Many looking for a way out - Customer Success Manager (CSM) KnowBe4 Employee Review

1.0
Nov 7, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Unlimited PTO - Co-workers are great to interact with

Cons

Use to be a wonderful company to work for pre-GTM and Vista acquisition. Many cons to consider, stay away! - Compensation plan changes about once a year. The most recent change saw a decreased base salary for CSMs and a convoluted commission structure with little guidance on calculating earnings. Many reps are not hitting quota and leadership has had to institute a safeguard to keep employees from walking away with $0 every month - Account loads for CSMs are unusually high compared to other employers causing severe burnout and inability to be strategic with accounts. Strategic reps shouldn't have 150 accounts, Mid market reps shouldn't have 400 accounts - Company cash pool bonuses have decreased drastically year on year - Limited opportunities for remote employees. - RTO policy has been a burden to employees who moved even slightly away from the office - Products and features are added and released without training - CSMs expected to learn and know 6+ comprehensive products and all of the associated features and nuances of those products - talk about overwhelming!! - Communication between executive leadership and middle management is nonexistent, often putting middle management in a tough position - We are supposedly hitting all-time highs in revenues but many reps are not hitting quotes or seeing the fruits of their labor - Product feedback from customers not taken into consideration, especially in new changes - Constantly told "things will get better, just wait a few more months"

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KnowBe4 Response
1y
Hello Knowster. Our CSMs have always needed to know details about each product we offer and we have slowly made our way to the number of products we currently offer throughout the years. We are working on implementing new additionals to our tech stack to help lessen the load on our CSMs and all revenue employees. We have talked about the J curve a lot with all the GTM changes, and we are still working through the down part of that curve. Our training department hosts training sessions on new products and product positioning daily. Please get with your manager if you are not attending these training sessions or feel there should be more added.

Explore other reviews about KnowBe4

5.0
May 22, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

A welcoming and inclusive environment with a patient onboarding team. Work is always fun and collaborative!

Cons

Training and onboarding process is thorough but only to ensure all employees are keeping themselves and the companies information safe online!

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KnowBe4 Response
3w
We’re glad to hear you feel supported! Open communication is a huge priority for us — and feedback like yours keeps us motivated. 🤗
1.0
Jun 8, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Great office snacks, free ev charging, cool coworkers

Cons

Out of about 100 AE's only 10 hit Quota, OTE is a joke there. It's possible to hit quota if you are lucky with your inbound leads, but if you want to hit quota every month you have to do something moreso out of the box. I was trained by hard closers and have a lot of expierence with cold calls so i came up with my own script and was getting a demo a day, and was doing a demo a day. The demos did lead to sales as well, so it wasn't a waste of time. I got fired because of a "lack of professionalism" I spoke off script all the time because speaking on script leads you in to the Kool-aid drinkers club, aka not hitting quota consistently. I was fired without warning, even though I was told I had an incredible work ethic and was exceeding the ramp-up numbers. I just didnt match their sales style, they are not looking for salespeople, they are looking for sales associates. They make you work 9-hour days, 1 hour mandatory lunch that has to be taken in the middle of the day. 9-6pm. Their handbook even says you are allowed to take this lunch at 5 pm to go home sooner, but the managers never let that happen. DO NOT BE CREATIVE AT THIS JOB, DRINK THE JUICE.

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