other departments during the renewal process?
What tools or technologies did you use to manage the renewal pipeline effectively?

How did you approach data analysis and reporting in your role? Can you give an example of how you used data to drive decision-making?

Areas to Cover:

Key metrics and KPIs tracked
Tools and technologies used for analysis
Process for turning data into actionable insights
Example of a data-driven decision and its impact

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What were the most important metrics you tracked for enterprise customer success?
How did you ensure data accuracy and consistency across your team?
Can you describe a time when data analysis led you to change your team's approach?
How did you communicate data insights to both your team and senior leadership?

Which job that you've had in the past does this Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role remind you of the most?

Areas to Cover:

Similarities in team leadership responsibilities
Alignment of strategic planning and execution
Comparisons in enterprise customer engagement
Required skills overlap for customer success leadership

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What specific aspects of customer success leadership feel similar to you?
What challenges from that role might you anticipate here?
What skills from that experience would transfer well to this position?
How would you adapt your approach given the similarities in roles?

Interview Scorecard

Relevant Customer Success Leadership Experience

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Limited customer success leadership experience
2: Some customer success leadership experience but gaps in key areas
3: Strong customer success leadership experience aligned with role requirements
4: Extensive highly relevant customer success leadership experience exceeding role requirements

Team Leadership and Development

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Limited evidence of effective team leadership
2: Basic team management skills with some areas for improvement
3: Strong track record of leading and developing high-performing teams
4: Exceptional leadership skills with proven ability to build and inspire top-performing teams

Strategic Planning and Execution

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Mostly focused on day-to-day operations with little strategic planning
2: Demonstrates basic strategic thinking but limited execution experience
3: Consistently develops and implements effective customer success strategies
4: Exceptional strategic thinker with a proven track record of executing transformative initiatives

Enterprise Customer Engagement

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Limited experience with enterprise-level customer relationships
2: Some experience managing enterprise accounts but room for growth
3: Strong track record of managing and growing enterprise customer relationships
4: Exceptional ability to engage and expand strategic enterprise accounts

Analytical and Data-Driven Approach

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Limited use of data in decision-making processes
2: Basic understanding of key metrics but room for improvement in analysis
3: Consistently uses data to drive decisions and improve team performance
4: Advanced analytical skills with a proven track record of data-driven innovations

Goal: Achieve a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Customer Satisfaction Goal

Goal: Increase the team's overall customer retention rate to 95% and expansion rate to 110% within 18 months.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Retention and Expansion Goal

Goal: Develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Strategy Implementation Goal

Overall Recommendation

1: Strong No Hire
2: No Hire
3: Hire
4: Strong Hire

🧠 Behavioral Competency Interview

Directions for the Interviewer

This interview assesses the candidate's behavioral competencies critical for success in the Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role. Ask all candidates the same questions, probing for specific examples and details about the situation, actions taken, results achieved, and lessons learned. Avoid hypothetical scenarios and focus on past experiences, particularly those related to enterprise customer success management and team leadership.

Directions to Share with Candidate

"I'll be asking you about specific experiences from your past that relate to key competencies for this Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role. Please provide detailed examples, including the situation, your actions, the outcomes, and what you learned. Take a moment to think before answering if needed."

Interview Questions

Tell me about a time when you had to lead your team through a significant change in customer success strategy or processes. How did you approach this, and what were the results? (Strategic Leadership, Adaptive Communication)

Areas to Cover:

Nature of the change and its impact on the team and customers
Communication strategy with team and stakeholders
Change management approach and challenges faced
Team's response and adaptation to the change
Measurable outcomes and lessons learned

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you identify the need for this change in strategy or processes?
What resistance did you encounter, and how did you address it?
How did you ensure your team remained motivated during the transition?
What would you do differently if you were to lead a similar change here?

