Mastering CS: Candid Leader Insights

Custify | Customer Success

Welcome to Mastering CS – Candid Leader Insights, where I, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, take you on a journey into the depths of Customer Success. Each episode, I sit down with some of the most influential minds in the CS world, from seasoned managers and renowned influencers to dynamic team leaders, to uncover the challenges and opportunities that shape our profession. Our conversations are rich with insights, drawing on personal experiences and innovative ideas to offer practical solutions. Join me as we make every interaction count in the dynamic world of Customer Success!

  1. 2d ago

    Ep 102 | Talia Stryker

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Talia Stryker, Senior Enterprise Customer Success Manager at Clever, the platform that connects schools to their learning apps. Talia shares why adoption works best as a group project, how multithreading and equal business stature protect accounts through stakeholder turnover, how AI transcripts have made her the voice of the customer, and how she overcame imposter syndrome after leaving the classroom. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ Why adoption works best as a group project ☑️ How to protect accounts before a key contact leaves ☑️ How equal business stature helps you reach decision makers ☑️ How AI transcripts make technical conversations easier to handle ☑️ Why revenue is a lagging indicator of value ☑️ How to overcome imposter syndrome when changing careers ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

  2. 3d ago

    Ep 101 | Abdul Momen Khalid

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Abdul Momen Khalid, Head of Customer Success at Avaza, a platform that helps professional services teams manage projects, time, and invoicing. Momen joined Avaza as a Customer Success Associate and worked his way up to head of the department, now overseeing both retention and new business. He shares candidly how an automation-heavy setup turned customer conversations transactional, and how his team went back to the drawing board to focus on meaningful interactions instead of fixed outreach schedules. He also explains his frictionless approach to churn, why customers who leave to build in-house tools often come back, how his team runs CS on Avaza itself, and how AI handles tier-one support and product testing. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ How newsletters and in-app messages can bring customers to you ☑️ How to handle churn with confidence and without friction ☑️ Why customers who leave to build in-house tools often come back ☑️ How AI handles tier-one support, call summaries, and product testing ☑️ Why curiosity is the trait that sets high performers apart ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

  3. Nov 5

    Ep 100 | Ameer Khan

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Ameer Khan, Head of Customer Success at Mortgage Automator, a software platform for private lenders across North America. Six months into the role, Ameer is leading his team through the acquisition of a second lending platform and preparing to merge two CS teams into one. He shares how he documents goals for every stakeholder during onboarding, segments accounts by time and revenue, and uses AI to power handoff snapshots, health scores, and risk signals for low-touch customers. He also explains how to flag churn risk 90 days before renewal, why he forecasts three to four quarters out, how to say no to customers with transparency, and where to start when building internal alignment in a new organization. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ What an acquisition puts on a CS team’s plate and how to ramp up on a new platform ☑️ How to approach merging two CS teams with different day-to-day practices ☑️ What to document during onboarding for champions, sponsors, and day-to-day users ☑️ How to segment accounts into strategic, mid-market, and low-touch based on time and revenue ☑️ How AI supports handoffs, account snapshots, QBR decks, and risk signals ☑️ Why Ameer keeps automated health scores intentionally simple ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

  4. Oct 29

    Ep 99 | José Miguel Longo

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with José Miguel Longo, Enterprise Customer Success Manager at Gravyty, a platform that helps universities and nonprofits stay close to their alumni and donors. José spent more than 16 years in higher education before moving into SaaS. He explains why trust and transparency are the foundation of every partnership, why the customer journey starts with sales, and how detailed handoffs between sales, implementation, and CS set the stage for a strong kickoff. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ Why trust, transparency, and owning mistakes build stronger partnerships ☑️ Why the customer journey starts with sales, before onboarding begins ☑️ How to structure handoffs between sales, implementation, and CS ☑️ The questions to ask at kickoff to uncover goals for the first 90 to 120 days ☑️ How to use deeper discovery when customers can’t articulate their goals ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

