Jan Young, MBA, CSPO, CSM

Project Manager

I help Heads of CS become VPs and get a seat at the Executive Table | Customer-Led Growth Advisor | 2X Top 25 CS Influencer | Top 50 CS Influencer | Top 50 Women Leaders in CS | Top 100 CS Strategist | Investor

Why do some CS leaders command executive respect, while others, despite strong results, keep fighting to be heard?

I've been in Tech for 20+ years and been through two exits as VP Client Services. Here's what I've learned:

✨ EVERYTHING has changed.

The speed. The AI transformation. The business models. The way we need to lead.

I see CS leaders working until midnight, delivering great results... and still getting told "we need to cut CS headcount."

Sound familiar?

The old playbooks stopped working.

AI is reshaping how we work, how we go to market, how we serve customers. Your 2023 playbook is irrelevant.

Today, you need SYSTEMS.

Here's what I know from coaching hundreds of CS leaders:

Those who break through have mastered The Modern CS Growth System, 4 pillars of executive impact:

💡 Modern Management & Change Leadership - Lead in the AI era  
💡 AI Fluency, Automation & Autonomy - Transform operations, pricing, GTM
💡 Business & Customer Economics - Speak profitability, not just retention  
💡 Repeatable Customer Revenue & Team Systems - Build scalable frameworks, not heroic firefighting  

This is a systematic approach to demonstrating executive-level impact in the language your fellow executives understand.

👉👉 This is what CS Business Leaders master. Not pieces. The whole system.

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WHO I WORK WITH

CS leaders who've built a department but aren't getting traction:

✔  You deliver strong results, but executives still see CS as a cost center
✔  You're excluded from strategic decisions where your insights would be valuable
✔  You’re told "do more with less" instead of getting resources
✔  You know modern CS should look different, but you're stuck in outdated frameworks

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HOW WE WORK TOGETHER

⚡️ CS BUSINESS LEADERSHIP ACCELERATOR - Master the 4 pillars and build the Modern CS Growth System specific to your goals/challenges through executive peer community + project-based frameworks + personalized coaching.  

🔗 https://go.stepupxchange.com/csbl-accelerator

📬 NEWSLETTER:  I publish a weekly newsletter on modern CS strategies

📧 DM me and I'll share which resources fit you

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RESULTS

✅ Become an award-winning executive
✅ Reposition your team as a strategic revenue driver
✅ Transition from firefighting to repeatable, scalable systems
✅ Innovate with AI to drive profitable customer revenue growth

The modern CS leaders who succeed aren't keeping up with change: They're leading it. 

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📬 Newsletter: janyoungcx.com/#newsletter  
📧 DM me: discuss your challenges  
🎯 Follow for daily insights

Founding Member

RevRoom is a trusted space where curious revenue leaders are collaborating on the future of B2B Go to Market alignment and GTM-Led-Growth.

We were all asked the same question independently. We all gave the same answer.

When ChurnZero asked a group of CS leaders for our 2026 predictions, we didn't compare notes beforehand. 

We had limited space and were told to be specific.

Yet, a clear pattern emerged across the board.
🔸  AI was the theme throughout.
🔸  We didn't talk about playbooks. We talked about Systems. 
🔸  We didn't just talk about CS + AI. We talked about Revenue & Profitability.

A huge thank you to ChurnZero for asking me to contribute alongside such incredible leaders. 

Here is the reality I see coming for our industry:

“Customer success is the frontline of survival for both traditional SaaS and AI-first startups, shifting the mission from simple adoption to high-precision Value Engineering.

To win, leaders are replacing generalists with specialized GTM squads, using Forward-Deployed CSMs and Consumption Leads for high-touch growth, while AI CS Ops and Program Managers architect the data-driven systems that power scaled, touch-free renewals and expansions.

As AI agents automate the routine, the human CSM role will become elevated, requiring the deep EQ and business acumen necessary to turn experimental AI budgets into the predictable, profitable revenue our boards now demand.”

📌  The consensus is clear: 
AI is forcing us to restructure our teams, our roles, and our unit economics to survive in a new market model.


🚨  But there is one trend I think is still flying under the radar:  Agentic Suggestion.

👉  Right now, we prompt AI. By the end of 2026, AI will prompt us.

We are moving toward systems that understand our goals and suggest work, anticipating needs before we even articulate them. 

This will require massive Change Leadership, not just for our teams, but for ourselves.


📌  I’m digging into these trends and How to Take Action in my newsletter this Saturday, AND I have some live events on these themes in the next two weeks.

