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Customer Success Playbooks

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Source~/.copilot/skills/exec/references/cs-playbooks.md
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Customer Success Playbooks

Comprehensive intervention, onboarding, renewal, expansion, and escalation playbooks for SaaS customer success management.

Risk Tier Intervention Playbooks

Critical Risk (Score 80-100)

Situation: Customer is at imminent risk of churn. Multiple severe warning signals detected. Requires immediate executive-level intervention.

Timeline: Act within 48 hours.

Steps:

  1. Executive Escalation (Day 0)

    • Alert VP of Customer Success and account executive immediately
    • Brief internal leadership on situation, warning signals, and ARR at risk
    • Identify any pending support issues and fast-track resolution

  2. Customer Contact (Day 1-2)

    • Schedule executive-to-executive call (VP CS to customer VP/C-level)
    • Frame the conversation around understanding their challenges, not defending your product
    • Listen more than talk — capture the real objections

  3. Save Plan Creation (Day 2-3)

    • Create a detailed save plan with specific value milestones tied to their business outcomes
    • Include timeline, owners, and measurable success criteria
    • Get internal alignment on any concessions (pricing, features, roadmap commitments)

  4. Rescue Team Assignment (Day 3-5)

    • Assign a dedicated rescue team: CSM + Solutions Engineer + Support Lead
    • Daily internal stand-up (15 min max) on account status
    • Solutions Engineer to conduct technical health check

  5. Execution and Monitoring (Week 2-4)

    • Execute save plan with weekly customer check-ins
    • Track progress against milestones
    • Prepare competitive displacement defence if competitor involvement detected

  6. Resolution Assessment (Week 4)

    • Evaluate whether the situation is stabilising
    • If improving: transition to High-risk monitoring cadence
    • If not improving: escalate to CEO/GM for final intervention

Success Criteria: Risk score drops below 60 within 30 days. Customer confirms continued partnership intent.

High Risk (Score 60-79)

Situation: Customer showing clear signs of dissatisfaction or disengagement. Still salvageable with focused CSM intervention.

Timeline: Act within 1 week.

Steps:

  1. Root Cause Analysis (Day 1-3)

    • Review all health score dimensions to identify the primary drivers
    • Pull support ticket history for patterns
    • Check product usage trends for the past 90 days

  2. CSM Outreach (Day 3-5)

    • Schedule a dedicated call with the customer (not a routine check-in)
    • Open with empathy: “I’ve noticed some changes and want to make sure we’re supporting you properly”
    • Identify the top 3 customer concerns

  3. 30-Day Recovery Plan (Day 5-7)

    • Build a 30-day recovery plan with measurable checkpoints every week
    • Include specific actions for each concern identified
    • Share the plan with the customer for mutual commitment

  4. Re-Engage Executive Sponsor (Week 2)

    • Request a meeting with the executive sponsor
    • Align on business outcomes and how your product supports them
    • Confirm continued sponsorship and address any political changes

  5. Support Fast-Track (Ongoing)

    • Escalate any pending support tickets internally
    • Assign a support point of contact for this account
    • Provide weekly status updates on open issues

  6. Progress Review (Week 3-4)

    • Review all metrics for improvement
    • Adjust plan if specific interventions are not working
    • If score drops to Critical: escalate to executive playbook

Success Criteria: Risk score drops below 40 within 30 days. No new warning signals emerge.

Medium Risk (Score 40-59)

Situation: Early warning signs detected. Customer may not be aware of emerging issues. Proactive outreach prevents escalation.

Timeline: Act within 2 weeks.

Steps:

  1. Data Review (Day 1-5)

    • Analyse which dimension(s) are pulling the score down
    • Review recent support interactions for sentiment clues
    • Check for any known product issues affecting this customer

  2. Proactive Check-In (Week 1-2)

    • Schedule a “value check-in” call (position it as routine, not reactive)
    • Share relevant success stories from similar customers
    • Propose a training session or product walkthrough for underutilised features

  3. Value Reinforcement (Week 2-3)

    • Send a customised ROI summary showing value delivered
    • Highlight feature releases relevant to their use case
    • Connect them with your customer community or user group

  4. Monitoring (Week 3-4)

    • Increase monitoring frequency to bi-weekly
    • Watch for improvement or continued decline
    • If declining: move to High-risk playbook

Success Criteria: Score stabilises above 50 or improves. No escalation to High risk.

Low Risk (Score 0-39)

Situation: Customer is healthy. Standard success cadence applies. Focus on value reinforcement and expansion readiness.

Timeline: Standard touch cadence.

