CHURN IS DEAD
Everyone Says “Be Strategic.” No One Tells You How.
6 min read · Outcomes
Archive note: This issue predates the evidence ledger introduced in August 2026. Treat uncited benchmarks and examples as editorial analysis, not independently verified findings.
"Be strategic."
"Focus on outcomes."
"Don’t just do tasks, drive value."
"CSMs who don’t use AI will be replaced by those who do."
You’ve seen these posts. I have too. Over and over again.
They sound inspiring the first time.
By the tenth, they feel like copy-paste advice with no playbook.
I used to believe them at face value.
I remember being on a call early in my CS journey, trying to sound “strategic” because that’s what everyone said good CSMs do.
Only problem?
The person on the call was a support admin who just wanted help with configuration. No exec. No context. No goals.
I left that call thinking I’d failed and I had.
Not because I wasn’t “strategic” enough but because I didn’t yet know how to meet customers where they were, or how to connect the tactical to something bigger.
That was the turning point.
Because no one teaches you how to actually navigate this stuff:
- Who to ask for KPIs (and how to do it without sounding robotic)
- What to do when you're only speaking with mid-level contacts
- How to actually tie activities to outcomes in a way that makes sense
We don’t need more mantras.
We need methods.
We need to be honest about the messy middle between check-ins and strategic outcomes.
Strategy vs. Tactics is a False Choice
One of the most repeated pieces of advice in Customer Success right now is:
“Stop being tactical. Start being strategic.”
But here’s the truth I've learned firsthand:
Every strategic win I’ve ever had was built on doing the basics exceptionally well.
Early in my career, I was in Application Support. My whole job was reactive: waiting for issues, checking logs, escalating tickets.
Our customer was a major newsroom, critical, fast-paced, high-stakes. And the software simply had to work.
But I had a thought one day:
*“What if instead of waiting for issues, I proactively asked the users themselves what’s working, what’s broken, and what’s just frustrating?”*
No one called this “Customer Success” yet, but that’s exactly what I was doing.
I started talking to newsroom operators, directors, and even the production teams.
I asked simple questions like:
- What do you love about the platform?
- What do you absolutely hate?
- What wastes your time?
- What efficiencies are you desperately chasing?
It turned out these tactical, operational conversations were exactly where the strategic insight lived.
After a series of workshops, I distilled their feedback down to:
- 5 things they loved (but could still be improved)
- 5 things they hated (that slowed down their workflow)
- 5 wishlist items that would make their lives easier
Management was receptive because they saw the potential impact.
Within six months, we:
- Enhanced the 5 features they already liked, making them even more valuable.
- Eliminated 4 out of the 5 things they hated.
- Delivered 3 brand new capabilities directly from their wishlist.
Suddenly, those tactical conversations had created measurable strategic outcomes.
When I caught up with the customers again, something had shifted dramatically.
Operators told their management about tangible efficiency gains.
News anchors literally felt the difference on air, asking:
*“Did we switch products? Everything feels smoother.”*
That moment taught me something powerful:
Tasks aren’t the enemy of strategy. They’re the foundation.
Tactical success directly enables strategic outcomes.
So let’s stop criticizing CSMs for “doing tasks.”
Instead, let’s help them connect every task to strategic impact because the truth is:
Strategy doesn’t replace tactics. It elevates them.
By Kuber Sethi · All issues · Subscribe