Customer Success Manager Training Program (CSM)
Our Customer Success Manager training program redefines what it means to excel in Customer Success Management. Built on rigorous industry standards and informed by the latest employment trends, our curriculum dives beyond surface-level theory. It equips you with practical, immediately applicable skills honed through hands-on exercises, real-world case studies, and expert-led discussions.
From foundational principles to cutting-edge methodologies, every element is designed to empower you to deliver measurable value, stand out in the marketplace, and shape the future of customer success.
The program is hybrid. You will progress both at your own pace but also have direct, human feedback on your assignments and quizzes before you can progress to the next module.
Key Features
Hybrid Model: You progress at your own pace with live office hours and assignment feedback.
Standards & Competencies: Entire curriculum based on CSM standards, competencies, and professional CSM skill development.
Leadership Development: Integrated sessions to cultivate leadership and influence-building skills.
Practical Applications: Case studies, role-playing, and group activities for real-world scenarios.
Job-Ready Curriculum: Emphasis on emerging technologies, job-ready competencies, and integration of key CSM tasks.

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How Does This Training Differ From Others?We differentiate our training in several ways: Alignment with current (and future) employer needs Alignment and contribution to industry-led competency standards A complete, up-to-date program that includes a structured weekly live training, group activities, AMA's, research, and assignments in small cohorts A rigorous, 180-question exam based on course content, current standards, and best practices. A 70% passing score is required to earn the certification Taught by current and former Enterprise Customer Success Managers Current content, kept up to date, and maintained according to IACET standards Content measured against changing CSM trends
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What Are The Traits of a Customer Success Manager?If you are not already a Customer Success Manager, you might wonder what makes this a good career choice. After a lot of experience, here are some traits that are common in successful CSM's. Traits are those things that are inherent in your personality; they typically are hard to teach but come naturally to you. Genuine Empathy: A natural ability to intuitively understand and connect with others’ feelings, making customers feel truly heard and valued. This is critical. You need to care for the sake of caring. Authentic Integrity: An inherent honesty and moral grounding that customers can trust without question, fostering genuine, long-lasting relationships. Innate Curiosity: A built-in drive to constantly explore new ideas, solutions, and perspectives, enabling proactive support tailored to each customer’s unique challenges. Resilient Optimism: A persistent and uplifting attitude that remains steady even when facing setbacks, helping customers feel confident and supported throughout their journey. Natural Adaptability: An effortless ability to adjust on the fly, embracing change and evolving customer needs without hesitation, ensuring continual growth and improvement in service delivery. Product Nerd: In order to succeed in Customer Success, you will need to be a product nerd. What is that? It's a genuine fascination and interest in the product you are working with. As a CSM professional, part of your role is to act as consultant for your customers and if you have no passion or interest for your product, then you will find it very difficult to help your customers succeed. Business Nerd: Your customers (Stakeholders especially) want to grow their business. As a CSM, you are not just there to exist, you are there to help them achieve their business goals, regardless of the product, and that's where you need to be both interested in and fascinated with business and how it works.
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What/Who is the Customer Success Institute?The Customer Success Institute, LLC. is the business that provides the Customer Success Manager (CSM) training, and the Certified Customer Success Manager (CCSMP) certification exam. We are not a membership or standards body, however we do adhere and contribute to, CSM standards as the industry changes; our training and accredited certification will both adhere to standards as well as help advance (and influence) the career path for CSMs. We are in the process of obtaining additional credentialing accreditation from the IACET board of continuing education to solidify our certification as an industry standard, recognized by employers and supported by industry experts and standards bodies.
