What to Protect, What to Delegate, and What to Let Go Of as a CS Leader

1 00:00:00,210 - > 00:00:01,310 Are you a customer success leader? 2 00:00:01,850 - > 00:00:03,090 If so, I want you to open your 3 00:00:03,090 - > 00:00:04,070 calendar right now. 4 00:00:04,330 - > 00:00:06,530 Look at this week, look at what's on 5 00:00:06,530 - > 00:00:06,810 it. 6 00:00:07,410 - > 00:00:10,170 Now, ask yourself honestly, how much of what's 7 00:00:10,170 - > 00:00:12,990 on that calendar did you put there intentionally? 8 00:00:13,510 - > 00:00:16,550 How much of it reflects your priorities as 9 00:00:16,550 - > 00:00:17,210 a CS leader? 10 00:00:17,570 - > 00:00:20,290 The strategic work, the team development, the thinking 11 00:00:20,290 - > 00:00:22,910 time, the things that actually moved the needle, 12 00:00:23,210 - > 00:00:25,890 and how much of it just accumulated, meetings 13 00:00:25,890 - > 00:00:28,950 that got scheduled because someone needed you, recurring 14 00:00:28,950 - > 00:00:31,729 calls that nobody has canceled in 18 months, 15 00:00:32,370 - > 00:00:34,870 back-to-back-to-back blocks that leave 16 00:00:34,870 - > 00:00:36,330 no room to actually think. 17 00:00:37,110 - > 00:00:39,650 For most customer success leaders, the honest answer 18 00:00:39,650 - > 00:00:41,770 is that their calendar is a reflection of 19 00:00:41,770 - > 00:00:44,410 everyone else's priorities, not theirs. 20 00:00:45,090 - > 00:00:46,370 And the result is a leader who is 21 00:00:46,370 - > 00:00:50,270 constantly busy, constantly responsive, and consistently running out 22 00:00:50,270 - > 00:00:52,010 of time for the work that actually matters. 23 00:00:52,910 - > 00:00:55,390 Your calendar is not just a scheduling tool. 24 00:00:55,790 - > 00:00:57,350 It's a strategic asset. 25 00:00:57,790 - > 00:01:00,310 And if you're not designing it intentionally, someone 26 00:01:00,310 - > 00:01:01,710 else is designing it for you. 27 00:01:02,290 - > 00:01:03,950 That's what this episode is about. 28 00:01:04,129 - > 00:01:05,610 So let's get into it. 29 00:01:06,070 - > 00:01:08,590 Welcome to the CS RevSpeak podcast, where we 30 00:01:08,590 - > 00:01:12,430 talk about practical insights, strategies, and frameworks that 31 00:01:12,430 - > 00:01:15,030 will help customer success leaders who carry a 32 00:01:15,030 - > 00:01:19,010 revenue number, drive sustainable growth, maximize customer lifetime 33 00:01:19,010 - > 00:01:21,090 value, and crush their numbers. 34 00:01:23,260 - > 00:01:25,840 Let's see what is actually happening here, because 35 00:01:25,840 - > 00:01:28,000 I think it's worth understanding before we talk 36 00:01:28,000 - > 00:01:29,100 about how to fix it. 37 00:01:29,760 - > 00:01:32,280 Customer success leadership is one of the most 38 00:01:32,280 - > 00:01:34,740 cross-functional roles in a SaaS business. 39 00:01:35,260 - > 00:01:37,580 You're connected to sales, to product, to support, 40 00:01:37,640 - > 00:01:39,200 to finance, to the executive team. 41 00:01:39,680 - > 00:01:42,220 Everyone has something they need from customer success, 42 00:01:42,520 - > 00:01:45,320 and because CS is fundamentally a relationship-driven 43 00:01:45,320 - > 00:01:49,800 function, there's a cultural expectation, sometimes explicit, sometimes 44 00:01:49,800 - > 00:01:53,460 just absorbed, that a good CS leader is 45 00:01:53,460 - > 00:01:56,220 always available, always responsive, always there when someone 46 00:01:56,220 - > 00:01:56,980 needs something. 47 00:01:57,540 - > 00:01:59,180 And so the calendar fills up. 48 00:01:59,960 - > 00:02:04,000 Customer escalations, cross-functional things, team check-ins, 49 00:02:04,480 - > 00:02:07,300 leadership meetings, one-on-ones that run long, 50 00:02:07,520 - > 00:02:09,240 and somewhat in the middle of all of 51 00:02:09,240 - > 00:02:11,860 that, the strategic work, the work that only 52 00:02:11,860 - > 00:02:13,400 you can do as a leader of this 53 00:02:13,400 - > 00:02:17,280 function, gets squeezed into the margins, early mornings, 54 00:02:17,600 - > 00:02:20,100 late evenings, the gaps between meetings that are 55 00:02:20,100 - > 00:02:22,220 too short to do anything meaningful in. 56 00:02:23,340 - > 00:02:24,840 Here's what that actually costs. 