Frequently Asked Questions
The Practical CSM Academy is an online training and CPD (continuing professional development) portal for the Customer Success community. Members can subscribe to the Academy on an annual basis either individually or in corporate teams. Membership provides access to the “Certified CSM Professional” world-class professional training and certification program for customer success management, plus literally hundreds of searchable training and development assets in a wide range of formats that cover all things CS related, plus regular live online training sessions each month, in addition to multiple other benefits.
Lots of reasons! But here are three: Firstly we offer a combination of live, trainer-led events and self-paced on-demand learning. Secondly we provide both a complete end-to-end certification program and a comprehensive and fully searchable database of on demand training assets on hundreds of specific topics. Thirdly we publish new training materials every month, and we will even create new training content that our members request.
Basic members ony get access to the first two modules within the formal training and certification program (namely “Customer Success Fundamentals” and “Business Fundamentals”) and can also use the Successopedia. Full members get access to all ten training modules and all four certification levels. Full members also have access to the Content Finder where they can search for and use literally hundreds of training assets in a fully indexed database, plus Live Learning where they can register to attend a range of live, intructor-led events that are scheduled each month.
Choose Basic membership if you only have a very small budget and/or if you only need to cover the very basics of Customer Success Management best practice.
Choose Full membership if you are serious about getting and staying ahead in the Customer Success profession. Full membership is far more comprehensive than Basic both in terms of formal training and certification (four certification levels compared with just the first level for Basic) and the other features such as Content Finder and Live Learning.
Membership can be paid for by credit card or debit card. The contract is for one year, which is then renewed annually.
We understand that it’s not always easy to know in advance whether something is what you want or not. That’s why we provide a 30 day, 100% money back guarantee, in order to make things easy for you. Under our money back guarantee, members are given 30 days in which to review the site and check that it’s for them, during which time they can cancel their subscription for a no questions asked, 100% refund.
Full members get access to our monthly live training, and the topic/s for each session are published well in advance, plus the sessions are recorded so that members can review the recordings if they miss the live event. Members can even propose topics for us to cover in upcoming live sessions.
Research shows that learning works best when students are provided with multiple ways to learn. Also people’s needs change depending upon their circumstances. That’s why we provide our training in a variety of ways, including live online instructor led and coaching events, prerecorded videos to stream over the Internet, downloadable MP3s to listen to in the car or on the train, downloadable PDFs to read and of course an electronic version of our book “Practical Customer Success Management” to serve as a study guide and ongoing reference manual. On top of all this, members can also download over 20 tools in the form of templates, checklists and presentations in Microsoft Office format that they can customize and use to simplify their work.
Absolutely! Drop us a line to sales@practicalcsm.com and we’ll be happy to talk to you about your team’s training and CPD needs and provide a quotation.
Yes you can. Managers get an additional menu option that takes them to the Team Management page. This page enables managers view both activity and results for the team as a whole or for any individual team member.
No, the Practical CSM Academy is completely independent of any Customer Success software provider or indeed any oher company. This means you can be sure that there is no bias and no hidden agenda in any of our training.
No, each subscription is for one named person only, so if two people want to become members they will need to subscribe separately.
At PracticalCSM.com we offer a “no quibble” 14 day money back in full guarantee for our Full CCSMP product for all individual consumers who purchase their own membership for themselves. This means that you can purchase your Full Certified CSM Professional membership in confidence, knowing that if you try it and do not like it then you can get your money in back in full with no questions asked, so long as you meet the following criteria:
Firstly you must have tried out the content, so you need to get at least half way through Module One, which means viewing the lessons up to lesson 1.5.
Secondly, you must NOT have started Module Two.
The reason for this is because we sell an information product and of course just like a restaurant cannot take your food back after you have eaten it all, we cannot take our information back once you have learned it all. That would not be fair on us! On the other hand we want to be fair on you, hence we allow you the opportunity to try out as much as you wish of Module One in order to make up your mind, but you must not proceed further unless you are willing to commit to your purchase. Fair? We think so!
By default, memberships are automatically renewed at the end of the membership period. Members are sent an email iin advance to let them know that their subscription will be renewing, and are also informed once the renewal has occured and provided with a receipt for the transaction. Members are able to opt out of the automated renewal of their membership if they wish to, in which case they will need to manually renew when their subscription ends.
There certainly is! Send us an email to sales@practicalcsm.com and we can find out your needs and discuss the pricing options with you.
The learning content on the Practical CSM Academy portal is all aimed at Customer Success professionals or other professional who perform similar roles, and the content relates to the roles of customer success management and CS team leadership. There are several hundred learning assets and this content is currently organized into the following subject categories: Customer Success Fundamentals, Business Fundamentals, PCSMF1: Preparation, PCSMF2: Commitment, PCSMF3: Onboarding, PCSMF4: Adoption Planning, PCSMF5: Adoption Implementation, PCSMF6: Value Realization, PCSMF7: Engagement Evaluation, Putting It All Together, Career Development and Customer Success Leadership (PCSMF stands for “Practical CSM Framework”). Full members also get a copy of the book “Practical Customer Success Management: A best practice framework for rapid generation of customer success”
The learning content on the Practical CSM Academy portal is provided in a wide range of formats, including video, audio (both streaming and downloadable), articles, downloadable tools in Microsoft Office formats and as PDFs, long form case study exercises, long form PDF workbooks, and interactive tests. Full members also get a copy of the book “Practical Customer Success Management: A best practice framework for rapid generation of customer success”
We add new content all of the time, at the rate of several new training assets every month. If an existing assets becomes old or out of date then we either update it, replace it or simply delete it. That way you can be sure that everything on the member’s site is current and relevant.
