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Welcome to
After the Close
the Blog
Thoughtful insights and honest perspectives on Customer Success and leadership, focused on the work that happens after the deal is done.
After the Close is a space for reflection, insight, and the conversations that don’t always happen in the meeting or the deck. This blog is here to share real stories, practical lessons, and honest perspectives on Customer Success and leadership.
Whether you’re a CSM, a CS leader, or an executive, you’ll find insight on what happens after the deal is signed. From navigating adoption and retention to leading teams and driving impact, the goal is simple: help you think more clearly, act more intentionally, and build work that lasts.


The Empowerment Gap: Why CSMs Don’t Feel Empowered (Even When Leaders Think They Are)
I’ve coached hundreds of Customer Success Managers over the years. Different companies, different products, different regions, different markets. Yet the same pattern appears over and over again. CSMs do not feel empowered. They are not empowered to say no. They are not empowered to drive change. They are not empowered to raise red flags. They are not empowered to make tough decisions. They are not empowered to prioritize for their customers. They are not empowered to deviate
Kristi Faltorusso
Nov 14, 20253 min read


Customer Success Isn’t Just Growing, It’s Defining Market Value
I love when data validates what many of us in Customer Success have been saying for years: customer-led growth is the engine of modern business performance. The latest Public Market Pulse Report from Certinia analyzed more than 4,000 public company earnings reports and the findings are a massive win for Customer Success. The data shows a clear pattern: companies that talk about Customer Success are creating more value, and the market is rewarding them for it. Let’s unpack wha
Kristi Faltorusso
Oct 28, 20252 min read


The Journey: #31 Product Perception Penalty
In Customer Success, we spend a lot of time talking about value realization. But over the years, I’ve come to realize something just as...
Kristi Faltorusso
Aug 10, 20253 min read


The Journey: #29 The Research Edge
When I started my first role in Customer Success, I thought I had it all figured out. I had been a power user of the product.I knew the...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jul 22, 20253 min read


Compensation Is Strategy: Why Your CS Comp Plan Might Be Sending the Wrong Message
After 13+ years in Customer Success, there’s one lesson that has proven itself time and time again: People do what you pay them to do. If...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jul 18, 20253 min read


The Silent Silo Killing Customer Value: Services
Everyone in SaaS loves to talk about breaking down silos between Sales and Customer Success. You’ve heard the calls to “align GTM” and...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jul 17, 20252 min read


The Journey: #28 Personalized ≠ Customized
There was a time in my career when I believed that “wow” moments came from building everything from scratch. Every onboarding flow. Every...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jul 14, 20253 min read


The CEO won't make or break your success quite like this leader ...
You want to know how I decide whether to take a CS leadership role? I start by evaluating the sales leader. After 13 years and 5 CS...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jul 8, 20251 min read


The Journey: #27 The CSM Success Code
When I first stepped into CS leadership, I found myself managing a high-performing, high-engagement team full of hungry, driven CSMs. ...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jul 6, 20253 min read


The Journey: #26 Face Time Matters
A few years ago, I was logging 200,000 miles a year. Great for my Delta status. Brutal on my body, marriage, and sanity. But completely...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jun 30, 20252 min read
Market Impact Insights Podcast: Customer Success Isn't Optional - Kristi Faltorusso
ClientSuccess Chief Customer Officer Kristi Faltorusso admits a question that most customer success professionals can't answer: "How is...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jun 30, 20251 min read
Now At Night: The Fun Side of Customer Success with Kristi Faltorusso
Read the episode summary: In this episode, we sit down with the legendary Kristi Faltorusso Customer Success powerhouse, startup...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jun 4, 20251 min read


The Journey: #14 The Automated Advantage
When I started my Customer Success journey, we didn’t have AI. Heck, we barely had folders we could find. No centralized hub. No...
Kristi Faltorusso
Apr 6, 20252 min read


Why Your Onboarding Program Failed (And How to Fix It)
Let’s rip the Band-Aid off. Your onboarding program failed. And here’s why: You built it to serve your company — not your customer. I’ve...
Kristi Faltorusso
Apr 3, 20253 min read


Your Customer, Your Success: Episode #7 New Year, New Success - Customer Success Strategy
In this episode of Your Customer, Your Success, host Gary Marra sits down with Kristi Faltorusso, Chief Customer Officer at ClientSuccess...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jan 21, 20251 min read


The Sales-to-CS Handoff Won’t Save You—Here’s What Will
Too many Customer Success teams treat the Sales-to-CS handoff like some magical resource—one that holds all the secrets to a customer’s...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jan 17, 20253 min read


🔮 The Future of Customer Success in 2025: My Prediction
We may not have a crystal ball, but we do have something even better—an incredible community of smart, insightful voices in Customer...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jan 17, 20251 min read


Matik Names Kristi Faltorusso as a Top Customer Success Influencer to Follow in 2025
From Matik: Customer success is a constantly evolving field. To stay on top of the latest trends, strategies, and best practices, it...
Kristi Faltorusso
Jan 14, 20251 min read


Productea: 84: Kristi Faltorusso - Aligning Customer Success and Product Management
Kristi Faltorusso, a CS executive and coach, joins me in this high-energy conversation about customer success-assisted onboarding,...
Kristi Faltorusso
Nov 20, 20241 min read


Your Generic Health Score Is Contributing to Your Churn Problem
“Customer Success looks different at every company.” Everyone nods their heads in agreement, but then… why do most companies have the...
Kristi Faltorusso
Nov 15, 20242 min read

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