Mastering CS: Candid Leader Insights

Ep 59 | Ebba Klementsson

20 min · 12. mai 2026
episode Ep 59 | Ebba Klementsson cover

Beskrivelse

In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas [https://www.linkedin.com/in/irinabucurenciu/], Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Ebba Klementsson [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ebba-klementsson-74376292/], Customer Success Manager at Refapp, a platform that helps companies streamline their reference checking process. Ebba shares how her background in recruitment and HR shaped her approach to Customer Success, what it was like building a CS function from scratch in an early-stage company, and how customer segmentation, accountability, and operational structure evolve as a business scales. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ How a recruitment and HR background strengthens a CS practice ☑️ What building a CS function from zero looks like in an early-stage company ☑️ Why talking to customers should come before building process and structure ☑️ How customer segmentation evolves from 50 to 1,500 clients ☑️ How to create accountability in a flat team without relying on titles ☑️ What traits are non-negotiable when hiring for CS at Refapp ☑️ Where customers struggle most with behavioral change—and how CS can help ☑️ What Ebba would ask if she ran a reference check on her own CS function ---- 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 Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://custify.com/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://linkedin.com/company/custify] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://twitter.com/custifysrl] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/Custify/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠ [https://www.custify.com/contact]

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Alle episoder

70 Episoder

episode Ep 70 | Katrin Loodus cover

Ep 70 | Katrin Loodus

In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas [https://www.linkedin.com/in/irinabucurenciu/], Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Katrin Loodus [https://www.linkedin.com/in/katrinloodus/], Customer Success Manager in the cybersecurity space. After more than a decade with the same organization, Katrin shares how working across multiple roles shaped her approach to Customer Success, why deep product and organizational knowledge help her serve customers more effectively, and how AI is helping her save time while delivering more value. She also discusses a personal social engineering incident that changed her perspective on cybersecurity and the human skills that will remain essential as AI continues to evolve. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ How working across multiple roles creates a stronger CS foundation ☑️ The advantages of deep product and organizational knowledge ☑️ How cybersecurity readiness is measured beyond training completion ☑️ What a real-world social engineering attempt taught Katrin about security ☑️ Practical ways AI can automate and improve Customer Success work ☑️ How to communicate customer needs more effectively to product teams ☑️ Which skills will remain valuable as AI transforms Customer Success ☑️ Why curiosity and continuous learning matter more than ever ---- 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 Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://custify.com/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://linkedin.com/company/custify] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://twitter.com/custifysrl] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/Custify/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠ [https://www.custify.com/contact]

18. juni 202618 min
episode Ep 69 | Nir Kalish cover

Ep 69 | Nir Kalish

In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas [https://www.linkedin.com/in/irinabucurenciu/], Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Nir Kalish [https://www.linkedin.com/in/nirkalish/], VP of Customer Success at BlinkOps, an AI platform that helps security teams automate their operations at scale. Coming from a company where AI is the product itself, Nir offers a unique perspective on the future of Customer Success. He shares why white-glove CS cannot be replaced by AI agents, how BlinkOps uses its own platform to build internal CS tools, and how he approaches the build-versus-buy decision in a world where anyone can create software with AI. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ How BlinkOps structures its Customer Success and Support teams ☑️ Why an AI company still invests heavily in human Customer Success ☑️ What AI can—and cannot—do in a white-glove CS environment ☑️ How BlinkOps uses its own platform to build internal CS tools and agents ☑️ Why over-relying on AI can be as risky as ignoring it ☑️ How Nir approaches the build-versus-buy decision for CS technology ☑️ What CSM-to-customer ratios look like with and without AI assistance ☑️ Why some roles may be disrupted by AI while Customer Success remains essential ---- 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 Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://custify.com/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://linkedin.com/company/custify] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://twitter.com/custifysrl] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/Custify/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠ [https://www.custify.com/contact]