57 00:02:25,480 - > 00:02:28,020 Not in terms of stress or sustainability, although 58 00:02:28,020 - > 00:02:28,980 those are real. 59 00:02:29,480 - > 00:02:31,720 In terms of outcomes, when a CS leader 60 00:02:31,720 - > 00:02:34,420 is perpetually reactive, the team feels it. 61 00:02:34,900 - > 00:02:37,040 Decisions take longer because the leader is never 62 00:02:37,040 - > 00:02:38,860 in a focused headspace to make them. 63 00:02:39,580 - > 00:02:42,100 Coaching gets rushed or skipped because there's no 64 00:02:42,100 - > 00:02:43,520 protected time for it. 65 00:02:43,520 - > 00:02:46,680 Strategic initiatives stall because every time the leader 66 00:02:46,680 - > 00:02:49,220 sits down to think, something urgent pulls them 67 00:02:49,220 - > 00:02:50,620 back into execution mode. 68 00:02:51,100 - > 00:02:52,740 And the function stays stuck at a certain 69 00:02:52,740 - > 00:02:55,940 level of performance because the customer success leader 70 00:02:55,940 - > 00:02:58,040 never has the bandwidth to lead it to 71 00:02:58,040 - > 00:02:58,940 the next level. 72 00:02:59,700 - > 00:03:02,240 A CS leader who designs their calendar intentionally 73 00:03:02,240 - > 00:03:04,600 is a fundamentally different kind of leader. 74 00:03:05,100 - > 00:03:07,060 They show up to one-on-ones prepared. 75 00:03:07,600 - > 00:03:09,500 They have time to think before they have 76 00:03:09,500 - > 00:03:10,060 to decide. 77 00:03:10,060 - > 00:03:12,600 They can work on the org instead of 78 00:03:12,600 - > 00:03:13,640 just in it. 79 00:03:14,100 - > 00:03:17,760 And that difference compounds over time into a 80 00:03:17,760 - > 00:03:20,020 team that performs at a higher level. 81 00:03:20,680 - > 00:03:22,720 So the starting point is this, your calendar 82 00:03:22,720 - > 00:03:24,200 is a leadership decision. 83 00:03:24,620 - > 00:03:26,720 Every block on it is either something you 84 00:03:26,720 - > 00:03:28,620 choose or something you're allowed. 85 00:03:29,160 - > 00:03:30,900 And the first step in designing it well 86 00:03:30,900 - > 00:03:33,260 is taking ownership of that distinction. 87 00:03:33,860 - > 00:03:35,560 Before I share what I protected in my 88 00:03:35,560 - > 00:03:37,620 own calendar, when I was a VP of 89 00:03:37,620 - > 00:03:39,560 customer success, I want to acknowledge something. 90 00:03:39,560 - > 00:03:42,500 The right calendar structure is not one size 91 00:03:42,500 - > 00:03:43,000 fits all. 92 00:03:43,260 - > 00:03:45,520 What it looks like depends heavily on where 93 00:03:45,520 - > 00:03:47,000 you are in your journey as a CS 94 00:03:47,000 - > 00:03:50,180 leader, specifically whether you're in early stage mode 95 00:03:50,180 - > 00:03:50,960 or scaling mode. 96 00:03:51,220 - > 00:03:54,280 Because two phases make very different demands on 97 00:03:54,280 - > 00:03:54,940 your time. 98 00:03:55,620 - > 00:03:57,760 And what serves you well in one can 99 00:03:57,760 - > 00:03:59,420 actually hold you back in the other. 100 00:03:59,940 - > 00:04:02,080 In early stage, when you're building a function, 101 00:04:02,160 - > 00:04:03,840 when a team is small, when processes are 102 00:04:03,840 - > 00:04:06,220 still being figured out, your calendar is going 103 00:04:06,220 - > 00:04:08,140 to be heavily weighted towards execution. 104 00:04:08,780 - > 00:04:11,660 You're in the details, you're in customer conversations, 105 00:04:12,180 - > 00:04:14,060 you're building playbooks and sitting in on calls 106 00:04:14,060 - > 00:04:17,040 and sometimes doing the work alongside your CSMs, 107 00:04:17,399 - > 00:04:19,320 because that's how you understand what needs to 108 00:04:19,320 - > 00:04:19,720 be built. 109 00:04:20,160 - > 00:04:21,040 That's appropriate. 110 00:04:21,380 - > 00:04:22,780 And that's right for that phase. 