Head of Customer Success

Placements24; Cape Town; On-site; ZAR 1,200,000 - 2,400,000; Full time

Job summary

Placements24 in Cape Town, Western Cape, is seeking a strategic Head of Customer Success to lead a growing team and drive retention, adoption and customer lifetime value for a SaaS enterprise solution.

You will build scalable onboarding, adoption, renewal processes, monitor health metrics, and collaborate with Sales, Product and Marketing to deliver a unified customer experience. The ideal candidate has 10+ years in customer success, strong leadership, and CRM platform expertise.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, or related field; MBA or equivalent preferred.
• 10+ years in customer success, account management, or related client-facing role in tech.
• Minimum of 5 years in a leadership role, building and scaling CS operations.

Responsibilities

• Define and execute the CS strategy to drive satisfaction, retention, and expansion.
• Lead, mentor, and grow a team of CSMs with clear objectives.
• Develop scalable onboarding, adoption, support, and renewal processes.
• Monitor customer health scores and address churn risks.
• Collaborate with Sales, Product, and Marketing to ensure a unified experience.
• Gather customer feedback to inform product and service improvements.
• Drive upsell and cross-sell within existing customers.
• Report CS metrics and provide strategic recommendations to leadership.
• Represent the company at industry events and build relationships with key clients in Cape Town.
• Champion a customer-centric culture across the organization.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Customer success strategy

Team management

Stakeholder collaboration

CRM analytics

SaaS industry knowledge

Communication skills

Education

Bachelor's degree (Business/Marketing)

MBA or equivalent experience

Tools

Salesforce

Gainsight

ChurnZero

Job description

About the Role

Our client, a rapidly expanding SaaS company specializing in enterprise solutions, is seeking a strategic and results-oriented Head of Customer Success to lead their dedicated team in Cape Town, Western Cape. This executive role is critical to our client's long-term growth strategy, focusing on ensuring customer retention, driving adoption, and maximizing customer lifetime value. The ideal candidate will have a deep understanding of customer relationship management, a passion for delivering exceptional customer experiences, and a proven ability to build and scale high-performing teams. This position requires a strong presence in Cape Town office to foster team cohesion and drive key strategic initiatives within the vibrant South African tech landscape.

Key Responsibilities

• Define and execute the customer success strategy to ensure high levels of customer satisfaction, retention, and expansion.
• Lead, mentor, and grow a team of Customer Success Managers (CSMs), setting clear objectives and performance standards.
• Develop and implement scalable processes for onboarding, adoption, support, and renewal of customers.
• Monitor customer health scores and proactively address potential churn risks.
• Collaborate closely with Sales, Product, and Marketing teams to ensure a unified customer experience.
• Gather customer feedback and insights to inform product development and service improvements.
• Drive upsell and cross-sell opportunities within the existing customer base.
• Report on key customer success metrics and provide strategic recommendations to senior leadership.
• Represent the company at industry events and build strong relationships with key clients in Cape Town, Western Cape.
• Champion a customer-centric culture throughout the organization.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Business, Marketing, or a related field; MBA or equivalent experience preferred.
• 10+ years of experience in customer success, account management, or a related client-facing role within the tech industry.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience in a leadership role, managing and developing teams.
• Demonstrated success in building and scaling customer success operations for a SaaS product.
• In-depth knowledge of customer success best practices, churn reduction strategies, and value realization frameworks.
• Excellent communication, negotiation, and presentation skills.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret data and translate it into actionable insights.
• Experience with CRM and Customer Success platforms (e.g., Salesforce, Gainsight, ChurnZero).
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic startup environment.
• Must reside in or be willing to relocate to Cape Town, Western Cape.

Benefits

• Our client offers an attractive compensation package, including a competitive base salary, substantial performance bonuses, and equity options.
• Comprehensive medical and dental insurance are provided, along with a retirement savings plan.
• The company fosters a culture of continuous learning, offering professional development opportunities, workshops, and conference attendance.
• Employees enjoy generous paid time off and are part of a dynamic and innovative team located in the heart of Cape Town.

This role provides an exceptional opportunity to shape the customer experience at a growing tech leader.