AI Success Strategist

Job Description

Principal AI Success Strategist, Customer Success | Zendesk

The Tone:
This is a full-time hybrid role at Zendesk. Zendesk builds software to bring a sense of calm to customer service, transforming the customer experience through AI-driven innovation with its AI-powered Resolution Platform. This role is pivotal in leading that change by shaping and delivering long-term AI success for customers, owning their strategic AI roadmap, and maximizing business impact. The strategist builds executive partnerships from day one, ensuring AI initiatives start strong and scale predictably.

The TL;DR
• Role: Full Time
• Type: Hybrid
• Location: Hybrid

• Mission: Own end-to-end delivery of customers’ AI roadmaps by translating product capabilities into clear business strategies, defining a long-term AI vision, aligning internal and external teams, and driving execution from initial adoption through sustained expansion.

What You’ll Actually Do
• Lead AI Roadmap Delivery: Lead the design, planning, and execution of comprehensive AI adoption and expansion roadmaps for key customers, ensuring alignment to their broader business goals and customer success vision.
• Act as Design Authority: Serve as the design authority for customers’ AI deployments, leading solution design reviews, ensuring deployments align with best practices, and coordinating technical escalations for complex implementations.
• Shape Long-term AI Strategy: Partner with executive stakeholders to co-create and refine a forward-looking AI strategy that anticipates market trends and customer needs, serving as a primary AI thought leader and trusted advisor.
• Orchestrate Cross-Functional Delivery: Dedicate effort to internal cross-functional collaboration, aligning Product, Professional Services, Sales, and other teams to deliver on the AI roadmap and manage engagement as the lead.
• Drive Measurable Impact: Utilize data-driven insights to track AI adoption, resolution metrics, and gross revenue retention improvements, continuously refining strategies to optimize outcomes and customer satisfaction.

The Must-Haves
• Background: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field, demonstrating a senior career level in customer success and AI strategy.
• Experience: Possess a minimum of 10+ years in Customer Success/Experience and 2+ years in AI-related roles, with prior go-to-customer experience in enterprise technology/SaaS, including managing AI adoption programs that drive business impact and designing success roadmaps.
• Skills: Strong proficiency in project and program management, product and technical knowledge of AI solutions (generative AI, integrations), business and strategic acumen, consultation and communication, and analytical and outcome-focused decision-making.
• Bonus: Advanced degrees or certifications in AI strategy or project management are preferred, along with familiarity with emerging AI trends and a deep understanding of Zendesk’s AI platform.