111 00:04:23,260 - > 00:04:24,640 But here's where a lot of CS leaders 112 00:04:24,640 - > 00:04:25,280 get stuck. 113 00:04:25,720 - > 00:04:28,820 They never recalibrate, the org grows, the team 114 00:04:28,820 - > 00:04:32,340 expands, the complexity increases, and the leader is 115 00:04:32,340 - > 00:04:34,000 still spending their time the same way they 116 00:04:34,000 - > 00:04:35,620 did when the team was three people. 117 00:04:35,620 - > 00:04:38,600 Still in every escalation, still reviewing every renewal, 118 00:04:38,860 - > 00:04:40,860 still running every customer call that matters. 119 00:04:41,420 - > 00:04:43,040 And the team never develops because the leader 120 00:04:43,040 - > 00:04:45,000 never creates the space for them to lead. 121 00:04:46,100 - > 00:04:49,620 Scaling mode requires a fundamentally different calendar orientation, 122 00:04:50,200 - > 00:04:54,380 less execution, more enablement, less doing, more developing, 123 00:04:54,880 - > 00:04:56,600 less being in the work and more designing 124 00:04:56,600 - > 00:04:58,960 the systems that make the work run without 125 00:04:58,960 - > 00:04:59,360 you. 126 00:05:00,080 - > 00:05:03,200 I remember when this shift happened for me. 127 00:05:03,200 - > 00:05:04,980 I had built a team that was strong, 128 00:05:05,420 - > 00:05:07,780 genuinely capable people who knew their accounts and 129 00:05:07,780 - > 00:05:09,300 cared deeply about their customers. 130 00:05:09,860 - > 00:05:11,260 And I realized one day that I was 131 00:05:11,260 - > 00:05:12,700 selling their work in a way that wasn't 132 00:05:12,700 - > 00:05:13,600 serving them anymore. 133 00:05:14,000 - > 00:05:15,560 I was in account reviews, they could have 134 00:05:15,560 - > 00:05:15,880 led. 135 00:05:16,140 - > 00:05:17,600 I was in calls, they didn't need me 136 00:05:17,600 - > 00:05:18,000 on. 137 00:05:18,620 - > 00:05:21,620 And by being there, I was signaling unintentionally 138 00:05:21,620 - > 00:05:23,600 that I didn't fully trust them to handle 139 00:05:23,600 - > 00:05:25,500 it, that I needed to be involved for 140 00:05:25,500 - > 00:05:26,300 things to go well. 141 00:05:27,040 - > 00:05:29,440 That shift I made was to ask myself 142 00:05:29,440 - > 00:05:31,400 a different question every time something landed on 143 00:05:31,400 - > 00:05:31,900 my calendar. 144 00:05:32,460 - > 00:05:34,940 The question was not, can I add value 145 00:05:34,940 - > 00:05:35,360 here? 146 00:05:35,700 - > 00:05:37,540 The answer to the question is almost always 147 00:05:37,540 - > 00:05:37,780 yes. 148 00:05:37,980 - > 00:05:39,640 You can almost always add something. 149 00:05:40,260 - > 00:05:43,240 The question was, is my presence here the 150 00:05:43,240 - > 00:05:45,920 best use of my time given everything else 151 00:05:45,920 - > 00:05:47,100 I'm responsible for? 152 00:05:47,640 - > 00:05:50,160 The question produced very different answers. 153 00:05:50,600 - > 00:05:52,440 And it started freeing space for the work 154 00:05:52,440 - > 00:05:53,900 that only I could do. 155 00:05:54,420 - > 00:05:56,380 Let's get specific because I think the most 156 00:05:56,380 - > 00:05:57,700 useful thing I can give you in this 157 00:05:57,700 - > 00:06:00,120 episode is a clear picture of what belongs 158 00:06:00,120 - > 00:06:02,940 on your calendar as a protected, non-negotiable 159 00:06:02,940 - > 00:06:03,220 block. 160 00:06:03,620 - > 00:06:03,900 And why? 161 00:06:05,200 - > 00:06:07,080 First thing is to protect your strategic thinking 162 00:06:07,080 - > 00:06:07,600 time. 163 00:06:07,760 - > 00:06:08,860 And I want to be direct about this 164 00:06:08,860 - > 00:06:10,320 because I know how it sounds. 165 00:06:11,020 - > 00:06:13,500 Blocking time to think feels indulgent when your 166 00:06:13,500 - > 00:06:16,000 team needs things and your inbox is full 167 00:06:16,000 - > 00:06:17,240 and there are fires to put out. 168 00:06:17,820 - > 00:06:19,240 But here's the reality. 