Why Most Customer Success Managers Can’t Become Forward‑Deployed Engineers
B2B SaaS firms are scrambling for Forward‑Deployed Engineers (FDEs) but repurposing Customer Success Managers (CSMs) rarely works. The roles demand different skill sets—CSMs focus on relationship‑driven retention, while FDEs need deep technical, deployment‑focused expertise—making retraining costly and inefficient. Companies must hire dedicated FDEs or redesign implementation processes to stay profitable.