From end users to executive level customers

Narjes Evennou

I would like to know if you have had this evolution in your work as a CSM: to move from your "end-user/mid-level" interlocutors to "executive-level customers".

How did it go for you as a CSM? How did you build your relationship?

How did you prepare to have the talk about business instead of usage?

What was the most complex moment and how did you challenge it?

Many thanks in advance for sharing your experience.

kmulhalljr

The uptick in these engagements our team has had have been a direct result of recent (and upcoming) price increases in key product categories our customers request from us.

How did it go for you as a CSM? How did you build your relationship?

All the calls and subsequent activities have gone great. We've condensed the format of all meeting types and redesigned our SOPs (particularly knowing the limited bandwidth of C-level staff). It's these modified engagements that have themselves built the relationship. We laid out models that would spread interaction across all key departmental segments (IT, Operations, Finance, etc) with the goal to be to keep them educated/informed on only respective 'fire alarm' level issues.

How did you prepare to have the talk about business instead of usage?

We were fortunate that 'business', specifically finance, has forced these conversations to happen so the agenda has already been laid out. That said, we have taken advantage of the opportunity to convey how we could serve a bigger role supporting not just individual groups from an IT perspective but operationally as well.

What was the most complex moment and how did you challenge it?

Rebuffing 'utility' arguments. We consistently were hearing about how our customers needed to do the same (or more) with less. After allowing them time to convey their thoughts and general strategies we dug in on how their under-utilization of the tools they had at their disposal drove their inability to generate revenue, meet mission and programmatic targets and ultimately were the source of their shortcomings. Once we were able to wireframe how various operational changes could be integrated, the majority of Executives could clearly see how inefficiencies they overlooked (through no fault of their own necessarily) ate up valuable hours of staff time that could be reallocated to tackling other KPIs