169 00:06:19,500 - > 00:06:21,480 The most important decisions you make as a 170 00:06:21,480 - > 00:06:23,820 customer success leader, how to structure the team, 171 00:06:24,100 - > 00:06:26,780 how to position CS internally, how to respond 172 00:06:26,780 - > 00:06:28,820 to a pattern you're seeing across your book, 173 00:06:29,100 - > 00:06:31,020 how to coach a leader on your team 174 00:06:31,020 - > 00:06:31,760 who is struggling. 175 00:06:32,400 - > 00:06:33,960 None of those decisions get made well in 176 00:06:33,960 - > 00:06:34,420 the margins. 177 00:06:35,020 - > 00:06:38,800 They require uninterrupted, focused thinking time. 178 00:06:39,160 - > 00:06:40,640 And if you don't protect it, it won't 179 00:06:40,640 - > 00:06:41,100 exist. 180 00:06:41,600 - > 00:06:42,880 What this looks like in practice. 181 00:06:43,360 - > 00:06:45,240 I'm talking about two to three blocks per 182 00:06:45,240 - > 00:06:47,440 week, maybe 60 to 90 minutes each when 183 00:06:47,440 - > 00:06:50,100 you're not in meetings, not responding to messages 184 00:06:50,100 - > 00:06:51,200 and not available. 185 00:06:51,640 - > 00:06:53,260 This is where you work on the org, 186 00:06:53,860 - > 00:06:56,600 strategy documents, coaching prep, thinking about a difficult 187 00:06:56,600 - > 00:06:59,700 decision, reviewing the health of the team's portfolio 188 00:06:59,700 - > 00:07:01,920 with a fresh eye, whatever is most important 189 00:07:01,920 - > 00:07:04,480 that week for you to give focused attention 190 00:07:04,480 - > 00:07:04,980 to. 191 00:07:05,400 - > 00:07:07,200 Protect it like you would protect a customer 192 00:07:07,200 - > 00:07:10,300 commitment because it is one, a commitment to 193 00:07:10,300 - > 00:07:11,920 leading your function well. 194 00:07:12,640 - > 00:07:14,320 The second thing is to protect your one 195 00:07:14,320 - > 00:07:16,160 -on-ones with your direct reports. 196 00:07:16,480 - > 00:07:17,920 And I don't just mean having them on 197 00:07:17,920 - > 00:07:18,340 a calendar. 198 00:07:18,620 - > 00:07:21,960 I mean having them consistently on time fully 199 00:07:21,960 - > 00:07:23,880 prepared and never canceling them. 200 00:07:24,440 - > 00:07:26,400 Your one-on-ones are your primary leadership 201 00:07:26,400 - > 00:07:26,820 tool. 202 00:07:26,820 - > 00:07:29,440 They are where you coach, where you assess 203 00:07:29,440 - > 00:07:31,940 performance, where you build the kind of trust 204 00:07:31,940 - > 00:07:33,000 that makes a teamwork. 205 00:07:33,460 - > 00:07:35,560 When you cancel them, especially when things are 206 00:07:35,560 - > 00:07:37,660 busy, which is exactly when your team needs 207 00:07:37,660 - > 00:07:39,280 them most, you send a signal. 208 00:07:39,860 - > 00:07:42,000 You signal that their development is optional. 209 00:07:42,460 - > 00:07:44,900 That when things get hard, the first thing 210 00:07:44,900 - > 00:07:47,100 to go is the investment in them. 211 00:07:47,560 - > 00:07:48,680 Protect your one-on-ones. 212 00:07:49,160 - > 00:07:51,600 Reschedule before you cancel and you show up 213 00:07:51,600 - > 00:07:52,320 to them prepared. 214 00:07:53,400 - > 00:07:55,120 The third thing to protect is your customer 215 00:07:55,120 - > 00:07:55,560 time. 216 00:07:55,560 - > 00:07:58,300 Even as you scale and delegate more operational 217 00:07:58,300 - > 00:08:00,620 work to your team, you should never fully 218 00:08:00,620 - > 00:08:01,860 disconnect from customers. 219 00:08:02,320 - > 00:08:03,680 You don't need to be in every account 220 00:08:03,680 - > 00:08:05,620 or every call, but you do need to 221 00:08:05,620 - > 00:08:08,700 stay connected somehow to the customer experience and 222 00:08:08,700 - > 00:08:10,260 keep it grounded in what your team is 223 00:08:10,260 - > 00:08:10,800 navigating. 224 00:08:11,340 - > 00:08:12,240 It sharpens your coaching. 225 00:08:12,580 - > 00:08:15,920 It gives you credibility in leadership conversations and 226 00:08:15,920 - > 00:08:18,320 it signals to your team that customer relationships 227 00:08:18,320 - > 00:08:19,380 matter to you. 228 00:08:19,700 - > 00:08:21,600 What this looks like at the VP level 229 00:08:21,600 - > 00:08:23,800 is deliberately selective. 