Describe a situation where you had to balance the needs of a strategic enterprise customer with the overall goals of your organization. How did you handle this? (Customer Advocacy, Cross-Functional Collaboration)

Areas to Cover:

Context of the customer's needs and organizational constraints
Stakeholder management (both internal and external)
Decision-making process and rationale
Communication strategy with the customer and internal teams
Outcome and impact on the customer relationship and business goals

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you prioritize the competing needs in this situation?
What cross-functional collaboration was required to address this challenge?
How did you maintain the customer relationship while managing their expectations?
What lessons did you learn about balancing customer advocacy with business objectives?

Give me an example of a time when you used data analysis to identify a trend or opportunity in your customer base and developed an action plan based on your findings. What was the outcome? (Analytical Problem-Solving, Strategic Leadership)

Areas to Cover:

Data sources and analysis methods used
Key insights uncovered through the analysis
Process for developing the action plan
Implementation challenges and how they were overcome
Measurable results and impact on the business

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you ensure the data you were analyzing was accurate and relevant?
How did you communicate your findings and recommendations to stakeholders?
What tools or technologies did you use in your analysis?
How has this experience influenced your approach to data-driven decision making?

Interview Scorecard

Strategic Leadership

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Struggles to think and act strategically in customer success leadership
2: Demonstrates basic strategic planning abilities but lacks in execution
3: Effectively develops and implements customer success strategies
4: Exceptional strategic leader, driving innovative approaches and transformative results

Customer Advocacy

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Often prioritizes internal needs over customer needs
2: Basic understanding of customer needs but struggles to advocate effectively
3: Consistently balances customer needs with organizational goals
4: Exceptional customer advocate, driving organization-wide customer-centric culture

Analytical Problem-Solving

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Rarely uses data to inform decision-making
2: Basic data analysis skills but struggles to derive actionable insights
3: Effectively uses data to identify trends and drive decision-making
4: Advanced analytical skills, consistently uncovering valuable insights that drive business growth

Cross-Functional Collaboration

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Works in silos with little cross-functional interaction
2: Collaborates when necessary but struggles to align different departments
3: Effectively collaborates across functions to drive customer success
4: Exceptional collaborator, building strong partnerships that significantly enhance customer outcomes

Adaptive Communication

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Communication style is inflexible and often ineffective
2: Adapts communication sometimes but struggles in complex situations
3: Effectively tailors communication to different audiences and situations
4: Masterful communicator, consistently inspiring and influencing at all levels

Goal: Achieve a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Customer Satisfaction Goal

Goal: Increase the team's overall customer retention rate to 95% and expansion rate to 110% within 18 months.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Retention and Expansion Goal

Goal: Develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Strategy Implementation Goal

Overall Recommendation

1: Strong No Hire
2: No Hire
3: Hire
4: Strong Hire

👨‍💼 Executive Interview

Directions for the Interviewer

This interview further assesses the candidate's behavioral competencies from an executive perspective, focusing on high-level strategic thinking and leadership in enterprise customer success. Ask all candidates the same questions, probing for specific examples and details about the situation, actions taken, results achieved, and lessons learned. Avoid hypothetical scenarios and focus on past experiences that demonstrate the candidate's ability to operate at a strategic level in complex customer success environments.

Directions to Share with Candidate

"I'll be asking you about specific experiences from your past that relate to key competencies for this Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role, with a focus on strategic thinking and leadership in complex customer success environments. Please provide detailed examples, including the situation, your actions, the outcomes, and what you learned. Take a moment to think before answering if needed."

Interview Questions

Tell me about a time when you had to make a difficult decision that significantly impacted your enterprise customers and your team. How did you approach this situation, and what was the outcome? (Strategic Leadership, Adaptive Communication)

Areas to Cover:

Context and complexity of the decision
Stakeholder management and communication strategy
Decision-making process and rationale
Implementation challenges and how they were addressed
Impact on customers, team, and business outcomes
Lessons learned and how they've been applied

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you gather input from various stakeholders before making the decision?
What were the main risks you considered, and how did you mitigate them?
How did you communicate the decision to those who disagreed with it?
Looking back, what would you do differently if faced with a similar situation?