Get the Insights: 
👉 Read the ChurnZero 2026 Forecast: https://lnkd.in/gEj3Bvu2 
👉 Get my Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/gBrhN3As

📆  If you are ready to build the system that supports this future, join my StepUpXchange NexGen CS Leadership Masterclass and learn about the Modern CS Growth System on Jan 20th:  https://lnkd.in/gsETU8a2

📆  If you’re really serious, join the StepUpXchange VIP Inner Circle. You’ll get an exclusive invite to Fireside Focus on Jan 15 that is usually reserved for members of the CS Business Leadership Accelerator. 

📢 This will be an intimate conversation with Ralphie (Ralphette) White, VP CS of Deepgram.  Ralphie is one of the leaders who has been at the forefront of the AI + CS [r]evolution. If you don't want to miss out...
https://lnkd.in/gpxwVFWB

Sendbird

Leading the Customer Success team responsible for Sendbird's customers in AMER and EMEA.

Sendbird believes conversations are at the heart of building relationships and getting things done. As such, we built the world's most proven conversations platform for mobile apps across chat, voice, and video. Industry leaders like DoorDash, Walgreens, & Paytm use Sendbird to drive increased transactions & loyalty for hundreds of millions of users every month.

Head of Customer Success - AMER & EMEA (Manager)

CxXchange

CxXchange is a diverse community of post-sales leaders, individual contributors, and professionals deeply committed to honing our craft through curiosity, practical learning, and continuous improvement.

CxXchange started in March 2022 as #CSOfficeHours, a weekly virtual meetup for Customer Success leaders, CSMs, and professionals from various disciplines transitioning into CS. Since then the CxXchange has expanded to include a variety of resources including a Slack community, monthly book club, job search guidance, and Collaboration Groups (mastermind) for Customer Success Leaders and CSM's.

Board Member & Community Director

Gain Grow Retain

Gain Grow Retain is a free, open community for Customer Success leaders in B2B SaaS organizations. The community is designed to support leaders of all organizations to get access to direct, actionable support from their peers. Our goal is to facilitate best practice discussion, helping to tease out what organizations big and small are implementing to better serve their customers. 

I regularly contribute through our online community platform, weekly leadership office hours, and mentorship of emerging leaders.

Startup Consulting

I enjoy helping early-stage companies build exceptional post-sales teams through improved cross-functional collaboration and proactive customer-centric operational strategies. I take a practical data-driven approach to guide founders and leadership teams on actionable and efficient strategies to build customer advocacy, accelerate product adoption, improve value realization, and drive predictable revenue retention/NRR growth.

Other areas I can help include Customer Success strategy, go-to-market strategy, establishing product-market fit, competitor analyses, performance development, and staffing. 

Interested in coaching or joining a Mastermind group of experienced operators? I'm also focused on the following initiatives to help those seeking new roles and mentorship in their current role:

-Community Director, Customer Success Leader Collaboration Groups, Success Office Hours, CxXchange — www.thecxxchange.com
-CSM Coach, Recast Success — www.recastsuccess.com/

Book time on my calendar https://cal.mixmax.com/shaun/connect15

Advisor | Mentor | Fractional Leadership

Theme.io

Advisor

Theme empowers revenue teams with AI-driven insights to optimize and accelerate customer-facing activities that drive adoption and revenue growth.

Head of Customer Success

Checkr, Inc.

Recruited by the VP of Customer Success and Account Management to lead a team of exceptional Customer Success leaders responsible for account portfolios focused on Checkr’s top 15 strategic ‘Named’ customers. Collaborated on the transformation of the largest segment in the Customer Success organization (>$100M ACV) by driving proactive engagement to maximize customer value, strengthening executive relationships, increasing product adoption, and driving predictable revenue retention/NRR growth. 

Key accomplishments included:

► Expanded Checkr’s product footprint (12X% NRR) through strengthening relationships and emphasizing value realization with key executive stakeholders, and continuous improvement of customers' direct API integrations to the platform.

► Delivered $10M in operational cost savings across multiple strategic accounts through the completion of several cross-functional projects designed to improve workflow efficiency and fulfill new customer-requested functionality, further increasing Checkr's product footprint and 'stickiness.'

► Partnered with Account Management to secure the renewal of >$30M in multi-year committed contracts with strategic customers.

Checkr’s platform makes it easy for thousands of customers to hire millions of people every year by using advanced background check technology. Checkr's platform helps companies understand the dynamics of the changing workforce, bring transparency and fairness to their hiring, and build a better future for today's workforce.

Director, Customer Success

'nuffsaid

Customer Success leadership advisory board member. Nuffsaid was acquired in January 2023.

Nuffsaid helps Customer Success teams become proactive. It centralizes your core data and apps to focus CSMs on the right tasks with the highest impact customers.