230 00:08:24,400 - > 00:08:27,300 I'm talking about a handful of strategic accounts, 231 00:08:27,820 - > 00:08:30,440 executive relationships, escalation reviews. 232 00:08:30,860 - > 00:08:32,140 You don't have to have a full book. 233 00:08:32,520 - > 00:08:34,000 You need a curated presence. 234 00:08:34,820 - > 00:08:37,340 The fourth thing to protect is your own 235 00:08:37,340 - > 00:08:38,340 recovery time. 236 00:08:39,020 - > 00:08:41,539 I'm naming this explicitly because CS leaders are 237 00:08:41,539 - > 00:08:44,200 among the most prone to burning out quietly. 238 00:08:44,900 - > 00:08:46,940 The work is relentless. 239 00:08:47,660 - > 00:08:49,620 The demands are high and the culture of 240 00:08:49,620 - > 00:08:53,240 the function rewards responsiveness above almost everything else. 241 00:08:53,620 - > 00:08:57,160 You need wide space on your calendar, not 242 00:08:57,160 - > 00:09:00,060 as a luxury, as a leadership requirement. 243 00:09:00,560 - > 00:09:03,200 A leader who is depleted makes worse decisions, 244 00:09:03,760 - > 00:09:07,220 coaches less effectively and models an unsustainable pace 245 00:09:07,220 - > 00:09:07,920 for their team. 246 00:09:08,520 - > 00:09:09,960 Protect lunch, protect the end of your day, 247 00:09:10,220 - > 00:09:11,880 protect at least one morning a week where 248 00:09:11,880 - > 00:09:13,540 you're nodding back-to-back meetings from the 249 00:09:13,540 - > 00:09:14,900 moment you open your laptop. 250 00:09:15,540 - > 00:09:16,600 Let's talk about delegation. 251 00:09:16,980 - > 00:09:20,020 Delegation is where the calendar conversation gets really 252 00:09:20,020 - > 00:09:22,300 hard because most of the things that eat 253 00:09:22,300 - > 00:09:25,100 CS leaders' time are things they genuinely can 254 00:09:25,100 - > 00:09:26,400 add value to. 255 00:09:26,720 - > 00:09:29,920 The customer escalation, the renewal that's at risk, 256 00:09:30,280 - > 00:09:32,400 the cross-functional thing that's going sideways. 257 00:09:32,960 - > 00:09:34,660 Being in those things isn't wrong. 258 00:09:34,960 - > 00:09:36,900 The question is whether being in those things 259 00:09:36,900 - > 00:09:38,540 is the best use of your time at 260 00:09:38,540 - > 00:09:40,640 this stage or whether it's time to hand 261 00:09:40,640 - > 00:09:41,840 them to someone on your team. 262 00:09:42,100 - > 00:09:43,500 Here's the framework I'm wanting to use. 263 00:09:43,660 - > 00:09:45,380 There are three categories of work. 264 00:09:45,840 - > 00:09:47,720 Work that only you can do. 265 00:09:48,520 - > 00:09:52,340 Strategic decisions, leadership team, representation, work design, executive 266 00:09:52,340 - > 00:09:54,920 relationships, coaching your direct reports. 267 00:09:55,320 - > 00:09:57,100 This is your highest leverage work. 268 00:09:57,380 - > 00:09:59,560 It should be the center of gravity of 269 00:09:59,560 - > 00:10:00,040 your calendar. 270 00:10:00,880 - > 00:10:03,340 There's also work that your team can do 271 00:10:03,340 - > 00:10:04,440 with your input. 272 00:10:05,420 - > 00:10:09,020 Account strategy for complex situations, difficult customer conversations, 273 00:10:09,740 - > 00:10:12,240 cross-functional escalations that need a senior voice. 274 00:10:12,680 - > 00:10:14,340 This is where you're a resource. 275 00:10:14,560 - > 00:10:15,760 You don't have to be the owner. 276 00:10:16,180 - > 00:10:18,340 Your job here is to coach and advise 277 00:10:18,340 - > 00:10:19,720 and not to take over. 278 00:10:20,340 - > 00:10:22,380 And then there's work that your team can 279 00:10:22,380 - > 00:10:23,280 own entirely. 280 00:10:24,040 - > 00:10:27,700 Operational reporting, standard customer touch points, renewal execution 281 00:10:27,700 - > 00:10:30,540 for your healthy accounts, team rituals and meetings 282 00:10:30,540 - > 00:10:32,240 that don't require your presence. 283 00:10:32,720 - > 00:10:36,460 This is what gets delegated fully, not partially. 