Director, Client Services

Medallia; Toronto; On-site; CAD 169,000 - 219,000; Full time

Job summary

Medallia is seeking a Portfolio Lead to oversee a dedicated customer portfolio within the Engagement Track of the Customer Services Organization. You’ll act as the CEO of your book, owning people, performance, portfolio financials, outcomes, and health, while scaling a 7–10 person Engagement Manager team.

You’ll partner with Sales leadership to ensure retention, drive renewals and expansion, and align cross-functional teams across Product, Sales and Support to remove blockers and achieve

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree with interest in technology.
• Proven SaaS/Professional Services customer success experience.
• 3+ years in people management with 7+ direct reports.
• Strong experience running a portfolio and driving renewals/expansion.

Responsibilities

• Own aggregate customer health, renewals, and expansion revenue.
• Lead and scale a team of 7–10 Engagement Managers.
• Partner with Sales leadership to protect retention and unlock growth.
• Coordinate with Product, Sales and Support to remove blockers and scale best practices.
• Provide executive sponsorship and portfolio governance.

Skills

People leadership

Portfolio management

Commercial acumen

Strategic advisory

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree

Job description

Overview

Medallia is the pioneer and market leader in Experience Management. Our award-winning SaaS platform, Medallia Experience Cloud, leads the market in the understanding and management of experience for candidates, customers, employees, patients, citizens and residents.

We are more than a software company. We want to be known as a company that does the right thing, no matter the challenge or controversy. We are committed to creating a culture that values every person and every experience. Individual life experiences shape the way we interact with the world, which is why we encourage people to bring their whole selves to work each day. The strength of our global workforce is the most significant contributor to our success.

We believe: Every Experience Matters. Talent is Everywhere. All Belong Here.

At Medallia, we hire the whole person.

About This Role

The Portfolio Lead is a critical, people-managing leadership role within our Engagement Track of the Customer Services Organization Responsible for the strategic health, commercial success, and operational excellence of a dedicated customer portfolio.

In this role, you are considered the "CEO" of your assigned portfolio. You command end-to-end responsibility for the people, their performance, portfolio financials, customer outcomes, and the overall account health associated with your book of business. You will lead, mentor, and scale a high-performing team of 7 to 9 (or up to 10) Engagement Managers (EMs), acting as an internal "knowledge multiplier" who owns team enablement, professional development, and program/project management practices.

Accountable for aggregate customer health, renewals, and expansion revenue, you will partner closely with Sales leadership and operate as the primary point of escalation for accounts within your portfolio. This role demands a sophisticated blend of commercial acumen, people leadership, and a hands-on understanding of the Medallia platform to drive customer retention and growth.

Responsibilities

• Portfolio Health:
  • Commercial & Delivery Ownership: Own aggregate customer health, retention, renewals, and expansion revenue for assigned accounts.
    Sales Partnership: Align services delivery directly with Sales leadership and Account Executives to protect retention and unlock growth whitespace.
• Strategic Value:
  • Value Realization Framework: Institutionalize Medallia’s framework to ensure Engagement Managers (EMs) map technical execution directly to client business outcomes.
    Technical Authority & Vision: Maintain hands-on platform mastery to lead C-suite "art of the possible" discussions, validate client investments, and govern multi-year roadmaps.
• Team Leadership:
  • Team Scale & Management: Recruit, mentor, and scale a team of 7-10 Engagement Managers, overseeing performance, program management standards, and team utilization.
    Coaching & Onboarding: Build structured onboarding and provide continuous, active coaching on account strategy, complex problem-solving, and career growth.
• Executive Sponsorship & Portfolio Escalation:
  • Executive Advisory: Build long-term partnerships with C-level stakeholders and coach EMs through sensitive, high-stakes client conversations.
  • Escalation Ownership: Act as the primary leadership escalation point for portfolio-level risks, aligning internal teams and clearing roadblocks to protect delivery outcomes.
• Operational Excellence & Cross-Functional Alignment:
  • "One Medallia" Governance: Enforce consistent delivery standards, operating rhythms, and governance reviews (including CCP and account reviews) across the portfolio.
  • Cross-Functional Orchestration: Partner with Product, Sales, and Support to resolve systemic blockers, secure root-cause fixes, and scale best practices globally.

Qualifications

Minimum Qualifications:

• Education: Bachelor's degree, with a demonstrated interest in technology, comfort with technical concepts, and a commitment to self-guided learning.
• Proven track record in Professional Services, Management Consulting, or high-touch Customer Success/Account Management in the SaaS industry.
• People Leadership: At least 3+ years in a people management role successfully managing and developing high-performing team members (preferably leading 7+ direct reports).
• Commercial Acumen: Strong experience running a portfolio of accounts, driving renewals, and identifying expansion opportunities within a technology or SaaS environment.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Strategic Advisory & Thought Leadership: Ability to think strategically about complex business challenges, with a focus on the "why" behind program development over the technical "how" of platform implementation. Proven ability to originate and articulate new ideas, provide counsel to executive-level contacts, and lead deep conversations about many parts of their business.
• Influential & Coaching Leadership: Widely recognized as a coach and role model. Proven ability to lead, motivate, and guide cross-Functional teams and external partners through influence rather than direct authority. Ability to coach others to develop and articulate business insights.
• Sophisticated Communication: Exceptional executive presence, verbal/written communication, and the ability to persuade senior stakeholders, adapting approaches in real-time to synthesize complex information.
• Problem Solving & Analytical Thinking: Ability to develop actionable, unique insights or frameworks that become foundational to our customers' business or worldview, or shape our best practices. Proactive approach to business challenges and risk containment.
• Domain Expertise: Familiarity with Customer and Employee Experience (CX/EX) and/or the Medallia platform (such as Medallia Experience Cloud) is highly preferred.

This posting is for an existing vacancy. Medallia is committed to equal pay and transparency. The annual base salary range for this position is $169,000-$219,000 CAD. This position is bonus eligible. Please note that the salary range information provided is a general guideline and combines all of the distinct labor markets within Canada. It is uncommon for an individual to be hired at or near the top of the range for their role and compensation decisions are dependent on a variety of factors. Medallia considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s work experience, candidate’s work location, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, external market data, as well as, market and business considerations when making compensation decisions.

At Medallia, we celebrate diversity and recognize the value it brings to our customers and employees. Medallia is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or any other applicable status protected by state or local law. Individuals with a disability who need an accommodation to apply please contact us at [e-mail]. For information regarding how Medallia collects and uses personal information, please review our Privacy Policies.