Abstract

Recruited by the VP of Sales to develop and lead the newly formed Customer Success organization to support the demands of the business experiencing an industry shift in designer/developer collaboration tools by spearheading proactive customer engagement to reinforce value realization, optimizing resources for the launch of Abstract Notebooks for Figma, and driving predictable revenue retention and growth by executing renewals and upsells — ultimately leading to an acquisition by Adobe in under 12 months.

Developed new playbooks and operational rigor for accelerating customer onboarding, executing renewals proactively, and collaborating with Sales on expansion. Implemented new forecasting to maximize Customer Success operating budget and manage capacity to support Abstract's shift in focus to Notebooks for Figma. Led critical cross-functional improvements to streamline the collection and distribution of product feedback, establish consistent post-sales communication, scale customer education and support frameworks, and advocate for new benefits to support employee health and well-being.

Key accomplishments included:

► Achieved over 95% GRR during an emerging industry shift in tooling (Sketch to Figma).

► Generated over $1.2M in annualized expansion revenue (averaging 40 CSQL's per quarter) as a result of deploying personalized content and consistent engagement with customers and reseller partners.

► Collaborated on the creation of a Design Partner Program and go-to-market for Notebooks leading to a 150% QoQ increase in revenue from existing customers.

► Implemented a new streamlined onboarding and coaching curriculum for enterprise and scale-focused CSM’s reducing ramp time for new hires by over 50% from previous quarters and improving stakeholder satisfaction by 20% YoY.

Abstract is the design workflow management system that empowers design teams and stakeholders to seamlessly manage, version, and collaborate.

Director of Customer Success

On Deck

The On Deck Customer Success Fellowship [ODCS] is a community and brain trust of world-class CS experts in SaaS. The fellowship program is highly curated and a safe place to expand knowledge, build meaningful relationships, and collectively improve the customer experience. The program is structured to facilitate highly relevant peer-to-peer connections while workshopping challenging CS business management topics.

Fellow, On Deck Customer Success (ODCS2)

Run The World

Recruited by the CoFounder & CEO to build the Customer Success initiative from scratch and lead all post-sales functions to support hyper-growth on a global scale (prior to the pivot away from enterprise B2B).

Consulted with the founding leadership team and company advisors on new pricing, client services delivery model, developing product education, industry benchmarks, and post-sales staffing models. Established structured onboarding and training programs, advocated for customer-centric decision making throughout the organization, and started a Voice of the Customer program to strengthen alignment with product initiatives based on user behavior and feedback. 

Key accomplishments included:

► Maintained 95% pilot retention and scaled revenue from zero to pacing $2M ARR in <120 days through a focus on improved cross-functional collaboration and the implementation of formal customer onboarding and training programs. 

► Achieved record customer satisfaction in our first full quarter selling the product (NPS >50)

► Reorganized the operation and execution of the customer training practice and live event support to increase the team's ability to deliver services at a healthy margin while maintaining 100% on-time delivery.

Run The World is a virtual events platform for experts, creators, community leaders, and organizations to host and monetize interactive online events. Investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Founders Fund, Dreamers VC, and GGV Capital.

Customer Success leader with over 15 years of experience developing global, hybrid, and fully remote teams with an emphasis on accelerating product adoption and driving predictable revenue retention/NRR growth through improved cross-functional collaboration and proactive customer-centric operational strategies. 

I lead with kindness, creativity, and humility. My influences include — Kim Scott (Radical Candor), Diana Chapman (Conscious Leadership), Jocko Willink (Extreme Ownership), and Stephen Covey (7 Habits).

Extensive experience across category-leading early and growth stage companies pre/post M&A through transitioning to a large matrixed organization. Operates with a data-driven mindset to effectively problem-solve and lead change management for customer-facing teams scaling thousands of SMB’s in a product lead growth environment to building world-class customer experiences to drive outcomes for Fortune 500 enterprises and strategic technology organizations spending tens of millions annually. 

Proven track record building, leading, and mentoring high-performing customer-facing teams delivering software and services to executive stakeholders, and driving value realization at a global scale. Expertise in SaaS solutions for Sales, Marketing, CX, HR Tech, Design/Dev collaboration, and Data Visualization.

Specialties:
• Forecasting growth and creating predictable revenue
• Creating an operational cadence to accelerate onboarding and product adoption while mitigating churn
• Account Management - Ownership of commercials (Retention and Expansion targets)
• Professional Services and Customer Support - Scaling Revenue and Operations
• Value realization frameworks to reinforce customer ROI
• Collaborating cross-functionally to establish organizational alignment and lead change management
• Creating effective Customer Marketing
• Voice of the Customer, Customer Advisory Boards, and Case Studies
• SaaS, Online Advertising, Mobile App, and eCommerce Business Models
• Pre/Post Sales Strategic Partnerships
• Performance development, mentorship, and retaining exceptional talent
• P&L Responsibility and Capacity Planning

Also, an internationally published automotive photographer.

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