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What Are The Benefits of Certification?Becoming certified as a Customer Success Manager (CSM) provides a range of advantages that can positively impact both your professional development and your organization’s relationships with clients. Some key benefits include: Establishing Credibility and Trust: Having a recognized certification helps demonstrate that you’ve invested in formal training and have met industry standards for customer success competencies. This can bolster trust with customers, making them more receptive to your advice and guidance. Demonstrating Proven Expertise: Certifications usually cover core principles, methodologies, and best practices, ensuring you’re well-versed in current industry trends. This breadth of knowledge helps you provide more informed strategies and insights that lead to better customer outcomes. Enhancing Career Prospects: As organizations increasingly value the Customer Success function, certified professionals often stand out in the job market. Employers view certification as evidence of commitment and capability, which can result in more job opportunities, promotions, and potentially higher compensation. Improving Customer Outcomes and Satisfaction: By applying refined skills and industry-standard frameworks, you’ll be better equipped to identify customer challenges early, proactively address issues, and drive value realization. This leads to stronger customer relationships, higher retention rates, and improved loyalty. Aligning with Best Practices and Standards: Many certification programs ensure their curriculum is regularly updated to reflect evolving trends and technologies. This helps you stay current and continuously improve how you approach customer onboarding, product adoption, and renewals. Fostering Continuous Professional Growth: The certification journey often includes ongoing learning and community engagement through conferences, webinars, and workshops. You’ll connect with fellow professionals, share experiences, and gain access to cutting-edge tools and techniques that strengthen your practice over time. Overall, certification not only underscores your competence but also equips you with the knowledge, frameworks, and credibility to excel in customer success management—ultimately benefiting both your career trajectory and the customers you serve.
The CSM Course Outline
The CSM course is structured into modules. Each module has a full training video, recommended readings and research, an assignment to complete, and a mini-exam. There are also PDF downloads that come with each module. Download the brochure.
You will also be invited to Slack where you can interact with the instructor, ask question, get help, and join live “office hours”. Each module builds on the foundations of Customer Success, Business fundamentals, and advanced topics. The curriculum is continually refreshed for the most up-to-date material. Below you will find an outline of the current offering:
Module 1: Business Strategy Fundamentals
Learn the fundamentals of business strategy including outcomes, goals, planning, and consulting
Module 2: Foundations of Customer Success
Explore and learn the foundations of modern-day customer success to set the stage for advanced topics and modules
Module 3: Customer Lifecycle + Success Action Plans
Dive deep into the customer lifecycle, how it relates to business strategies and learn the success action plan
Module 4: Onboarding & Consultative Engagement
We learn the art and science of onboarding as it relates to business outcomes and focus on how to be consultative
Module 5: Health Scoring & Risk Management
Learn how to build, and implement customer health scoring models and tie this into risk management
Module 6: Retention, Expansion & Advocacy
We dive deep into retention, expansion and advocacy with a focus on the "how" and "why" + real world examples
Module 7: Strategic Collaboration & Influence
Understand and learn the fundamentals of strategic collaboration and how you apply this to help customers achieve their goals
Module 8: Tools & Data Metrics for CSMs
Learn about modern CSM tools & metrics that drive your success + apply them in all phases of the customer lifecycle
Module 9: Critical Thinking & Customer Scenarios
Dive deeper into critical thinking as a CSM and apply it to common customer scenarios
Module 10: Personalization & Advocacy in CS
Learn why (and how) personalization techniques can create trusted advocates
Module 11: Renewals & Negotiation
Learn and apply techniques for negotiating and driving renewals
Module 12: QBRs, CORs, Feedback & Advanced Practices
Understand and use QBRs + CORs + Metrics to have successful and productive customer meetings
Module 13: Leadership & Strategic Thinking
Apply the principles of strategic thinking to lead efforts as a CSM and become a strong leader
Module 14: Strategic Account Management
We dive deep into strategic account management, how it works, how to apply it, and why it leads to increased revenue recognition
Module 15: Long-Term Customer Value + Community
What is LCV? You will learn this fundamental concept and how to apply it to create strong, trusted advocates
Module 16: The AI-First CSM
Learn and apply modern-day AI tools to perform tasks at each stage of the customer lifecyle
Module 17: Scaling Customer Success Without Losing Impact
How does CS scale? You will dive deeper into this topic and apply it to keep personalization at the forefront
Module 18: Career Readiness & Certification
Get ready for the CSM exam and dive into how to find your first CSM role
CSM Training - Program Launching 7/1/25
The Certified Customer Success Manager program includes all 16 weeks of hybrid training and the certification exam. You get premium training aligned with industry competency standards, a rigorous certification exam, and job-ready skills along with proof of your training.

Comprehensive, End-to-End Curriculum

Rigorous Accredited Certification Exam & Recognition

Practical, Skills-Focused Approach
