Recent data from Glassdoor suggest that the average base salary for a Customer Success Manager in the United States is $75,000 annually. Although, salaries do range from $47,000 to $118,000 per year.
With the economic turndown pouring in in recent times, companies worldwide have started to prioritize customer retention more than ever. The advent of Customer Success management has led to a shift. from purely acquisition-based sales strategies to a more holistic approach that prioritizes customer satisfaction and retention.
Learn How the recession has forced Customer success to be more efficient?
Interestingly, the customer success industry is projected to continue to grow rapidly, with a compound annual growth rate of over 20% from 2020 to 2025. This has led to massive growth in Customer Success roles. Customer success roles are no longer limited to software companies. Businesses in industries such as retail, manufacturing, and healthcare are now hiring customer success managers to help drive customer loyalty and retention.
Some other interesting facts about Customer Success Manager Role-
- The customer success industry has grown rapidly in recent years, with a projected market size of over $21 billion by 2025.
- According to a survey by LinkedIn, customer success management was the third most promising job in the United States in 2019.
- According to LinkedIn, the number of customer success management jobs has grown by over 200% since 2015.
- Customer success managers have become increasingly important in the sales process,as they help to ensure that customers have a positive experience and are more likely to renew their contracts.
- The growth of customer success roles has led to increased demand for training and education in the field. Many universities and business schools now offer courses and degree programs in customer success management.
What is the compensation for the Customer Success Manager role?
The compensation system for customer success managers can vary widely depending on the company, industry, and location. However, in general, customer success manager compensation tends to be a mix of base salary, bonuses, and incentives.
Base Salary: The base salary for a customer success manager typically represents the fixed portion of their compensation. It is usually based on factors such as job responsibilities, experience, and location. According to Glassdoor, the average base salary for a customer success manager in the United States as of September 2021 is around $78,000 per year.
Bonuses: Many companies offer bonuses as a way to incentivize customer success managers to meet or exceed performance goals. Bonuses can be tied to a variety of metrics, such as customer satisfaction scores, renewal rates, or revenue growth. Some companies also offer performance-based bonuses or profit-sharing programs.
Incentives: Incentives can take many forms, such as stock options, equity grants, or profit-sharing plans. These incentives are designed to reward customer success managers for their contributions to the company’s overall success and can provide a valuable long-term incentive for employees.
Other Benefits: Customer success managers may also be eligible for other benefits, such as health insurance, retirement plans, and paid time off. These benefits can vary widely depending on the company and location.
To a known fact, the compensation system for customer success managers can be pretty complex and it can vary from company to company. That again evolves from time to time as the company’s needs and goals change. Therefore, it is important for customer success managers to understand their compensation package and to regularly review and discuss it with their employer to ensure that they are being fairly compensated for their work.
Some interesting facts about Customer Success Manager Compensation trends-
- A recent survey of customer success experts found that 68% of respondents received a bonus in addition to their base salary. Many of these bonuses were tied to account health and value provided, reflecting the importance of customer success in driving business growth.
- 37% of respondents reported receiving stock or stock options as part of their compensation package. This trend was particularly pronounced in private companies, where the health and well-being of individual customers is seen as critical to overall sales growth.
- A trend is observed in the bonus structure that is more closely tied to account health and value, and how these factors impact sales. While bonuses still reflect the overall performance of the team and company, there has been an increase in bonuses tied to specific outcomes, such as NPS, feature adoption, and account health.
- 32% rise in the number of respondents who considered the impact on revenue (89%). including account expansion and upsell, as a crucial factor in determining bonus rewards.
Salary at Different Levels in Customer Success Management Hierarchy-
Customer Success Manager
Based on both the latest survey data and payscale information, the average salary for customer success managers in 2021 is approximately $94,000. It is worth noting, however, that the salary range for this role spans from $48,500 to $170,000, with professionals located in major metropolitan areas of California and New York and those with over 10 years of experience in large companies commanding the higher end of the spectrum. The average salary for customer success managers has been steadily increasing in recent years, and this trend is expected to continue as companies prioritize customer success and strive to expand product adoption and referrals.
Salary range
$48,500 – $170,000
Median
$94K
Head of Customer Success
Over the years, we have observed a surge in the popularity of the Head of Customer Success role in our annual compensation survey. Based on feedback from respondents, the average salary for this position stands at $130,000. However, it is worth noting that the salary range for customer success managers is broad, owing to the varying company sizes considered in the survey. Consequently, compensation for this role can range from $70,000 to $280,000.
Salary range
$70,000- $280,000
Median
$130,000
Customer Success Operations
In general, individuals in this position are tasked with executing CS strategies, projecting sales figures, overseeing customer usage, fostering advocacy groups, and other similar duties. The average compensation for CS operations, as per survey responses, is around $85,000. However, it is important to note that the salary range for this position varies from $70,000 to $90,000, which is a testament to its criticality to the CS team and the organization at large.
Salary range
$70,500 – $90,000
Median
$85K
Customer Success Director
The latest findings from our survey of customer success specialists indicate that the average salary for a customer success director in 2021 was $130,000. This represents a modest uptick from 2020, when the average salary range for this role was $100,000 to $125,000. It is noteworthy that in a post-pandemic survey conducted in 2020. 64% of board members raised salaries for their customer success directors, and this trend appears to have continued into 2021. This suggests that companies are attaching greater importance to the customer success function and its leadership during periods of uncertainty.
Salary range
$75,000-$250,000
Median
$130,000
Vice President of Customer Success
The Vice President of Customer Success earned an average salary of $200,000 in 2021, with a salary range of $130,000 to $300,000. The 2020 survey found that 58% of respondents earned over $175,000, but only a quarter of them was in the $200,000 range, indicating a steady increase in salaries for this position.
Salary range
$130,000- $300,000
Median
$200,000
Takeaways
With rise in the job market of Customer Success Manager and increasing demand of the role, major tech companies have seen to be increasingly investing in technology to support their customer success efforts. The availability of digital data and solutions has provided customer success (CS) professionals with greater access to insights and automation of repetitive tasks. enabling CSMs to dedicate more time to critical activities that enhance customer value.
Read- How to get your Customer Success Budget Approved in Recession