Describe a situation where you identified a significant gap in your organization's ability to serve enterprise customers. How did you address this gap, and what were the results? (Customer Advocacy, Analytical Problem-Solving)

Areas to Cover:

Process for identifying the gap in customer service capabilities
Analysis of the impact on customer satisfaction and business outcomes
Strategy development to address the gap
Cross-functional collaboration and resource allocation
Implementation process and challenges overcome
Measurable improvements in customer satisfaction and business metrics

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What data or insights led you to identify this gap in service?
How did you prioritize this initiative among other competing priorities?
What resistance did you encounter when implementing changes, and how did you overcome it?
How did you measure the success of your solution, both short-term and long-term?

Give me an example of how you've fostered a culture of continuous improvement and innovation within your customer success team. What specific initiatives did you implement, and what impact did they have? (Strategic Leadership, Cross-Functional Collaboration)

Areas to Cover:

Vision for team culture and alignment with organizational goals
Specific initiatives or programs implemented to drive improvement and innovation
Approach to encouraging creativity and risk-taking within the team
Cross-functional collaboration to support innovation efforts
Metrics used to measure the impact of improvement initiatives
Challenges faced and how they were overcome

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did you balance the need for innovation with maintaining day-to-day operations?
Can you give an example of a team member-led innovation that you helped bring to fruition?
How did you handle situations where improvement initiatives didn't yield expected results?
How have you ensured that the culture of continuous improvement is sustainable long-term?

Interview Scorecard

Strategic Leadership

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Struggles to think and act strategically at an executive level
2: Shows some strategic thinking but lacks in execution or long-term vision
3: Effectively develops and implements strategic initiatives with clear business impact
4: Exceptional strategic leader, driving transformative change and long-term value creation

Customer Advocacy

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Often prioritizes short-term business needs over long-term customer success
2: Understands customer needs but struggles to drive organization-wide customer focus
3: Consistently champions customer needs and drives customer-centric decision making
4: Visionary customer advocate, fundamentally shaping organizational strategy around customer success

Analytical Problem-Solving

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Relies more on intuition than data for decision making
2: Uses basic data analysis but struggles with complex, multifaceted problems
3: Effectively uses data and analytics to solve complex customer success challenges
4: Exceptional analytical skills, consistently uncovering insights that drive strategic advantage

Cross-Functional Collaboration

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Operates in silos with little effective cross-functional collaboration
2: Collaborates across functions but struggles to align diverse stakeholders
3: Builds strong cross-functional partnerships to drive customer success initiatives
4: Masterful collaborator, creating synergies across the organization that significantly enhance customer outcomes

Adaptive Communication

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Communication style is rigid and often ineffective at executive level
2: Adapts communication somewhat but struggles with complex stakeholder management
3: Effectively tailors communication to diverse audiences and complex situations
4: Exceptional communicator, consistently inspiring and influencing at all levels of the organization

Goal: Achieve a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Customer Satisfaction Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Customer Satisfaction Goal

Goal: Increase the team's overall customer retention rate to 95% and expansion rate to 110% within 18 months.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Retention and Expansion Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Retention and Expansion Goal

Goal: Develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
2: Likely to Partially Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
3: Likely to Achieve Strategy Implementation Goal
4: Likely to Exceed Strategy Implementation Goal

Overall Recommendation

1: Strong No Hire
2: No Hire
3: Hire
4: Strong Hire

Debrief Meeting

Directions for Conducting the Debrief Meeting

The Debrief Meeting is an open discussion for the hiring team members to share the information learned during the candidate interviews for the Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role. Use the questions below to guide the discussion.

Start the meeting by reviewing the requirements for the role and the key competencies and goals to succeed in leading enterprise customer success.

The meeting leader should strive to create an environment where it is okay to express opinions about the candidate that differ from the consensus or the leadership's opinions.

Scores and interview notes are important data points but should not be the sole factor in making the final decision.