  5. Oct 27

    Ep 98 | Melanie Faye

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Melanie Faye, Senior Customer Success Manager at Vidyard, a video platform for sales and marketing teams. Melanie explains how she segments her book of 140 inherited accounts into high-touch and low-touch, how she delivers value through nudges and tips instead of monthly calls, and why she does her homework before discovery so customers never have to repeat themselves. She also shares how setting expectations on both sides drives adoption, the curiosity-first approach behind three straight quarters of 100% renewals and six-figure expansion, and the Claude workflows she uses for email follow-ups, daily call prep, and customer benchmarking. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ How to segment a large book of business into high-touch and low-touch ☑️ How to deliver value without relying on monthly check-in calls ☑️ How to prepare for discovery calls on inherited accounts so customers don’t have to repeat themselves ☑️ What goal-based onboarding looks like at Vidyard ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

  6. Oct 22

    Ep 97 | Justin Camarata

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Justin Camarata, Principal Customer Success Manager at Invoca, a platform that helps revenue teams learn from their customer calls. Justin shares how he researches a customer’s business priorities before the relationship starts, why trust is built by showing up often and in person, and how he drives adoption with 30-, 60-, and 90-day milestones. He also explains how to prove ROI in executive business reviews without pitching a roadmap, the AI workflows he uses for data analysis, deck creation, and weekly engagement summaries, and the running advice that shapes how he starts every account: your first mile should be your slowest. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ How to keep dozens of enterprise stakeholders aligned on why they bought your product ☑️ How to research a customer’s business priorities using earnings reports and public materials ☑️ Why trust and in-person relationships are the foundation of enterprise CS ☑️ How to drive adoption with 30-, 60-, and 90-day milestones ☑️ How to prove ROI in executive business reviews without pitching a roadmap ☑️ Practical AI use cases for data analysis, deck creation, and weekly engagement summaries ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

  7. Oct 20

    Ep 96 | Cassandra Dehlot

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Cassandra Dehlot, Enterprise Customer Success Manager at Orca Security, an agentless cloud security platform. Cassandra walks through the AI workflows she built on top of her CS platform and CRM to draft meeting follow-ups, update success plans every Friday, prioritize risks, and analyze support tickets for hidden risk and expansion signals. She also shares how she structures her day around priorities instead of urgency, why EMEA teams should close Q4 by the first week of December, how milestone-based onboarding and success planning drive adoption, and what she learned building the first CS playbook for the French market at Procore. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ How an enterprise CSM structures the day to avoid getting lost in false urgency ☑️ What good onboarding looks like when milestones are set at the four-, six-, and eight-week marks ☑️ Why success planning is the key to adoption and easier renewals ☑️ Practical AI automations for follow-up emails, success plan updates, and support ticket analysis ☑️ How to build a CS playbook for a new market by adapting what already works ☑️ Why champions and early executive alignment matter in every industry ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

  8. Oct 12

    Ep 95 | Christina Cato

    In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Christina Cato, Customer Success Director at Kontakt.io, a real-time location platform for hospitals. Christina has spent her entire career in healthcare, first as a hospital analyst and quality program manager on the customer side, and now as the person responsible for ensuring large health systems get measurable value from their technology investments. She shares what adoption really means when your end users are clinical staff, how to build a business case in front of a CFO, and why data alone never tells the full story without the conversation behind it. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ What Kontakt.io does and what the CS Director role looks like across large health system accounts ☑️ Why adoption in healthcare means more than logging in and what it actually takes to get there ☑️ How Christina builds buy-in from both C-suite leaders and frontline clinical staff ☑️ What makes a compelling business case in front of a CFO in a tight budget environment ☑️ What the CS tool stack looks like at Kontakt.io and how Salesforce and Gong do the heavy lifting ---- With Custify, you can: ☑️ automate daily tasks through Playbooks ☑️ build individual customer #HealthScores ☑️ create customer segments ☑️ improve your customer communication strategy ☑️ streamline your onboarding process ☑️ track customers’ journeys every step of the way ☑️ get a 360 view of their progress Want to do great things with your customer success initiative? Keep in touch with us below: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Custify Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠

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Welcome to Mastering CS – Candid Leader Insights, where I, Irina Cismas, Head of Marketing at Custify, take you on a journey into the depths of Customer Success. Each episode, I sit down with some of the most influential minds in the CS world, from seasoned managers and renowned influencers to dynamic team leaders, to uncover the challenges and opportunities that shape our profession. Our conversations are rich with insights, drawing on personal experiences and innovative ideas to offer practical solutions. Join me as we make every interaction count in the dynamic world of Customer Success!

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