284 00:10:37,140 - > 00:10:39,200 The challenge for most customer success leaders is 285 00:10:39,200 - > 00:10:40,340 the middle category. 286 00:10:40,700 - > 00:10:43,020 They stay too involved in work their team 287 00:10:43,020 - > 00:10:45,260 can handle with input because it's hard to 288 00:10:45,260 - > 00:10:46,760 let go of things you're good at and 289 00:10:46,760 - > 00:10:47,320 care about. 290 00:10:48,020 - > 00:10:50,460 And I understand that feeling, but staying in 291 00:10:50,460 - > 00:10:51,960 the middle category at the expense of your 292 00:10:51,960 - > 00:10:53,880 highest leverage work is one of the most 293 00:10:53,880 - > 00:10:56,720 common ways CS leaders limit both their own 294 00:10:56,720 - > 00:10:58,660 impact and their team's development. 295 00:10:59,860 - > 00:11:02,140 Now here's the piece most CS leaders miss 296 00:11:02,140 - > 00:11:04,080 entirely when they think about delegation. 297 00:11:04,640 - > 00:11:06,960 It's not just about handing off operational work, 298 00:11:06,960 - > 00:11:10,340 it's about delegating strategic initiatives to your CSMs 299 00:11:10,340 - > 00:11:11,460 and doing it deliberately. 300 00:11:12,340 - > 00:11:14,200 So think about a work that lives on 301 00:11:14,200 - > 00:11:16,020 your to-do list that never gets done. 302 00:11:16,020 - > 00:11:18,860 The playbook that needs a full revamp, the 303 00:11:18,860 - > 00:11:21,760 onboarding process that's been patched together and needs 304 00:11:21,760 - > 00:11:23,100 a complete rethink. 305 00:11:23,500 - > 00:11:26,280 The QBR template that's outdated, the customer feedback 306 00:11:26,280 - > 00:11:28,180 loop that nobody has formalized. 307 00:11:28,680 - > 00:11:31,760 These are real strategic projects that matter for 308 00:11:31,760 - > 00:11:32,660 the health of your function. 309 00:11:33,060 - > 00:11:35,360 And they sit on your list quarter after 310 00:11:35,360 - > 00:11:38,020 quarter because you never have the bandwidth to 311 00:11:38,020 - > 00:11:39,800 give them the attention they deserve. 312 00:11:40,380 - > 00:11:41,340 Here's the shift. 313 00:11:41,800 - > 00:11:43,960 Those projects don't have to live on your 314 00:11:43,960 - > 00:11:44,320 list. 315 00:11:44,320 - > 00:11:46,960 They can live on a CSM's list as 316 00:11:46,960 - > 00:11:50,060 a stretch assignment, a development opportunity and a 317 00:11:50,060 - > 00:11:52,140 genuine contribution to the function. 318 00:11:52,740 - > 00:11:55,460 Delegating a strategic initiative to a CSM does 319 00:11:55,460 - > 00:11:56,800 two things simultaneously. 320 00:11:57,340 - > 00:12:00,220 It gets the work done and it develops 321 00:12:00,220 - > 00:12:01,300 the person doing it. 322 00:12:01,680 - > 00:12:03,740 A CSM's who leads a playbook revamp is 323 00:12:03,740 - > 00:12:07,880 building project management skills, cross-functional collaboration skills 324 00:12:07,880 - > 00:12:10,680 and the system's thinking muscle they wouldn't develop 325 00:12:10,680 - > 00:12:12,420 from account work alone. 326 00:12:12,420 - > 00:12:15,100 A CSM who owns a process improvement initiative 327 00:12:15,100 - > 00:12:17,220 is learning how to think about the function, 328 00:12:17,440 - > 00:12:18,220 not just your book. 329 00:12:18,660 - > 00:12:21,600 These are the experiences that build future CS 330 00:12:21,600 - > 00:12:24,240 leaders and you create them by giving your 331 00:12:24,240 - > 00:12:27,780 team real work with real ownership, not just 332 00:12:27,780 - > 00:12:28,400 more accounts. 333 00:12:29,100 - > 00:12:30,860 What this requires from you is a very 334 00:12:30,860 - > 00:12:32,200 different kind of involvement. 335 00:12:32,440 - > 00:12:34,160 You're not doing the work, but you're also 336 00:12:34,160 - > 00:12:35,280 not fully absent. 337 00:12:35,640 - > 00:12:37,580 You're setting the brief, what problem are we 338 00:12:37,580 - > 00:12:37,840 solving? 339 00:12:38,020 - > 00:12:39,200 What does success look like? 340 00:12:39,280 - > 00:12:40,100 What are the constraints? 