Any hiring team member should feel free to change their recommendation as they learn new information and reflect on what they've learned about the candidate's ability to lead a high-performing enterprise customer success team.

Questions to Guide the Debrief Meeting

Does anyone have any questions for the other interviewers about the candidate?

Guidance: The meeting facilitator should initially present themselves as neutral and try not to sway the conversation before others have a chance to speak up.

Are there any additional comments about the Candidate?

Guidance: This is an opportunity for all the interviewers to share anything they learned that is important for the other interviewers to know about the candidate's customer success leadership experience or skills.

Based on the candidate's experience and interview responses, how likely are they to achieve the goal of a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year?

Guidance: Discuss specific examples from the candidate's past performance in driving customer satisfaction metrics and their strategies for achieving high NPS and CSAT scores in an enterprise environment.

How well-equipped is the candidate to develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base?

Guidance: Consider the candidate's track record of implementing innovative customer success strategies and their ability to drive adoption and value realization for complex enterprise customers.

Is there anything further we need to investigate before making a decision?

Guidance: Based on this discussion, you may decide to probe further on certain issues with the candidate or explore specific issues in the reference calls, particularly around their leadership style or ability to drive enterprise customer success.

Has anyone changed their hire/no-hire recommendation?

Guidance: This is an opportunity for the interviewers to change their recommendation based on the new information they learned in this meeting about the candidate's fit for the Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role.

If the consensus is no hire, should the candidate be considered for other roles? If so, what roles?

Guidance: Discuss whether engaging with the candidate about a different role in customer success or account management would be worthwhile.

What are the next steps?

Guidance: If there is no consensus, follow the process for that situation (e.g., it is the hiring manager's decision). Further investigation may be needed before making the decision. If there is a consensus on hiring, reference checks could be the next step to verify the candidate's leadership and customer success experience.

Reference Checks

Directions for Conducting Reference Checks

When conducting reference checks for the Manager of Enterprise Customer Success role, aim to speak with former managers and colleagues who have directly worked with the candidate in a customer success leadership capacity. Explain that their feedback will be kept confidential and used to help make a hiring decision. Ask the same core questions to each reference for consistency, but feel free to ask follow-up questions based on their responses to gain deeper insights into the candidate's ability to lead a high-performing enterprise customer success team.

Questions for Reference Checks

In what capacity did you work with [Candidate Name], and for how long?

Guidance:

Establish the context of the professional relationship
Determine the reference's ability to speak to the candidate's customer success leadership skills

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How closely did you work together on enterprise customer success initiatives?
Were you directly involved in overseeing their performance as a customer success leader?

Can you describe [Candidate Name]'s primary responsibilities in their customer success leadership role?

Guidance:

Verify the candidate's claims about their previous role
Understand the scope and complexity of their enterprise customer success experience

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What was the size and structure of the team they managed?
What types of enterprise customers were they responsible for?

How would you rate [Candidate Name]'s performance in leading their customer success team compared to other leaders in similar roles?

Guidance:

Get specific metrics or rankings if possible
Understand their team's performance in customer satisfaction, retention, and expansion

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What were their team's average NPS and CSAT scores?
How did their team's performance in customer retention and expansion compare to other teams?

Can you give an example of a particularly complex or challenging enterprise customer situation that [Candidate Name] successfully navigated?

Guidance:

Assess the candidate's ability to handle complex enterprise customer relationships
Understand their strategic approach to customer success challenges

Possible Follow-up Questions:

How did they involve their team in resolving this situation?
What strategies did they use to ensure a positive outcome?

How would you describe [Candidate Name]'s approach to developing and implementing new customer success strategies?

Guidance:

Evaluate the candidate's ability to innovate and drive improvements in customer success
Understand their skills in strategic planning and execution

Possible Follow-up Questions:

Can you provide an example of a successful strategy they implemented?
How did they measure the impact of their new strategies?

