Deciding who CS reports to can either amplify or muzzle your team.
A debate rages: Should Customer Success report directly to the CEO for maximum visibility, or slot under the CRO for tighter revenue accountability? Your team feels caught in limbo—are you an extension of Sales, or a strategic pillar with its own seat at the executive table? Meanwhile, expansions and renewals loom, but your chain of command remains hazy.
The Familiar Scenarios
Sales Overlords: Under a CRO, you worry about losing the consultative approach if everything centers on immediate revenue.
CEO Isolation: Reporting to the CEO can grant strategic clout, yet daily alignment with Sales might suffer, creating gaps in forecasting expansions.
Mid-Stage Turbulence: As your ARR grows, the question resurfaces—does your evolving customer base call for a new reporting line?
The Core Issue: Defining CS’s Strategic Priority
Placing Customer Success under the CEO can elevate its importance but may isolate it from the commercial engine. Under the CRO, you get close to revenue but risk overshadowing adoption in favor of closing deals. The right choice depends on product complexity, cultural values, and organizational scale.
Why It Matters
A poorly chosen reporting line can hamper your team’s budget, influence, or ability to integrate with other revenue-driving departments. Conversely, a thoughtful structure can unify your efforts around expansions and adoption, gaining top-level support without diluting your consultative role.
Next Steps
Need a data-driven way to decide? The complete White Paper outlines real-world pros and cons for each model, with examples from companies that found success under both structures. Download it to choose a reporting framework that sustains healthy revenue growth and positions CS as an indispensable leadership partner.