341 00:12:40,640 - > 00:12:42,280 You're checking in at key milestones. 342 00:12:42,840 - > 00:12:44,680 You're available as a thinking partner when they 343 00:12:44,680 - > 00:12:47,220 get stuck and you're reviewing the output and 344 00:12:47,220 - > 00:12:48,580 giving meaningful feedback. 345 00:12:49,160 - > 00:12:51,540 That's the leader's role in delegated initiatives. 346 00:12:52,240 - > 00:12:53,960 Non-ownership, sponsorship. 347 00:12:54,820 - > 00:12:57,160 One practical move I'd recommend at the start 348 00:12:57,160 - > 00:12:58,940 of each quarter, do a calendar audit. 349 00:12:59,140 - > 00:13:01,600 Go through every recurring meeting on your calendar 350 00:13:01,600 - > 00:13:03,200 and ask two questions. 351 00:13:03,780 - > 00:13:05,900 Does this require my presence or could someone 352 00:13:05,900 - > 00:13:07,160 on my team lead it? 353 00:13:07,600 - > 00:13:09,480 And if I stopped attending this, what would 354 00:13:09,480 - > 00:13:10,240 actually happen? 355 00:13:10,560 - > 00:13:12,680 You'll be surprised how many meetings survive that 356 00:13:12,680 - > 00:13:13,120 question. 357 00:13:13,780 - > 00:13:16,060 And once they don't, those are your first 358 00:13:16,060 - > 00:13:17,300 delegation opportunities. 359 00:13:17,880 - > 00:13:20,180 Do the same thing with your strategic project 360 00:13:20,180 - > 00:13:20,500 list. 361 00:13:20,760 - > 00:13:23,680 For every initiative sitting on your plate, ask, 362 00:13:23,980 - > 00:13:25,300 is there someone on my team who could 363 00:13:25,300 - > 00:13:27,380 own this with the right brief and the 364 00:13:27,380 - > 00:13:28,020 right support? 365 00:13:28,600 - > 00:13:30,620 More often than not, the answer is yes. 366 00:13:31,180 - > 00:13:33,560 And handing it over with real ownership, not 367 00:13:33,560 - > 00:13:35,580 just task assignment is one of the highest 368 00:13:35,580 - > 00:13:37,860 leverage moves you can make as a scaling 369 00:13:37,860 - > 00:13:38,960 customer success leader. 370 00:13:39,560 - > 00:13:40,960 I wanna close this segment with something that 371 00:13:40,960 - > 00:13:42,480 took me longer than I'd like to admit 372 00:13:42,480 - > 00:13:43,760 to fully internalize. 373 00:13:44,220 - > 00:13:46,460 Letting go of things is not a sign 374 00:13:46,460 - > 00:13:47,440 that you don't care. 375 00:13:47,980 - > 00:13:50,300 It's a sign that you trust your team 376 00:13:50,300 - > 00:13:52,500 and a team that is trusted to lead, 377 00:13:52,720 - > 00:13:55,160 whether that's an account, a process or a 378 00:13:55,160 - > 00:13:59,900 strategic project, develops faster, performs better and ultimately 379 00:13:59,900 - > 00:14:02,860 makes you more effective as a leader because 380 00:14:02,860 - > 00:14:04,860 they're carrying more, which means you can focus 381 00:14:04,860 - > 00:14:06,840 on what only you can do. 382 00:14:07,780 - > 00:14:08,920 Let's bring this together. 383 00:14:09,440 - > 00:14:11,580 First, your calendar is a leadership decision. 384 00:14:11,880 - > 00:14:13,860 Every block on it is either something you 385 00:14:13,860 - > 00:14:15,120 chose or something you allowed. 386 00:14:15,540 - > 00:14:17,560 Taking ownership of that distinction is a starting 387 00:14:17,560 - > 00:14:20,380 point for designing a calendar that actually reflects 388 00:14:20,380 - > 00:14:21,380 your priorities. 389 00:14:22,060 - > 00:14:24,360 Second, what your calendar looks like depends on 390 00:14:24,360 - > 00:14:25,000 where you are. 391 00:14:25,180 - > 00:14:27,240 Early stage, you're close to the work and 392 00:14:27,240 - > 00:14:27,740 that's right. 393 00:14:28,360 - > 00:14:31,200 Scaling, the shift is toward enablement systems and 394 00:14:31,200 - > 00:14:32,080 developing your team. 395 00:14:32,520 - > 00:14:34,000 The leaders who get stuck are the ones 396 00:14:34,000 - > 00:14:36,480 who never recalibrate as the org grows. 