How effective was [Candidate Name] at using data and analytics to drive decision-making and improve customer outcomes?

Guidance:

Assess the candidate's analytical skills and data-driven approach
Understand their ability to translate data insights into actionable strategies

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What tools or technologies did they use for data analysis?
Can you give an example of a data-driven decision that led to improved customer outcomes?

On a scale of 1-10, how likely would you be to hire [Candidate Name] again if you had an appropriate enterprise customer success leadership role available? Why?

Guidance:

Get a clear, quantifiable measure of the reference's overall impression
Understand the reasoning behind their rating

Possible Follow-up Questions:

What would make you rate them higher?
In what type of customer success environment do you think they would thrive most as a leader?

Reference Check Scorecard

Verification of Role and Responsibilities

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Significant discrepancies with candidate's claims about leadership role
2: Some minor discrepancies in described responsibilities
3: Mostly aligns with candidate's claims about leadership experience
4: Fully verifies and expands on candidate's customer success leadership claims

Team Leadership and Development

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Struggled to effectively lead and develop team members
2: Adequate team management skills with some areas for improvement
3: Strong track record of leading and developing high-performing customer success teams
4: Exceptional leader who consistently inspires and grows top talent

Enterprise Customer Success Performance

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Team consistently underperformed on customer success metrics
2: Team occasionally met customer success targets
3: Team consistently met or exceeded customer satisfaction and retention goals
4: Led industry-leading team performance in customer satisfaction, retention, and expansion

Strategic Thinking and Execution

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Primarily focused on day-to-day operations with little strategic planning
2: Developed basic strategies but struggled with execution
3: Consistently developed and implemented effective customer success strategies
4: Exceptional strategist who drove transformative improvements in customer success

Enterprise Customer Engagement

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Struggled to effectively engage with enterprise customers
2: Maintained adequate relationships with some enterprise customers
3: Consistently developed strong relationships with key enterprise accounts
4: Masterful at cultivating deep, lasting partnerships with strategic enterprise customers

Data Analysis and Decision Making

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Rarely used data to inform decision-making
2: Basic use of data and analytics with room for improvement
3: Consistently used data to drive decisions and improve customer outcomes
4: Advanced analytical skills, leveraging data to drive industry-leading customer success innovations

Innovation in Customer Success

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Rarely contributed new ideas or improvements
2: Occasionally implemented minor process improvements
3: Regularly developed and implemented innovative customer success strategies
4: Consistently drove groundbreaking innovations that significantly improved customer outcomes

Overall Recommendation from Reference

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Would not rehire (1-3 on scale)
2: Might rehire (4-6 on scale)
3: Would likely rehire (7-8 on scale)
4: Would definitely rehire (9-10 on scale)

Goal: Achieve a team Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 50+ and a customer satisfaction (CSAT) score of 90% or higher within the first year.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to achieve target customer satisfaction scores
2: May partially achieve customer satisfaction targets
3: Likely to achieve target NPS and CSAT scores
4: Likely to exceed target NPS and CSAT scores

Goal: Increase the team's overall customer retention rate to 95% and expansion rate to 110% within 18 months.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to improve retention and expansion rates
2: May achieve partial improvement in retention and expansion
3: Likely to achieve target retention and expansion rates
4: Likely to exceed target retention and expansion rates

Goal: Develop and implement at least two new scalable customer success strategies that demonstrably improve adoption and value realization across the enterprise customer base.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to develop effective new strategies
2: May develop partially effective strategies
3: Likely to develop and implement effective, scalable strategies
4: Likely to develop highly innovative and impactful strategies

Goal: Reduce the average time-to-value for enterprise customers by 20% through improved onboarding and adoption processes.

0: Not Enough Information Gathered to Evaluate
1: Unlikely to impact time-to-value
2: May achieve some reduction in time-to-value
3: Likely to achieve 20% reduction in time-to-value
4: Likely to exceed 20% reduction in time-to-value

Frequently Asked Questions

How can I assess a candidate's ability to lead a customer success team?

