Customer Success Client Retention

MICHAEL WARD

Los Angeles, CA 773-***-**** **********@*****.*** http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelgward

CUSTOMER SUCCESS DIRECTOR B2B PROCESS IMPROVEMENT

Proven expertise in developing customer-centric strategies, building high-performing teams, and scaling Customer Success operations within global enterprise environments.

Customer Success leader with 15+ years of experience preserving at-risk revenue, optimizing client retention, and leading diverse, high-performing teams across global markets and industries. Known for being a hands-on, people-centric servant leader with a solid technical and engineering background. Managed global Customer Success teams of 100+ employees with annual budgets of $20M+. US Navy Submarine veteran.

Core Competencies

Customer Experience

Product Adoption

Customer Retention & Renewal

Customer Health

Program Management

Lifecycle Mapping

Process Improvement

Strategic Planning & Analysis

Team Leadership

Technical Skills

Google Workspace Salesforce AI Microsoft Suite (including Visio and Project) Adobe Creative Cloud Pipedrive Smartsheet Gainsight Hubspot Jira Asana Slack Tableau Power BI Confluence Zapier

Career Highlights

Built and led Verizon's Principal Onshore Group (4 Senior Manager direct reports, 100+ Individual contributors) that delivered an NPS score increase of 45% within two years through strategic customer relationship management and innovative GTM solutions.

Developed and executed a client retention strategy that preserved $565M in at-risk revenue by identifying and addressing specific client concerns, resulting in a 90% client retention rate.

Led cost-saving network evaluations and crafted efficient telecommunications transformation models for Xerox and GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), resulting in $3.6M in savings for Xerox and improving GSK’s network reliability by 30%, significantly reducing downtime and enhancing client productivity.

Professional Experience

2022 - 2023 Armis New York, New York, USA

Armis is an asset intelligence cybersecurity company that protects the entire attack surface and manages an organization’s cyber risk exposure in real time.

Senior Customer Success Executive

Led a portfolio of 15 enterprise accounts, collectively generating $25M in revenue, including Intel, Tyson Foods, Abbott Labs, Verizon, FedEx, New York City agencies (FDNY, NYPD, DEP), HCL, and CDW.

Authored customer onboarding and Customer Success/GTM processes improving project delivery timelines by 30% and increasing customer upsell opportunities by 25% within the first year of product usage.

Improved client retention rates by 35% by developing a comprehensive client engagement strategy, including product portfolio expansion.

Authored an enhanced quarterly review process that identified critical areas for product improvement, contributing to a 20% reduction in client-reported issues.

2021 - 2022 Yates LTD. New York, New York, USA

Yates LTD provides global enterprise transformation services for Fortune 500 companies and C-level executives.

Principal Consultant, Strategic Engagement

Led in-depth evaluations of telecommunications ecosystems that bolstered business growth by streamlining operations and driving cost reduction.

Partnered with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to craft a future telecommunications landscape, particularly following the spinoff of GSK's Consumer Health division. The result was a strategic approach that minimized costs ($3.2M) and significantly increased network efficiency and resilience (30%).

Led a restructuring initiative for Xerox, resulting in cost savings of $3.6M through extensive operational and financial analysis of network and communications providers

2010- 2021 Verizon Enterprise Solutions New York, New York, USA

Verizon offers voice, data, and video services and solutions on its award-winning networks and platforms.

Senior Director, Customer Success (2017-2021)

Built and led Verizon's Principal Onshore Customer Success Group and simultaneously led a dedicated Customer Success organization for Johnson & Johnson (3 Associate Director direct reports, 4 Senior Manager direct reports, 200+ Individual contributors across all regions NA, EMEA, LATAM, APAC). Two ADs were promoted to Director, and 14 ICs were promoted during my tenure.

Developed and executed a client retention strategy that preserved $565M in at-risk revenue by identifying and addressing specific client concerns, resulting in a 90% client retention rate.

Increased NPS score by 45% within two years via strategic customer relationship management and GTM solutions.

Delivered a 50% reduction in churn rate by enhancing customer engagement and support protocols.

Optimized all program initiatives, including Solution Architecture, Life Cycle Engineering, Consulting, Project Management, Financial Management, and Change Management, achieving an 84% improvement in time to deliver in these functional areas.

Translated analysis of environments into technology recommendations, resulting in $35M in upsell wins.

Additional Roles Held: Group Senior Manager, Customer Success Technical Account Manager, Enterprise Strategic Sales Executive, Managed Services Senior Manager, Network Operations Center (Managed Services)

Military Experience

United States Naval Submarine Service Petty Officer 2nd Class FT2(SS)

Led an at-sea division (acting FT1) of 5 Fire Control Technicians in the operation and maintenance of submarine combat control systems.

Enhanced targeting accuracy and operational readiness through meticulous system calibrations, resulting in a 25% increase in mission efficiency from 70% to 95%.

Spearheaded a critical upgrade project for fire control systems, which involved scheduling, coordination with multiple departments, and hands-on technical work. Completed the project two weeks ahead of schedule, under budget, and without compromise on submarine safety or mission capability.

Education and Certifications

Data Science/Analytics; Western Governors University – In Progress

Information Systems / Operations Management; University of North Carolina - Greensboro

ITIL Foundations v3

Executive Data Science; Johns Hopkins University

Project Management Professional; Google Professional Certificate

Product Management Professional; University of Maryland

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