Sr. Customer Success Manager
At Instructure , we believe in the power of people to grow and succeed throughout their lives. Our goal is to amplify that power by creating intuitive products that simplify learning and personal development, facilitate meaningful relationships, and inspire people to go further in their education and careers.
We do this by giving smart, creative, passionate people opportunities to create awesome. And that's where you come in:
We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Sr. Customer Success Manager (CSM) to join our Strategic HigherEd CSM team. This role is crucial for managing and nurturing relationships with our strategic members. The ideal candidate will possess a high-caliber skill set, a proven track record in strategic customer success, and the ability to drive engagement, adoption, and retention for a large base of key accounts. This individual will act as a trusted advisor, leveraging data and strategic planning to ensure our strategic members achieve maximum value from our platform.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Customer Success Management
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Develop and execute strategic account plans to secure the health, growth, and retention of a portfolio of strategic members.
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Own regular strategic executive business reviews (EBRs) with key stakeholders to align on goals, review performance, and identify expansion opportunities.
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Monitor customer health metrics, identify risks early, and develop mitigation strategies before issues escalate.
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Serve as the primary point of contact for strategic members, ensuring seamless communication and a consistently positive customer experience.
Working smarter with AI
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Use generative AI tools to strengthen account knowledge, sharpen signal detection, and reduce time spent on administrative work, so you can spend more time on strategic customer conversations.
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Bring new workflows and tools to the team.
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Partner with CS leadership to identify where AI-augmented approaches can replace reactive, late-stage interventions with earlier, more strategic engagement.
Driving Product Adoption and Value
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Deeply understand each strategic member's business objectives, workflows, and desired outcomes to tailor success plans.
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Drive product adoption and utilization across member organizations by providing strategic guidance and best practices.
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Collaborate with Product Management to relay member feedback and advocate for improvements that benefit strategic users.
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Share industry trends, emerging EdTech benchmarks, and peer-customer success stories to inspire strategic adoption.
Retention and Growth
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Own the strategic health and growth trajectory of your portfolio, partnering closely with dedicated Renewal Reps, who lead the commercial renewal process.
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Identify opportunities for upselling and cross-selling within existing strategic accounts and partner with the Sales team to drive these opportunities.
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Maintain accurate and up-to-date documentation of all member interactions, success plans, and forecasts in the CRM.
Qualifications
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Bachelor’s degree in Business, Education, Technology, or related field.
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Five or more years of progressive experience in Customer Success, Account Management, or Sales within a SaaS environment; EdTech experience strongly preferred.
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Proven success managing a substantial book of business and driving revenue outcomes through renewals, upsells, and expansions (e.g., portfolios of $3M+ annually).
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Experience using generative AI tools (e.g., ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot) to scale customer communication, analyze churn data, and optimize account management workflows.
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Exceptional communication, executive presence, and ability to influence stakeholders at all levels, including senior university leadership.
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Strong proficiency with key operational tools (Salesforce, Gainsight, JIRA, Tableau, MS Office Suite).
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Demonstrated ability to thrive in a high-growth, fast-paced environment, balancing strategic thinking with t