Look for examples of how the candidate has developed and motivated team members in previous roles. Ask about their coaching philosophy and how they've handled challenging team situations. Pay attention to their responses in the "Team Leadership and Development" section of the hiring manager interview. Our article on how to identify top sales leaders in the interview process offers valuable insights that can be applied to customer success leadership as well.

What's the best way to evaluate strategic thinking skills in the context of customer success?

Focus on the candidate's ability to develop and implement scalable strategies for driving customer adoption, satisfaction, and retention. Use the strategic review meeting work sample to assess their ability to analyze complex situations and propose strategic solutions. Our guide on finding and hiring for grit among sales candidates provides insights on assessing persistence and long-term thinking that are also relevant to customer success roles.

How do I gauge a candidate's analytical problem-solving abilities?

Look for candidates who can effectively use data and analytics to drive decision-making and improve customer outcomes. Ask for specific examples of how they've used data to identify trends, risks, or opportunities in their previous roles. The "Data Analysis and Decision Making" section of the reference check can provide valuable insights. Our article on mastering sales hiring with data-backed candidate profiles offers strategies that can be adapted for assessing analytical skills in customer success candidates.

What strategies can I use to assess adaptability in enterprise customer success candidates?

Ask about times when the candidate had to adjust their approach to meet changing customer needs or market conditions. Look for evidence of their ability to learn quickly and apply new strategies. The behavioral competency interview is particularly useful for assessing adaptability. Our blog post on interviewing sellers for adaptability provides insights that are equally applicable to customer success roles.

How can I determine if a candidate can effectively manage high-value enterprise relationships?

Focus on the candidate's experience in engaging with C-level stakeholders and their ability to act as an executive sponsor for key accounts. Ask for specific examples of how they've navigated complex enterprise relationships in the past. The executive interview stage is particularly useful for assessing this competency. Our article on how to find sales candidates who can prepare, organize and plan complex sales offers strategies that can be adapted for assessing enterprise relationship management skills.

What's the most effective way to conduct the strategic review meeting work sample?

Provide clear instructions and realistic background information to the candidate in advance. During the exercise, pay attention to their preparation, data analysis skills, strategic thinking, and communication abilities. Use the scorecard to evaluate their performance objectively. Our guide on mastering role-playing interviews offers tips that can be applied to conducting effective customer success simulations.

How should I evaluate a candidate's cross-functional collaboration skills?

Look for examples of how the candidate has worked effectively with other departments like Sales, Product, and Professional Services. Ask about their strategies for aligning different stakeholders and resolving conflicts. The "Cross-Functional Collaboration" section of the hiring manager interview and the reference checks can provide valuable insights. Our blog post on elevating sales leadership discusses the importance of collaboration skills that are equally relevant in customer success leadership.

What red flags should I look out for during the interview process?

Be cautious of candidates who can't provide specific examples of past successes, struggle to articulate their customer success strategies, or show a lack of preparation for the strategic review meeting work sample. Also, watch for signs of inflexibility, poor listening skills, or an inability to balance customer needs with business objectives. Our article on 9 simple ways to avoid failed sales hires offers insights on red flags that can be applied to customer success hires as well.

How can I use this guide to compare candidates consistently?

Use the scorecards provided for each interview stage to evaluate all candidates against the same criteria. Take detailed notes and complete the scorecards immediately after each interview. During the debrief meeting, focus on comparing candidates' scores and specific examples rather than general impressions. Our blog post on why you should use structured interview when hiring explains the benefits of this approach.

What should I do if a candidate doesn't have direct enterprise customer success experience?

Focus on transferable skills such as leadership, strategic thinking, and customer relationship management. Look for evidence of success in similar roles or industries and the ability to learn quickly. Consider their potential for growth and how their unique background might bring fresh perspectives to the role. Our article on how to construct the ideal candidate profile to improve sales hiring provides insights on identifying key competencies that can be applied to customer success roles.