The 2026 Community Choice Badge Winners

TL;DR, The Community Choice Badge honors three CS leaders selected directly by hundreds of community votes. While not part of the judges’ top 25, these winners received one of the most meaningful recognitions possible, appreciation from the community that celebrates their impact firsthand. Their work spans enablement, operational excellence, and value communication, each transforming how teams deliver customer outcomes at scale.

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Opening

While the 25 Creative Customer Success Leaders were selected through a fully anonymous, criteria-based judging process, the Community Choice Badge celebrates something uniquely meaningful. It recognizes three individuals chosen directly by the CS community, peers, colleagues, and practitioners who see their impact up close.

These winners are not part of the judges’ top 25, but they earned something truly special, recognition from the community that celebrates their impact firsthand. We are proud to share the 2026 Community Choice Badge Winners.

Community Choice Honorees of the 2026 Creative CS Leader Award

Raman Bindra | Recruiterflow

Challenge

As Recruiterflow restructured its CS team, Raman recognized a critical need: CSMs supporting Enterprise and Mid-Market clients needed stronger consultative skills, better business alignment, and the confidence to lead strategic, outcome-driven conversations. Without a unified approach, engagement quality varied and value realization lacked consistency.

Solution

Raman built the Customer Success Bootcamp, a hands-on, scenario-based training program built around three pillars: consultative mindset, value storytelling, and strategic partnership.

The program blended:

• SPICED and value frameworks
• Live role plays
• Account audits
• Peer learning sessions

Each module was tied to real customer scenarios, ensuring practical application. Cross-functional involvement from Product and Leadership ensured alignment between customer goals and product adoption.

Outcomes

• 30% increase in customer engagement scores
• 25% reduction in time-to-first-value
• 15% increase in expansion revenue
• 100% of strategic accounts now have documented Success Plans tied to business outcomes

Customers now experience more strategic conversations, and CSMs report stronger confidence, proving that the bootcamp elevated both capability and customer value.

Sumitra Narayanan | Braze

Challenge

As Braze scaled, the hiring lifecycle for CSMs stretched to nearly two months, slowing growth and delaying onboarding of critical talent. Sumitra saw an opportunity to streamline hiring without compromising quality.

Solution

Sumitra redesigned the hiring process through a structured, insight-led framework:

• Created an Ideal CSM Profile, applying ICP logic to talent development
• Used AI-driven talent insights to build a balanced team with complementary strengths
• Introduced a competency-based keyword filter in the ATS to surface high-fit candidates quickly

This approach brought clarity, consistency, and speed to the hiring motion.

Outcomes

• Reduced time-to-hire from ~2 months to 2 weeks
• Rapid ramp and early success indicators from the new hire
• Adoption of the framework as a blueprint for future talent design

Sumitra’s work proved that scalable hiring is built on intentional design, not speed alone.

Pragya Mishra | Courseplay

Challenge

Clients were engaging with the LMS but struggled to translate usage metrics into clear ROI. Without a unified, interpretive view of impact, strategic conversations were limited and renewals were harder to justify.

Solution

Pragya designed the LMS Impact Report, a consulting-style deliverable that transformed complex data into a clear narrative and actionable recommendations.

Her strategy included:

• Creating a goal-centric data model aligned with client objectives
• Correlating login, MAU, completion, and feature usage data into a cohesive ROI story
• Designing a visual, concise report structure
• Refining the model through iterative feedback with top clients

This shifted conversations from reporting to strategic advisory.

Outcomes

• 10% increase in platform adoption across participating clients
• Stronger proactive engagement, with clients requesting monthly insights
• Clients using the report internally to advocate for investment and drive adoption
• QBRs redesigned into structured ROI discussions

Pragya’s initiative clarified the value of the LMS and positioned CS as an essential strategic partner.

Explore the Full List of 2026 Creative CS Leaders

These three Community Choice honorees represent the heart of what makes the Customer Success community so special, collaboration, inspiration, and a genuine drive to elevate each other. To see the full picture of innovation this year, explore the complete list of 25 Creative Customer Success Leaders, to look out for in 2026, selected through our fully anonymous, multi-criteria judging process. Their programs showcase bold thinking, AI-powered creativity, and measurable business impact across onboarding, education, growth, operational excellence, and more.