Project Management in Enterprise Customer Success

Large enterprise accounts are not just customers; they are ecosystems with multiple stakeholders, complex integrations, and ongoing projects that often intersect with broader business objectives.

In this intricate landscape, a Customer Success Manager (CSM) frequently plays the role of a Project Manager, ensuring seamless execution, alignment with business goals, and timely delivery of value.

The Role of Project Management in Customer Success

Enterprise customers operate in structured environments where change management, process adherence, and risk mitigation are key. A single enterprise account can have multiple projects running simultaneously, each requiring a structured approach to scope management, resource allocation, and communication. While dedicated project managers exist in many organizations, CSMs often bridge the gap between customer expectations and internal execution.

Flowchart: Enterprise Project Management Workflow in Customer Success

? Business Requirement Gathering

? Define Scope & Deliverables

? Create JIRA Tickets & Align with DevOps & Product Teams

? Draft Business Delivery Requirement (BDR)

? Align with Product & Engineering Teams

? Conduct Weekly Cadence Calls for Progress Tracking

? Maintain a RAG-Based Project Tracker

? Deliver & Implement the Solution

? Monitor Post-Implementation Success

? Conduct Lessons Learned Review & Optimization

Key Responsibilities of a CSM as a Project Manager

1. Understanding Business Requirements Before execution begins, a CSM must deeply understand the client’s business goals, current pain points, and the desired outcome of a project. This requires proactive engagement with decision-makers, end-users, and technical stakeholders.
2. Defining the Scope of Delivery Clear project scoping prevents scope creep and ensures alignment between customer needs and product capabilities. CSMs should collaborate with Product, Engineering, and DevOps teams to outline realistic project deliverables.
3. Creating and Managing JIRA Tickets For organizations using Agile methodologies, JIRA serves as the central platform for tracking development progress. CSMs need to translate customer requirements into well-defined user stories, acceptance criteria, and priority levels to streamline execution.
4. Coordinating with DevOps and Product Teams Continuous alignment with technical teams ensures realistic delivery timelines. CSMs should facilitate cross-functional meetings to understand dependencies, roadblocks, and estimated delivery timelines.
5. Drafting a Business Delivery Requirement (BDR) Document The BDR document serves as a formal agreement between internal teams and the customer, outlining estimated delivery timelines, milestones, and commitments. It is a crucial document to manage expectations and avoid misalignment.
6. Hosting Cadence Calls and Tracking Progress Regular cadence calls with internal teams and customers keep all stakeholders informed of progress, risks, and next steps. These meetings also provide a forum for adjusting priorities based on real-time feedback.
7. Ensuring Timely Delivery and Post-Implementation Follow-Up Once deliverables are completed, the CSM’s role extends to implementation success tracking, ensuring the customer adopts the solution effectively and achieves the desired outcomes.

Empowering CSMs with Project Management Best Practices

• Agile Methodology: Learning Agile principles can help CSMs manage sprints, backlog grooming, and prioritization effectively.
• Stakeholder Management: Using frameworks like RACI (Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed) ensures clear ownership and expectations.
• Project Tracking Tools: Familiarity with JIRA, Asana, or Trello enhances a CSM’s ability to manage technical deliverables efficiently.
• Risk Mitigation: Having contingency plans in place ensures smooth execution despite unexpected roadblocks.

Project management is no longer a standalone function; it is an integral skill that every CSM should develop to navigate enterprise customer success effectively. By mastering project management methodologies, CSMs can bridge the gap between customer expectations and business execution, ensuring successful long-term partnerships.

What project management practices have helped you as a CSM? Share your thoughts in the comments!