Our portfolio of training content is both broad and deep, so our first recommendation is to try searching for it again but using different words for your search criteria. If you still cannot find what you need then contact us and assuming we feel it’s of value to members we’ll be happy to create a new learning asset on your desired subject.
Research shows that learning works best when students are provided with multiple ways to learn. That’s why we provide a wide range of training styles, including real time instructor-led training, reading, self paced videos, interactive quizzes, and case study-based exercises, plus group and individual coaching (for subscribers to purple and gold membership levels respectively)
We cover hundreds of topics relating to the role of Customer Success Manager and the list of topics is growing all of the time. Members can view and filter the list as they wish and can also search for specific terms to narrow down the list to just those assets that are of interest to them.
Finding the content you want to engage with is simple. Members can search for the training they want either by reviewing the content relating to the modules within the Certified CSM Professional certification program or by searching a fully indexed database of all our assets using various filters as well as free text searching for specific terms.
We have multiple live training sessions scheduled every month. The training grenerally lasts for between 60 and 120 minutes. Course titles and descriptions are published well in advance, so members can decide ahead of time if they’re interested in attending. Attendees are able to interact with the instructor and ask questions during the live training session.
If you come across something you don’t understand within the training content, we recommend that you first of all try research and reading around the topic that relates to whatever it is you didn’t understand, in order to broaden your knowledge on the specific topic. But members who are truly stuck and need some help can simply go to the Successopedia and send us a message. Our instructors will respond with a personalized answer as soon as possible. Please note that whilst we aim to answer all your questions, we do operate a “fair use” policy to ensure that we are able to continue to provide a consistently high quality of service to all our members.
Sme of our learning content is available on other platforms, but much of the content is completely unique to the Practical CSM Academy, and no other platform has or will ever have anything like all of it, or indeed (so far as we know) anything comparable to it! We will continue to offer unique content that you cannot get anywhere else to our members, so if you like our content (and we hope you do) and you want to have access to all of it then the Practical CSM Academy is the only place where you will find all of it.
The syllabus and exam is overseen by a committee of six independent industry professionals who together form the Certified CSM Professional Advisory Committee. This committee approves any syllabus changes, and validates that each question in the exam is accurate and understandable for candidates to be able to answer correctly. They also ensure that the questions within the exam cover the syllabus sufficiently to ensure that an exam pass is meaningful as a professional certification of a Customer Success Manager’s capabilities.
We provide two levels of certification. The Certified CSM Professional program is divided into ten modules, with each modules comprising one or more chapters within the training manual to read, two to four 30ish minute videos to watch, a detailed, case study-based exercise to perform and an end of module test that you need to pass. Once you have completed the module you will be awarded a “certificate of completion” for that module. Once you have completed all ten modules you are given the opportunity to take a final, two part exam that tests both your knowledge and your ability to apply that knowledge in real world situations. Candidates who pass this exam are awarded a “certificate of professional capability”. So in all there are ten certificates of completion to collect, plus an overall certificate of professional capability that is issued to those who pass the final exam..
You can only take the final CCSMP exam after you have worked through all of the materials within the Certified CSM Professional syllabus. There are ten modules to work through and we estimate it might take someone around two weeks full time or four weeks part time to complete a module. So someone with a busy job who is completing the training in their own spare time might take twelve months to get CCSMP certified for example.
Members are provided with three attempts to take the exam, so if you fail on the first attempt you will have two further chances to try again. Members must wait a minimum of two weeks between retakes.
The exam is taken online and you can do it anywhere – at home, at work or anywhere else – although we recommend you choose a quiet area with a good Internet connection and where you know you will not be interrupted.
The exam is “open book” which means that you are allowed to refer to your notes and documentation whilst you take it. The exam has two sections. In the first section you will be asked a series of short questions that test your knowledge across the entire Certified CSM Professional syllabus. In the second section you will be asked a smaller number of longer and more detailed questions that are based upon scenarios that you will be asked to read. These questions will test your ability to apply your knowledge in real world situations.
The system will tell you immediately whether you passed or failed.
Yes, you will be provided with a digital certificate with both your name and your Practical CSM Academy membership number printed on it, along with the date your certifcate was awarded to you. If you pass the final exam we will also send you a printed and signed version of your certificate of competence in the post for you to keep as a permanent record of your achievement and to frame and hang on your wall.
Yes, we keep a record in our databases of all members who pass the exam and the date they passed. We can reissue the digital certificate if you lose your copy.
There is no expiry date as such, however all certificates include the date the exam was passed on and the version of the exam that was taken. Our recommendation is that members keep their certification up to date by taking any new certification exams when they are released.
Because the rate of growth and change within the CS profession is so high, the Practical CSM Academy intends to update the Certified CSM Professional sylabus and exam every two years. When the syllabus and exam is updated, we will publish a list of changes that will enable members who are already certified to know what to study if they wish to take the exam in order to keep their certification current.
Once you have completed all of the training modules within the Certified CSM Professional training program, you will be able to access the exam page. This page has all of the information you will need to help you revise for and take the exam, and of course we are here to answer any questions you might still have if you cannot find the information you are looking for.