[Un]Churned – The No. 1 Podcast for Customer Retention
Gainsight
If you're experimenting with automation, questioning the traditional post-sales model, or trying to drive more value with less headcount, you're in the right place. AI won’t fix churn, but these conversations might.
Retention is the new growth & AI is rewriting the rules. Hosted by Josh Schachter, SVP of Atlas at Gainsight, [Un]Churned—the No. 1 podcast for retention and Customer Success leaders—features real talk with the sharpest minds in the Customer Success space. We dig into how teams are scaling smarter, activating AI agents, and redesigning the customer journey for lasting impact.
Retention is the new growth & AI is rewriting the rules. Hosted by Josh Schachter, SVP of Atlas at Gainsight, [Un]Churned—the No. 1 podcast for retention and Customer Success leaders—features real talk with the sharpest minds in the Customer Success space. We dig into how teams are scaling smarter, activating AI agents, and redesigning the customer journey for lasting impact.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Feb 18, 2026 • 25min
What Consumption-Based CS Looks Like Inside a $100B Company ft. Jared Collins (Dell)
Jared Collins, Senior Director of Customer Success at Dell Technologies who builds consumption-based post-sales operations for Apex. He discusses how hardware logistics force months-ahead planning. He explains unifying enterprise data into triggers and playbooks. He covers partnering tightly with sales and preparing data foundations for AI-driven signals.
Feb 11, 2026 • 49min
A Masterclass in Category Creation from the Leaders at Gong and Gainsight ft. Udi Ledergor (Gong) & Lauren Olerich (Gainsight)
Udi Ledergor, Gong’s early marketer turned Chief Evangelist and author, and Lauren Olerich, Gainsight marketing leader and creator of Pulse, discuss category creation. They talk about when to hire your first marketer, naming and promoting new categories like revenue intelligence, building data-driven content that goes viral, and treating brand as a human to scale influence.
8 snips
Feb 6, 2026 • 16min
How Do You Measure AI Proficiency in Your CS Team? ft. Guy Galon (Obrela)
Guy Galon, CCO at Obrela and former software engineer, explains how he measures AI capability through curiosity and rapid experiments. He discusses building internal AI in cybersecurity, the Multifaceted CSM framework adding AI proficiency, and three big AI bets for 2026. Short timelines, CS influencing revenue forecasts, and managing AI agents round out the conversation.
Feb 4, 2026 • 34min
What Happens When You Apply Digital Motions to Your Biggest Accounts? ft. Christine Lavery (Conga)
Christine Lavery, VP of Customer Success at Conga, leads a global CS team focused on scaling digital success motions and outcome-driven programs. She argues digital motions should apply across all customer tiers. Christine covers mapping customer journeys, persona-centered communications, rolling out SMART goals for measurable outcomes, using product analytics, and combining structured and unstructured data with AI for complete customer intelligence.
7 snips
Jan 28, 2026 • 29min
This CCO Won't Ask His Team What He Wouldn't Do Himself (And Why) ft. Jim Richmond (Smartling)
Meet Jim Richmond, Chief Customer Officer at Smartling — a seasoned leader across sales, success, and services. He discusses why gross revenue retention is his North Star. He explains four-quarter forecasting, building systems to scale 4x, role specialization for CSMs, and how AI bots eliminated single-touch support tickets. He also shares why he still carries a book of business to stay connected to customers.
17 snips
Jan 21, 2026 • 55min
Why Your Post-Sales Budget Should Be 7% of Revenue (Not 10%) ft. Abbas Haider Ali (Github)
In this engaging discussion, Abbas Haider Ali, Senior VP of Customer Success at GitHub, shares insights into post-sales investment strategies. He argues that budget allocation should drop from 10% to 7% of revenue driven by AI integration. Abbas introduces a six-layer customer health model and emphasizes the need for evolving playbooks to match customer demands. He also explores the concept of the 'specialized generalist' role in customer success, poised to revolutionize the field with AI tools. This conversation provides a roadmap for CS leaders in today’s rapidly changing landscape.
Jan 14, 2026 • 30min
18 Months, 7,000 Customers, 67% Support Resolution: Inside Intercom's FDE Strategy ft. Diego Ballona (Intercom)
Diego Ballona, Senior Director of Engineering at Intercom who built the Forward Deployed Engineering motion, talks scaling Fin to thousands of customers. He describes starting with five design partners, the three-role FDE team, outcome-based pricing, and how FDE turns customer problems into product features. He also explains when FDE fits a business and why FDE engineers need product and GTM skills.
8 snips
Jan 7, 2026 • 30min
3 CS Trends That Will Define 2026 & Kristi's Next Chapter ft. Kristi Faltorusso
Kristi Faltorusso, a Customer Success leader and builder, shares her insights after leaving ClientSuccess. She discusses three pivotal trends shaping Customer Success in 2026, including the rise of CS Ops and a looming tech-stack consolidation, dubbed the 'ERR apocalypse.' Kristi reveals how she built four products through daily AI learning and emphasizes the importance of discovering AI champions within organizations. Her reflections on deep trust in leadership and a call to balance tech use with joyful reading round out this engaging conversation.
10 snips
Dec 24, 2025 • 26min
How To Stop Managing 38% of Your Customers in 2026 ft. Yvette Hill (F5)
Yvette Hill, SVP of Customer Success at F5, has a remarkable 35-year career across tech giants like IBM and Microsoft. In this insightful discussion, she tackles the transformation from traditional customer success to an AI-driven model. Yvette emphasizes the importance of leveraging AI to enhance customer interactions and drive real value. She shares her bold decision to allocate 100% of her budget to AI, unlock data-driven insights with 175 customer signals, and encourages teams to embrace experimentation. Her vision for a curious, AI-enabled workforce is truly inspiring!
13 snips
Dec 17, 2025 • 38min
Why $100M AI Companies Are Failing at Renewals? ft. Cassie Young & Kyle Poyar
Join Cassie Young, a General Partner at Primary Ventures with expertise in customer success, and Kyle Poyar, founder of Growth Unhinged and pricing analyst, as they delve into the alarming trend of churn in AI-powered companies. They reveal shocking stats like nine out of ten customers abandoning products soon after investment. Discover the difference between Experimental Recurring Revenue and true profitability, and how forward-deployed engineering can drastically reduce churn. The discussion also highlights a Customer Success Renaissance aiming to deliver real value.
