Customer Success Manager, Blackboard

Customer Success Manager

Remote - United States

The Opportunity: 

Anthology delivers education and technology solutions so that students can reach their full potential and learning institutions thrive. Our mission is to empower educators and institutions with meaningful innovation that’s simple and intelligent, inspiring student success and institutional growth.

The Power of Together is built on having a diverse and inclusive workforce. We are committed to making diversity, inclusion, and belonging a foundational part of our hiring practices and who we are as a company.

For more information about Anthology and our career opportunities, please visit www.anthology.com. 

The Customer Success Manager (CSM) ensures that customers see value throughout their entire Anthology journey. With a focus on success and retention, the CSM engages with customers to understand their goals and to create and execute plans that achieve partnership objectives, meeting the business needs of customers and Anthology.

The CSM works collaboratively with other Anthology teams to ensure customers receive appropriate support, resources, and services, and assists account team members in identifying expansion (sales and services) opportunities. This CSM role works primarily with personas using Blackboard LMS and, as such, requires specialized knowledge of the solution, higher ed, and relevant personas.

The ideal candidate for this role embraces a customer-first mindset, excels at building relationships and creating raving fans, can confidently solve/triage Blackboard LMS adoption challenges, and is adept at driving activities that deliver exceptional value to customers in all phases of the lifecycle.   

Primary responsibilities will include:  

• Developing strong relationships with customers centered on ensuring their success in meeting their business goals using Blackboard
• Developing and implementing account engagements to ensure business objectives are met, modernization is achieved, and customer sentiment is positive
• Executing prescriptive playbooks based on customer need
• Developing an understanding of and responding to customer questions on the full Anthology portfolio of products and services, including their value proposition, the challenges they solve, and how they are supported
• Conducting or assisting with regular partnership reviews with customers to ensure progress on shared business objectives, including modernization
• Acting on customer sentiment information, such as surveys, NPS responses, solicited and unsolicited customer feedback
• Promoting customer engagement in the online Anthology Community, as well as Anthology-hosted virtual and in-person events, facilitating customer opportunities to network, share, and learn from their peers
• Working with Marketing to organize, plan, and deliver engaging webinars and on-campus events for Blackboard customers
• Connecting customers to best practice resources and/or recommendations; assisting customers in solving point-in-time challenges; connecting customers with opportunities for engagement in feedback sessions and with research projects as applicable; partnering with the customer to support the overall goal of increased satisfaction and adoption of Anthology solutions 
• Assisting Regional Sales Managers (RSMs) and regional leadership with identifying customer goals/values and cross-sell and up-sell and services opportunities, as well as assisting with renewal proposals
• Serving as an internal advocate for the customer, helping to drive support and change when necessary to help the customer achieve their business objectives
• Serving as project manager and executing tailored plans both internally and externally, and proactively providing next-step support, including:
  • External: managing the customer experience through appropriate channels, including outreach, meetings, providing recommendations, crafting of responses after internal alignment, executing customer outreach strategies
  • Internal: escalation, identifying and engaging SMEs/Strategists as needed, regular meetings with internal teams to resolve identified issues, providing direction and ensuring focus on customer as well as Anthology business needs

• Acting as an information conduit from Anthology and the industry to customers, ensuring customers are connected to the latest information on Anthology products and services, resources, and higher education industry trends
• Driving advocacy in the form of references and success stories
• Projecting a favorable public image of the company to promote its objectives and goals and enhance customer relationships
• Building and maintaining relationships across the customer's organization, including with C-suite institutional leadership
• Traveling up to 25% of the time

The Candidate:  

Required skills/qualifications:  

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience
• At least 5 years of related experience in Higher Education, Customer Experience, Customer Success, and/or Education Technology serving the higher education sector
• Strong customer-service focus and ability to communicate with empathy, sensitivity, and professionalism
• Excellent oral and written communication skills; proactive and impactful communicator
• Strong project management skills
• Ability to work independently and to proactively identify and respond to emerging challenges and changing conditions
• Proven track record of successfully managing accounts and developing strong customer relationships with all levels of an organization
• Well-developed problem-solving and critical thinking skills
• Ability to effectively create, gather, and analyze reports, ability to use data to inform decision-making and develop action plans
• Ability to multitask and consistently perform under the pressure of deadlines and other demands
• Highly organized, task-oriented
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, results-oriented, collaborative environment
• Skilled in building deep relationships and connect with others authentically
• Proficiency with CRM and/or customer success software
• Ability to work with sales organizations in a matrix-model as new products are being introduced and sold in various regions, for various functions to business units within an institution of higher learning 
• Experience managing a large-scale technology transition either at an educational institution or a company, from which applicable skills in project planning, stakeholder alignment, multi-team coordination, and executive progress communications were demonstrated
• At least 1 year of experience working in the Blackboard LMS or with Blackboard customers
• Fluency in written and spoken English

Preferred skills/qualifications:  

• Advanced degree
• Experience working in or serving Higher Education institutions
• Experience working in a Customer Experience or Customer Success role at a Software-as-a-Service technology company
• 2 or more years of experience developing courses in Blackboard as an admin or faculty member

Base Pay range is $76,000 - $91,000/year plus sales compensation depending upon experience. We use national and industry-specific survey data to assist in determining compensation. Additionally, we consider factors such as external market rate, budget for the role, and the compensation rates of current employees performing the same function. Some roles will have variable pay. 

This job description is not designed to contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required. Nothing in this job description restricts management's right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities at any time.

Anthology is an equal employment opportunity/affirmative action employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, gender, age, color, religion, national origin, marital status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, protected military/veteran status, or any other legally protected factor.