InnerVentures

  • State of Customer Success 2018

    I attended Pulse Europe (the 4th) on the 8-9th November, an event run by Gainsight, a Customer Success (CS) technology vendor. They run the larger, main event in the US and I had the pleasure of attending last year where I captured the State of Customer Success 2017. So this is a timely update with…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • An explorers guide to the new era of work

    The explorer There’s a long list of traits prevalent in the explorer, people that are naturally inclined to overcoming challenges and seeking new discoveries in any field, place or time. Those traits that stand out for me are the joy of mastering new skills or knowledge, an insatiable desire for uncovering truth and new things…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • SaaS beyond Software – Automakers

    The auto industry needs Customer Success managers. Geoffrey Moore, famed author of Crossing the Chasm and father of Moore’s law is writing a new book on Customer Success. This slide above comes from a talk where he is quoted applying the concept of customer success to manufacturing. I applied the same thinking in this blog…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • Agile in nature not just by name

    Satya Nadella (CEO of Microsoft where I work) recently shared his thoughts on how organisations need to embrace “tech intensity” to innovate and grow in today’s high-intensity digital economy. He didn’t specifically call out speed but its implicit in everything he said. I’m surrounded in the work I do at Microsoft, by IT teams that…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • Role of Sales in Customer Success and 6 rules to guide you

    How many times in your role as a customer success manager working with customers, have you struggled with the solution you are trying to implement where it has not been sold right? By solution I mean what is constituted in the solution selling process (products and services, solving problems or needs and/or delivering specific business…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • Why customer experience and success share the same roof

    There is a fundamental premise I make in the new eBook / trend report I am working on captured in the title. Yet I’ve taken part in debates on LinkedIn that show there are divisions in opinion. Separatist thinking even. Some think that customer success (CS) is the new kid on the block and muscling…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • The Customer Success Team Maturity Model

    NOTE: The thinking behind this model applies predominantly to enterprise SaaS operations. It also applies to the maturity of your customer success team, not the customer’s maturity in relation to their use of your product or their interactions with you. I’ve already written about the phases of the model above in this post: Customer experience,…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • The connected car vision is missing a few connections

    The connected car is the future for automotive companies. There is a lot going on in this space. I know because in my business, I have several customers in the industry. But you don’t need to be in the business to know. I recently purchased a car. It’s connected and awesome, I’m impressed. But my…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • Role of purpose and intent in customer success

    How do you begin to assess how successful you are likely to be with your customers ahead of the customer success journey? Taking this approach, perhaps you can even determine if you should embark on the journey or not. A good place to start is probably the end point. Stephen R Covey, author of the…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • Measuring customer success one advocate at a time

    Creating customer advocates is a measure of customer success by some. Not enough though, in my view. I have a view because I’ve helped create a fair share of advocates. Just recently three of my customers got up on stage and spoke at a large event to other customers and prospects. I’ve also had the…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • 5 usage and adoption heuristics for customer success

    I wanted to capture some simple rules of thumb that I could use to easily remember the top line influences on my work in customer success. I created a doodle to make it fun and memorable (for me) but also shareable. I came up with these 5. I’m sure there are more. These would only…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • Success Hacking

    Success Hacking takes a very experimental and evidence based approach to achieving outcomes. Target. Do. Observe. Learn. Many of the activities I have pursued in my life were conducted in this spirit. I’ve tried to capture them as portfolio projects. Some were not successful per se but the learning in every case was. Which I…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • The customer’s success is crucial to yours and begins with mindset

    I’m surprised more organisations haven’t cottoned on. Focusing on making customers successful with the use of your products or services. Understanding that this success drives your success. Understanding the drivers of success and amplifying these. You’d think organisations would have armies focused on this. They talk about it enough. Think of product demo’s you have…

    Stephen Danelutti

  • Customer experience, the subscription economy and 10 ways success teams will make you win

    The Subscription Economy Advances in technology, economic pressures and shifting cultural norms mean new models of ownership are gaining attention in many industries. People are increasingly interested in consuming and paying for temporary or limited access to goods and services, rather than purchasing them outright. Subscription-based models in which companies offer ongoing access to a…

    Stephen Danelutti