# 7 | Accelerating Hybrid Cloud and AI with Customer Success
Meeting customers where they are, taking them to where they want to go
With subscription-based business models, unprecedented expectations for best-in-class experiences, and disruptive technologies taking the world by storm, software companies know that incumbency is not a birthright. If organizations are not delivering on the stated value proposition, it’s too easy for clients to leave the platform. This is where the Customer Success Manager (CSM) comes in. Yet, as I make my way to see clients and partners, the one question that consistently comes up in conversation is… “What is Customer Success?”. I’m realizing Customer Success is still a very misunderstood function and role.
Customer Success is a function to help clients adopt and achieve business outcomes with solutions. Customer Success is realized through people, practices, and technologies. The “people” doing the work is the Customer Success Manager (CSM). The practices include things like growth plans, deployment and usage roadmaps, QBRs, and some training on the product. Technology is the software or Cloud services you purchased.
At IBM, our CSMs work hard to earn client trust. They are technical architects that engage post-sales to help clients deploy and use IBM Hybrid Cloud and AI solutions. They also advocate for clients back into IBM. IBM CSMs engage with clients in many ways including, co-creating deployment roadmaps, designing and validating modern enterprise architectures, building MVPs, and guiding clients into production with business partners, IBM Expert Labs, and IBM Consulting teams. Once a client is deployed into production, IBM CSMs proactively guide usage for clients to get the full benefit of the solution to achieve desired outcomes.
Areas of IBM CSM Engagement:
IBM is no stranger to Customer Success. We’ve had a global Customer Success organization for a few years now. In 2021, we re-launched the mission and organization to support our customers who adopt the IBM Hybrid Cloud and AI Platform, with IBM Red Hat OpenShift as the cornerstone to our strategy.
IBM CSMs are a free resource to our customers on the Hybrid Cloud and AI journey. Yes, you read that correctly! We’ve made the investment because we know that architecture and workload transformation is hard. Customers need experts to call for help, to get advice, and to be with them every step of the way.
If you’d like to learn more, or if you’ve had an IBM CSM who’s helped you in your IBM Hybrid Cloud and AI journey, I’d love to hear from you! We’re on this journey together, and we’re committed to your success.
Janine