397 00:14:37,340 - > 00:14:40,440 Third, protect the non-negotiables, strategic thinking time, 398 00:14:40,640 - > 00:14:43,320 one-on-ones with your direct reports, selective 399 00:14:43,320 - > 00:14:46,640 but deliberate customer presence and your own recovery 400 00:14:46,640 - > 00:14:47,060 time. 401 00:14:47,340 - > 00:14:48,160 These are not optional. 402 00:14:48,420 - > 00:14:51,600 They are the foundation of sustainable high-impact 403 00:14:51,600 - > 00:14:52,720 CS leadership. 404 00:14:53,400 - > 00:14:55,280 And fourth, delegate with intention. 405 00:14:55,940 - > 00:14:58,000 Know the difference between work only you can 406 00:14:58,000 - > 00:15:00,180 do, work your team can handle with your 407 00:15:00,180 - > 00:15:02,680 input and work your team can own entirely 408 00:15:02,680 - > 00:15:05,680 and do a quarterly calendar audit to make 409 00:15:05,680 - > 00:15:07,860 sure your time is actually distributed the way 410 00:15:07,860 - > 00:15:09,120 you intend it to be. 411 00:15:09,480 - > 00:15:10,900 Here's what I know from being in the 412 00:15:10,900 - > 00:15:12,980 VP of CS seat and from working with 413 00:15:12,980 - > 00:15:15,460 CS leaders who are navigating exactly this. 414 00:15:15,760 - > 00:15:17,500 Designing your calendar well is one of the 415 00:15:17,500 - > 00:15:19,440 highest leverage things you can do as a 416 00:15:19,440 - > 00:15:19,680 leader. 417 00:15:20,140 - > 00:15:21,900 Not because it may be more organized, but 418 00:15:21,900 - > 00:15:24,140 because it changes what you're able to give 419 00:15:24,140 - > 00:15:27,620 your team, your customers and your function when 420 00:15:27,620 - > 00:15:30,520 you're operating from a place of intention rather 421 00:15:30,520 - > 00:15:31,320 than reaction. 422 00:15:31,320 - > 00:15:33,060 If you're in a season right now where 423 00:15:33,060 - > 00:15:35,860 you have the opportunity to be deliberate about 424 00:15:35,860 - > 00:15:38,100 how you build your role, or if you're 425 00:15:38,100 - > 00:15:39,900 feeling the weight of a calendar that's been 426 00:15:39,900 - > 00:15:42,900 designed by everyone else's needs, that's exactly the 427 00:15:42,900 - > 00:15:44,740 kind of conversation I have with CS leaders 428 00:15:44,740 - > 00:15:47,380 in my one-on-one executive advisory and 429 00:15:47,380 - > 00:15:48,160 coaching program. 430 00:15:48,520 - > 00:15:50,240 Well, look at how you're spending your time, 431 00:15:50,380 - > 00:15:53,120 what's actually driving your highest impact and how 432 00:15:53,120 - > 00:15:55,840 to build a rhythm that's both sustainable and 433 00:15:55,840 - > 00:15:56,320 strategic. 434 00:15:56,800 - > 00:15:58,620 If that's where you are, I'd love to 435 00:15:58,620 - > 00:15:59,360 work with you. 436 00:15:59,360 - > 00:16:00,760 If you want to see if this is 437 00:16:00,760 - > 00:16:02,540 the right fit for where you are today, 438 00:16:02,820 - > 00:16:06,460 schedule a free consult call at csrevspeak.com 439 00:16:06,460 - > 00:16:07,780 forward slash coaching. 440 00:16:08,380 - > 00:16:09,500 Thanks for being here. 441 00:16:09,680 - > 00:16:10,940 I'll see you in the next one. 442 00:16:11,300 - > 00:16:13,780 If you enjoyed today's episode and you want 443 00:16:13,780 - > 00:16:16,460 to learn more about CS RevSpeaks coaching and 444 00:16:16,460 - > 00:16:20,940 training services, head on over to www.csrevspeak 445 00:16:20,940 - > 00:16:21,620 .com. 446 00:16:21,920 - > 00:16:24,580 I specialize in working with customer success leaders 447 00:16:24,580 - > 00:16:27,080 who carry your revenue number, and I look 448 00:16:27,080 - > 00:16:29,880 forward to helping you confidently run a revenue 449 00:16:29,880 - > 00:16:31,660 -generating customer success team. 450 00:16:32,240 - > 00:16:33,940 Don't forget to connect with us on LinkedIn 451 00:16:33,940 - > 00:16:37,200 and join our customer success leaders hub for 452 00:16:37,200 - > 00:16:40,380 more discussions, resources, and networking opportunities. 453 00:16:41,120 - > 00:16:42,440 You can access the links on the share 454 00:16:42,440 - > 00:16:42,700 notes. 455 00:16:43,300 - > 00:16:44,080 See you next episode.