Customer Success Manager (Montreal

About the role

You will own the strategic success, adoption, and expansion of Cohere's most important private sector customers in Montreal and the broader Canadian landscape. This role demands that you act as a trusted executive advisor, guiding large enterprises, startups, and scaleups through the complex adoption of frontier AI in secure and regulated environments. You will define and drive measurable business impact by ensuring customers derive tangible value from Cohere's AI solutions while navigating strict security, privacy, and compliance obligations. You will serve as the primary internal advocate for the customer, synthesizing their needs across Product, Engineering, and Sales to influence the evolution of our platform. You will be responsible for developing and executing long-term success plans that align with customer digital transformation strategies and budget cycles. Ultimately, you will shape how Montreal's leading institutions leverage AI to drive innovation, operational excellence, and competitive advantage.

Key facts

What you'll do

Develop and own comprehensive success plans for assigned strategic accounts within the private sector, aligning Cohere's capabilities with specific business outcomes, digital transformation initiatives, and regulatory constraints.

Build and maintain deep, trust-based relationships with C-level stakeholders, including CEOs, CTOs, CIOs, and digital transformation leaders, acting as the primary point of contact for escalations and high-stakes discussions.

Champion customer needs internally by translating complex private sector requirements into actionable input for Product, Engineering, and Go-to-Market teams to influence roadmap priorities.

Guide customers through the entire AI adoption lifecycle, from initial use case discovery and pilot design to production deployment, scaling, and sustained value realization.

Lead the implementation of secure AI solutions in complex commercial environments, including hybrid cloud and on-premises configurations, ensuring strict adherence to security and data governance standards.

Navigate intricate sales cycles characterized by lengthy approval processes, risk-averse decision-making, and legacy system integration challenges inherent to large private sector organizations.

Define, track, and report on key success metrics such as customer satisfaction, operational efficiency gains, cost savings, and accessibility improvements to demonstrate clear ROI.

Drive contract renewals and identify opportunities for account growth by consistently delivering measurable value and reinforcing Cohere's role as a strategic partner.

Coordinate closely with Applied ML Engineering, Forward Deployed Engineering, and Platform teams to resolve technical issues, optimize model performance, and ensure seamless integration with customer environments.

Implement and execute change management strategies that foster user adoption across diverse functions, roles, and geographies within customer organizations.

Conduct executive-level business reviews that highlight strategic impact, risk mitigation, and compliance with frameworks such as the Privacy Act, PIPEDA, and PHIPA.

Collaborate with customer security, privacy, and legal teams to complete security assessments, authority-to-operate requirements, and Algorithmic Impact Assessments.

Ensure all implementations meet ethical AI standards, emphasizing explainability, transparency, and accessibility for end users and regulators.

Proactively identify and mitigate risks associated with AI deployments in mission-critical, customer-facing, and highly regulated contexts.

Synthesize insights from customer engagements to inform Cohere's private sector go-to-market strategy, positioning, and long-term product direction.

Requirements

You must possess a Bachelor's degree or higher in a relevant field such as Computer Science, Information Systems, or a related discipline, or demonstrate equivalent practical experience.

You must have a proven track record of managing complex, multi-stakeholder relationships in enterprise or high-touch B2B environments.

You must have deep expertise in the Montreal and broader Quebec private sector landscape, including familiarity with key industries such as finance, healthcare, technology, and public sector adjacent markets.

You must have substantial experience navigating compliance, privacy, and security requirements relevant to Canadian enterprises, including knowledge of PIPEDA, the Privacy Act, and sector-specific regulations.

You must have hands-on experience implementing AI or machine learning solutions in production environments, with an understanding of model deployment, integration, and monitoring challenges.

You must have demonstrated ability to lead organizational change and drive user adoption for new technologies across diverse and often resistant corporate cultures.

You must be comfortable working in ambiguous, fast-paced environments where priorities shift and problems require creative, cross-functional solutions.

You must possess strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate technical concepts into clear, executive-level narratives for senior stakeholders.

You must be authorized to work in Canada without sponsorship, as Cohere is currently unable to sponsor work permits for this role.

Nice to have

Experience working with AI or large language models in production environments, particularly in enterprise or regulated settings.

Background in industries such as financial services, healthcare, or other heavily regulated sectors where compliance and risk management are paramount.

Familiarity with Algorithmic Impact Assessments and responsible AI frameworks.

Experience developing and delivering training or change management programs for large organizations.

Practical notes

This role is based in Montreal and requires availability during standard business hours.

Travel may be required to meet with customers or attend company events.

Candidates must be authorized to work in Canada without sponsorship.