stephenrogan/success-plan-creator

Success Plan Creator

Builds a mutual success plan that both sides own. The success plan is the single most important document in the customer relationship because it answers the question that drives every renewal conversation: "Did we achieve what we set out to achieve?"

How to Use

Provide:

• The customer's goals (what outcomes they expect -- from the sales process, onboarding, or direct conversation)
• Your goals for the account (retention, expansion, advocacy, strategic alignment)
• Available metrics (how outcomes can be measured)
• Key contacts on both sides (who is accountable for what)
• Timeline (when should these outcomes be achieved)
• The starting baseline (where things stand today on each metric)

Success Plan Structure

1. Shared Objectives

Define 3-5 objectives that both sides agree on. These must be outcomes, not activities.

| Objective | Measure | Baseline | Target | Timeline | Owner | |-----------|---------|----------|--------|----------|-------| | Reduce manual reporting time | Hours/week spent on manual reports | 20 hours/week | <5 hours/week | 90 days | Customer (adoption) + CSM (enablement) | | Increase team adoption | Active users / licensed seats | 12 of 60 (20%) | 48 of 60 (80%) | 120 days | Customer (change management) + CSM (training) | | Prove ROI to leadership | EUR value of time saved vs. investment | No measurement | 3x ROI documented | 180 days | CSM (calculation) + Customer (validation) |

Objective rules:

• Outcomes, not activities: "Reduce manual reporting time" not "Complete training"
• Measurable: if you cannot define the metric, you cannot define success
• Time-bound: an objective without a deadline is a wish
• Mutually owned: both sides have responsibilities. A success plan where only the CSM has actions is a project plan, not a partnership

2. Milestones

Break each objective into milestones that show progress:

| Milestone | Linked Objective | Target Date | Status | Notes | |-----------|-----------------|------------|--------|-------| | Onboarding complete -- all 60 users trained | Adoption | Apr 15 | Not started | Depends on customer's training schedule | | First automated report run by analytics team | Manual reporting | Apr 30 | Not started | Quick win opportunity | | 50% of team using product weekly | Adoption | May 15 | Not started | Change management critical here | | Q2 value report delivered with customer-confirmed metrics | ROI | Jun 30 | Not started | Requires customer data access |

3. Responsibilities

| Area | CSM Responsibility | Customer Responsibility | |------|-------------------|----------------------| | Training | Deliver sessions, provide materials, track completion | Ensure attendance, allocate team time, manager endorsement | | Adoption | Monitor usage data, identify barriers, provide recommendations | Drive internal adoption, address resistance, enforce accountability | | Value measurement | Build the ROI model, present evidence, track metrics | Validate methodology, confirm outcomes, provide internal data | | Communication | Regular check-ins, QBR preparation, status updates | Timely responses, escalation of blockers, honest feedback |

4. Review Cadence

| Review | Frequency | Content | |--------|-----------|---------| | Milestone check | Monthly | Are milestones on track? Any blockers? Status update on each objective | | Success plan review | Quarterly (aligned with QBR) | Full review: objectives progressing? Targets still relevant? Adjustments needed? | | Annual reset | Yearly | New objectives for the next period based on what was achieved and what the customer's priorities are now |

5. Risk and Dependency Register

| Risk/Dependency | Impact | Mitigation | Owner | |----------------|--------|-----------|-------| | Customer IT team overloaded -- integration delayed | Extends onboarding timeline by 2-4 weeks | Get IT resource commitment in kickoff. Escalate to champion if delayed | Customer champion | | Low training attendance | Adoption target at risk | Manager mandate for attendance. Offer flexible session times | Customer manager + CSM | | No baseline data for ROI | Cannot measure value improvement | Establish baseline in first 30 days before process changes | CSM + Customer |

Creating the Plan with the Customer

The success plan should be built collaboratively, not presented unilaterally:

The conversation:

1. "What does success look like for you in 6 months?" (Their goals in their language)
2. "How would we measure that?" (Co-define the metrics)
3. "What do you need from us to get there?" (Your responsibilities)
4. "What do we need from your team?" (Their responsibilities -- sets mutual accountability)
5. "Let me draft this into a shared plan for us both to reference" (Formalise the agreement)

The customer should see the plan as their document, not yours. If it feels like a vendor template they signed, it will be ignored. If it feels like a shared commitment to their goals, it will be referenced.

When to Create a Success Plan

| Trigger | Why Now | |---------|--------| | Post-onboarding (Day 30-60) | The customer has enough product experience to set meaningful goals | | Start of a new contract year | Reset objectives for the next period | | After a QBR where goals are discussed | Formalise what was agreed | | After a save play (relationship repair) | Establish a fresh commitment to value delivery | | Before a renewal (if no plan exists) | Build the evidence framework for the renewal conversation |

Output Format

## Mutual Success Plan: [Account Name]
**Created:** [date] | **Review cadence:** [quarterly]
**CSM:** [name] | **Customer lead:** [name]

### Shared Objectives
[Objective table with measures, baselines, targets, timelines, owners]

### Milestones
[Milestone table with dates and status]

### Responsibilities
[Responsibility matrix]

### Review Schedule
[Next milestone check, next QBR, annual reset date]

### Risks and Dependencies
[Risk register]

Quality Gates

• Is every objective measurable with a baseline and a target? "Improve adoption" fails. "Move from 20% to 80% active user rate in 120 days" succeeds
• Does the customer co-own the plan? If all actions are on the CSM's side, it is not a mutual plan. Both sides must have responsibilities
• Are there milestones between now and the target? A 6-month objective with no intermediate milestones will drift. Monthly checkpoints prevent this
• Is the plan referenced in every QBR and major touchpoint? A success plan that is created and then ignored is worse than no plan -- it sets expectations that are not tracked

Principles

• The success plan is the renewal conversation in advance. If the plan's objectives are achieved by renewal time, the renewal conversation is "look at what we achieved together -- shall we set new goals for next year?" If they are not achieved, at least you know why and can address it honestly
• The customer's goals are the plan's goals, not your goals for them. If they want to reduce manual reporting time and you want to increase adoption breadth, the plan leads with their goal. Your goal (adoption) may be the mechanism, but their goal (time savings) is the objective
• A success plan that is reviewed every quarter is 10x more valuable than one reviewed once. The plan is a living commitment, not a one-time document. Every review reinforces the partnership and surfaces issues early
• The best success plans evolve. Goals that were ambitious 6 months ago may be baseline now. New priorities emerge. The plan should grow with the relationship, not become a historical artefact