Your Customer Success Team Might Not Be Job Hunting – But They Are Listening 

If you asked your best Customer Success Manager whether they’re job hunting, most would say no. They’re not updating their LinkedIn headline, they’re not scrolling job boards on their lunch break, and they’re certainly not sending out applications. But ask a different question-“Would you take a call about what’s happening in the market?”-and the answer changes.

That’s the reality shaping Customer Success hiring today: a workforce that isn’t actively looking but is still willing to listen when the right opportunity comes along.

A Market Heating Up, Especially in the US

Demand for Customer Success talent has been climbing steadily, particularly across the US fintech market, as firms continue investing in customer retention, expansion revenue and long-term client relationships. Customer Success has become a strategic growth function, meaning experienced professionals are increasingly in demand.

That demand is running headfirst into a supply problem: the best people in these roles are, by and large, not actively searching. They’re employed, engaged in their current work, and not motivated to go through the friction of an active job search. But that doesn’t mean they’re closed off.

“What we’re seeing consistently with our US clients is that the strongest Customer Success candidates were never going to apply to a job posting,” says Morgan Davidofsky, a consultant at EC1 Partners who works on many of these searches for the firm’s US desk. “They’re not on job boards. The only way you reach them is through a real conversation, and the only way that conversation goes anywhere is if what you’re offering is genuinely compelling.”

Why Passive Candidates Still Pick Up the Phone

It might seem counterintuitive that someone who isn’t looking for a new role would still take a recruiter’s call. In reality, it happens every day, and for good reason.

Professionals who aren’t actively job hunting still want to understand where they sit in the market. They want to know what comparable roles are paying, how their compensation stacks up, what career paths look like elsewhere, and whether the grass genuinely is greener. Staying in touch with a recruiter, even casually, is a low-effort way to keep that picture current.

“There’s a real difference between ‘not interested’ and ‘not actively looking,’“ Davidofsky notes. “Almost everyone falls into the second category at some point. The professionals who engage with us aren’t disloyal to their current employer-they’re just being thoughtful about their career. That’s not a red flag; that’s good judgement.”

For employers, this means the passive candidate market isn’t out of reach-it simply requires a different approach. Strong opportunities still attract attention. What doesn’t land is a generic LinkedIn message with no context, no insight and no compelling reason to respond.

Compensation Is Where the Cracks Show First

One theme comes up again and again in these conversations: compensation. Many firms that were competitive a few years ago have quietly fallen behind, and the professionals fielding those offers know it.

Signs that a compensation package is slipping behind the market include:

• Offers that are below what similar roles are commanding elsewhere.
• Bonus or commission structures that haven’t been reviewed for several years.
• Base salaries that no longer reflect inflation or current market benchmarks.
• Candidates disengaging once salary expectations are discussed.

“Compensation is usually the first thing that surfaces in a conversation with a passive candidate, and it’s often the reason the conversation doesn’t go any further,” says Davidofsky. “We’re not just talking about total compensation either-it’s the structure. Customer Success professionals are increasingly comparing how variable pay is tied to retention and expansion metrics, not just base salary.”

The impact goes beyond any single hire. Falling behind on compensation doesn’t just make it harder to attract new talent-it quietly erodes retention among the people already on your team, who are often having the same conversations with recruiters as everyone else.

What Employers Should Be Reviewing

Given the pace of hiring activity and the willingness of passive candidates to engage, now is a good time for employers to review their employee proposition before attrition forces the issue.

Compensation structures
Benchmark salaries and incentive plans against current market data rather than relying on historic salary reviews. Variable compensation linked to customer outcomes is becoming an increasingly important differentiator.

Career progression
Customer Success has traditionally offered fewer progression opportunities than Sales or Product. Professionals who can’t clearly see what’s next are naturally more receptive to external conversations.

Employee engagement
Regular career conversations are far more valuable than annual engagement surveys. If employees only discuss their future during an exit interview, those conversations have started too late.

Retention initiatives
Retention should be proactive rather than reactive. Identify your highest-impact people before someone else does, and make sure they have compelling reasons to stay.

The Takeaway

Customer Success professionals may not be actively job hunting, but they are paying attention-to the market, to their compensation relative to peers, and to whether their employer is investing in their long-term development.

Organisations that recognise those conversations are already happening have an opportunity to stay ahead of the market by strengthening compensation, career progression and employee engagement before retention becomes a problem.

“The employers who win in this market aren’t necessarily the ones with the biggest budgets,” Davidofsky says. “They’re the ones who understand that even a fully staffed, seemingly content team is still having these conversations. The question is whether they’re having them with you-or about you.”

EC1 Partners works with Customer Success leaders across the US fintech market to identify, engage and secure exceptional talent-whether they’re actively searching or simply open to the right opportunity.

If you’d like to benchmark your team’s compensation or discuss hiring in today’s market, get in touch with our leadership team.