16. juni 202626 min
episode Ep 68 | Alexandra Ardelean cover

Ep 68 | Alexandra Ardelean

In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas [https://www.linkedin.com/in/irinabucurenciu/], Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Alexandra Ardelean [https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexandra-ardelean/], Senior Customer Success Manager at BigTime, a professional service automation platform for project-based businesses. Alexandra brings a uniquely diverse background to Customer Success, combining a design degree, Lean Black Belt certification, and years of operational experience—including time spent as a customer of the very platform she now supports. She shares what post-acquisition CS integration looks like in practice, why localizing playbooks requires human expertise beyond AI prompts, and why patience remains one of the most important skills she continues to develop. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ What CS looks like during a post-acquisition integration—and what the role involves day to day ☑️ Why localizing CS playbooks requires cultural knowledge, not just AI prompts ☑️ How cultural differences between the US, Eastern Europe, and Poland affect CS interactions ☑️ Why being a former customer gives Alexandra a unique advantage as a CSM ☑️ How call transcripts and AI help surface insights for product discussions ☑️ What “form follows function” means in Customer Success ☑️ How Alexandra applies Lean principles when building CS processes from scratch ☑️ Why patience is a critical professional skill—and one she’s still developing ---- 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 Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://custify.com/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://linkedin.com/company/custify] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://twitter.com/custifysrl] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/Custify/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠ [https://www.custify.com/contact]

11. juni 202623 min
episode Ep 67 | Silviana Prodan cover

Ep 67 | Silviana Prodan

In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas [https://www.linkedin.com/in/irinabucurenciu/], Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Silvana Prodan [https://www.linkedin.com/in/prodan/], Team Lead Customer Success at Bloomflow, a platform that helps large organizations deploy and manage their innovation programs. Silvana brings a unique background to Customer Success, combining a PhD in communication, a career in conference interpreting, and experience working across German-, French-, and English-speaking clients. She shares how these experiences shape her approach to enterprise relationships, navigating champion and sponsor dynamics, and balancing AI tools with critical thinking. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ What Customer Success looks like inside an innovation platform serving global enterprises ☑️ How Silvana’s background in languages, interpreting, and research influences her client approach ☑️ How to manage champion and sponsor relationships without losing trust ☑️ What strong adoption looks like beyond login metrics—and how to track data quality ☑️ How Silvana uses AI and automation to create more time for critical thinking ☑️ What was hardest about transitioning from project management into CS ☑️ What advice Silvana would give to someone considering a career in Customer Success ---- 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 Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://custify.com/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://linkedin.com/company/custify] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://twitter.com/custifysrl] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/Custify/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠ [https://www.custify.com/contact]

9. juni 202619 min
episode Ep 66 | Anne LiCata cover

Ep 66 | Anne LiCata

In this episode of the podcast, Irina Cismas [https://www.linkedin.com/in/irinabucurenciu/], Head of Marketing at Custify, sits down with Anne LiCata [https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-licata-4a19163/], VP of Customer Success at Huma.AI, an AI-powered analytics platform for pharma and life science teams. Anne shares what it takes to drive adoption of AI in highly regulated organizations, why traditional SaaS metrics often fail to capture AI value, and why she believes AI may transform customer service but will never replace Customer Success. What You’ll Learn: ☑️ What Customer Success looks like inside an AI-powered pharma analytics startup ☑️ Why change management is the biggest challenge when introducing AI to life science teams ☑️ How Anne builds trust with customers moving away from long-established manual processes ☑️ Why traditional SaaS metrics fall short when measuring AI product value ☑️ How Anne uses AI in her day-to-day work—and where she draws the line ☑️ What skills matter most when hiring for CS in an AI and life science environment ☑️ Why Anne believes AI will replace customer service but not Customer Success ☑️ What getting back to basics means—and why it still works ---- 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 Website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://custify.com/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://linkedin.com/company/custify] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://twitter.com/custifysrl] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Facebook⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/Custify/] * ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Contact Us⁠ [https://www.custify.com/contact]

4. juni 202623 min