Customer Success Manager

Summary

Our Customer Success team is focused on creating engaged customer advocates who are maximizing the value of their Guidewire investments. The Customer Success Manager (CSM) will oversee the strategy and execution of their customer portfolio and focus on driving engagement, satisfaction, retention and growth. We expect our customers will see their Senior CSM as a trusted advisor and true partner – encouraging customers to adopt solutions that help them achieve their business goals, advocating for their needs back to other Guidewire teams, and helping to find new ways to derive value from their Guidewire investment. The end goal is a set of delighted customers that renew their subscriptions and are eager to expand the footprint of the Guidewire solutions within their organization.
The job location is in the US (AMER WEST) and is focused on supporting Guidewire InsuranceSuite customers.

Job Description

Customer Management 

• Develop strategic account plans that expand the relationship and promote growth

• Drive cross-functional collaboration to accelerate adoption and value of current and future solutions

• Identify and pursue expansion opportunities aligned to customer goals

• Create trusted partnerships that result in engaged, customer advocates

• Lead executive level engagements focused on value creation

• Define and execute a renewal strategy that promotes growth and mitigates risk

• Promote operational excellence in portfolio, account and team management

• Develop depth and breadth of relationship within portfolio of customers, from C-level to IT and business users

• Understand customer priorities and identify common themes to report out and action

Responsibilities:

• Understand customer priorities and facilitate engagements to meet customer needs, align our overall strategies, and create meaningful relationships

• Recognize incremental sales opportunities across Guidewire solutions and partner with sales to ensure the customer objectives and value proposition are at the forefront

• Develop strong partnerships by providing positive customer experiences that drive mutual success and creates customer advocates

• Engage with customers to develop deep understanding of customer’s product experience and strategic business needs

• Know the customer “inside and out” and foster positive relationships with key customer stakeholders at senior and C-Suite level

• Serve as the voice of the customer and customer advocate to facilitate feedback and influence on Guidewire products and services

• Provide early insight and adoption recommendations for new products and product features

• Coach and mentor other CMSs in developing the Customer Success Craft and engagement in both Guidewire and Customer Community.

• Encourage adoption of Guidewire solutions to help customers achieve their business goals and maximize the value of their investments 

• Take the lead in driving to a successful conclusion any customer issues or situations, involving other departments and individuals as necessary

• Create and manage customer success plans and account plans to manage external and internal relationships and strategies

• Facilitate executive discussions including business reviews, roadmap reviews, and strategic alignment

• Develop a deep and cross-functional understanding of the key business challenges and opportunities of your customers and portfolio

• Introduce new features and best practices to customers according to their business needs

• Ensure visibility of program and customer health both internally and with customer teams

• Manage commercial aspects of account relationships post initial sale, including defining a renewal strategy that promotes growth and mitigates risks 

• Execute and manage contract negotiations and renewals 

• Leverage Executive leadership and communication experience, with ability to define a vision, build a persuasive business case, establish personal credibility, resolve conflict and engender honest feedback and appraisal

• At Guidewire, we foster a culture of curiosity, innovation, and responsible use of AI—empowering our teams to continuously leverage emerging technologies and data-driven insights to enhance productivity and outcomes.

Required Skills/Experience:

• 5+ years relevant experience (e.g., customer success, account management, sales, technology consulting or related position)

• Knowledge of the P&C insurance space, industry trends and challenges, and the fundamental economics of an insurance company

• Passion for solving problems, thinking creatively, and delivering results

• Ability to build and manage C-suite relationships at customers

• Capable of quickly building trust and establishing deep relationships 

• Ability to effectively connect and communicate with both business & IT stakeholders

• Executive leadership and communication experience, showing the ability to define a vision, build a persuasive business case, establish personal credibility, resolve conflicting views and engender honest feedback and appraisal

• Demonstrated ability to work on multiple initiatives or accounts simultaneously under pressure

• Demonstrated account planning and management skills, including estimations, budgets, forecasting and coordination of multiple work streams

• Ability to travel as needed to client locations, industry events and company initiatives

• Demonstrated ability to embrace AI and apply it to your current role as well as data-driven insights to drive innovation, productivity, and continuous improvement.

 

Desired Skills:

• Knowledge of or experience with Guidewire InsuranceSuite is preferred

• Experience working with cloud-native solutions and/or cloud technologies for mission-critical applications

• Demonstrated coaching and change management experience – not just defining a plan but executing that plan successfully and adapting to obstacles or shifts in business priority

How Success is Measured - in both Regional Portfolio & Assigned Customers 

• Financial: 

• • % Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR) Growth

  • Meeting Retention Targets / Mitigating Churn Risk

  • Opportunity Influence & Increased Product Penetration  

• Customer Relationships

• • NPS / CSAT  

  • Sentiment & Health

  • Referencability / Advocacy

  • Success Planning

The US base salary range for this full-time position is $108,000 - $162,000 . Your base pay will depend on your experience, skills, education, training, and location among other factors. All full-time positions or part-time roles working 30 hours or more a week at Guidewire are eligible for benefits that support their health and well-being including health, dental, and vision insurance, paid time off, and a company sponsored retirement plan. In addition, some roles may be eligible for the annual company bonus plan, commissions, and/or long term incentive awards which are contingent on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, company and employee performance.

Disability Accommodations and Guidewire’s Appeals Process. Guidewire provides accommodations to the hiring process to create a fair opportunity for candidates with disabilities to contend for open positions. Accommodation requests should be directed to [email protected]. If things do not go as hoped, we invite you to use our appeals process. Guidewire promises to independently review any denied accommodation and any decision not to offer you the position. The appeals process is the same in either case. Within five business days of receiving a notice of denial of an accommodation, or receiving a notice of your non-selection for a vacancy, e-mail [email protected] to make an appeal. Guidewire will assign a new decision-maker to review the request and/or hiring decision, who will then notify you in writing of a decision within 10 business days.

About Guidewire

Guidewire is the platform P&C insurers trust to engage, innovate, and grow efficiently. We combine digital, core, analytics, and AI to deliver our platform as a cloud service. More than 540+ insurers in 40 countries, from new ventures to the largest and most complex in the world, run on Guidewire.

As a partner to our customers, we continually evolve to enable their success. We are proud of our unparalleled implementation track record with 1600+ successful projects, supported by the largest R&D team and partner ecosystem in the industry. Our Marketplace provides hundreds of applications that accelerate integration, localization, and innovation.

For more information, please visit www.guidewire.com and follow us on Twitter: @Guidewire_PandC.

Guidewire Software, Inc. is proud to be an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. We are committed to an inclusive workplace, and believe that a diversity of perspectives, abilities, and cultures is a key to our success. Qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, citizenship, marital status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or disability. All offers are contingent upon passing a criminal history and other background checks where it's applicable to the position.