Steps:

  1. Maintain Cadence

    • Enterprise: Monthly strategic reviews, quarterly QBRs
    • Mid-Market: Bi-monthly check-ins, semi-annual reviews
    • SMB: Quarterly automated health updates, annual review

  2. Proactive Communication

    • Share product updates and release notes
    • Invite to webinars, conferences, and community events
    • Share relevant industry insights and benchmarks

  3. Expansion Readiness

    • Monitor for expansion signals (usage approaching limits, new use cases)
    • Prepare expansion proposals when timing is right
    • Position premium features and modules relevant to their needs

  4. Renewal Preparation

    • Begin renewal preparation 90 days before contract end
    • Build renewal proposal with value delivered summary
    • Identify any terms or pricing adjustments needed

Success Criteria: Customer remains in Green classification. Expansion conversations initiated when appropriate.

Onboarding Playbook

Phase 1: Welcome and Setup (Day 1-14)

DayActivityOwnerDeliverable
1Welcome email and introductionCSMWelcome package sent
1-2Kickoff callCSM + SESuccess plan drafted
3-5Technical setup and configurationSEEnvironment configured
5-7Admin training sessionCSMAdmins trained
7-10Data migration (if applicable)SEData validated
10-14Initial user trainingCSMCore team trained

Phase 2: Activation (Day 15-30)

DayActivityOwnerDeliverable
15Activation check — are users logging in?CSMUsage report
15-20Follow-up training for laggardsCSMAll users active
20-25First business outcome milestoneCSMMilestone achieved
25-3030-day review callCSMReview documented

Critical Milestone: Time to First Value must be under 30 days.

Phase 3: Adoption (Day 31-60)

DayActivityOwnerDeliverable
30-40Feature adoption expansionCSMNew features in use
40-50Integration setup (if applicable)SEIntegrations live
50-60Usage benchmarking vs. peersCSMBenchmark report

Phase 4: Optimisation (Day 61-90)

DayActivityOwnerDeliverable
60-70Advanced use case workshopCSM + SENew use cases identified
70-80ROI measurementCSMROI documented
80-9090-day executive reviewCSMTransition to steady-state

Gate: Handoff from onboarding to ongoing CSM management. Health score must be Yellow or better.

Renewal Playbook

120 Days Before Renewal

  • Review contract terms and pricing
  • Assess current health score and trajectory
  • Identify any outstanding issues or concerns
  • Begin internal alignment on renewal strategy

90 Days Before Renewal

  • Schedule renewal conversation with customer
  • Prepare value delivered summary (ROI, usage stats, milestones achieved)
  • Draft renewal proposal with recommended terms
  • If at-risk: escalate and begin risk mitigation

60 Days Before Renewal

  • Present renewal proposal to customer
  • Negotiate terms if needed
  • Address any concerns raised during the process
  • Escalate blockers to leadership

30 Days Before Renewal

  • Finalise contract terms
  • Obtain signatures
  • Plan for any post-renewal actions (expansion, migration)
  • Update CRM with renewal details

Post-Renewal

  • Confirm renewed contract in systems
  • Send thank-you and updated success plan
  • Schedule next QBR
  • Identify expansion opportunities

Expansion Playbook

Identifying Expansion Signals

SignalExpansion TypePriority
Seat utilisation > 90%Seat expansionHigh
Requests for features in higher tierTier upsellHigh
New department inquiriesDepartment expansionMedium
High adoption of existing modulesModule cross-sellMedium
Customer referencing competitors for missing featuresCross-sellHigh

Expansion Conversation Framework

  1. Discovery: “I noticed your team has been getting great value from [feature]. Have you considered how [new module] could help with [related business outcome]?”
  2. Value Framing: “Companies similar to yours who adopted [module] saw [specific metric improvement].”
  3. Proposal: “Based on your current usage, here’s what the expansion would look like…”
  4. Stakeholder Alignment: Involve the economic buyer early. The champion can advocate, but the budget holder decides.
  5. Close: Coordinate with sales/account executive for commercial negotiation.

Escalation Procedures

Internal Escalation Matrix

TriggerEscalation LevelResponse Time
Health score drops to RedVP Customer Success24 hours
Executive sponsor leavesDirector CS + AE48 hours
Critical bug affecting customerVP Engineering + VP CS4 hours
Customer mentions competitor evaluationVP CS + VP Sales24 hours
Renewal at risk (60 days or less)CRO/VP Sales24 hours
Customer threatens legal actionLegal + VP CSImmediate

Escalation Communication Template

Subject: [ESCALATION] {Customer Name} — {Brief Description}

Body:

  • Customer: {name}, {segment}, ${ARR}
  • Health Score: {score} ({classification})
  • Renewal Date: {date}
  • Issue Summary: {2-3 sentences}
  • Warning Signals: {list}
  • Recommended Action: {specific next step}
  • Urgency: {critical/high/medium}

Last Updated: February 2026