Humans of Rally: Schuyler Weisel, Customer Success Manager

Humans of Rally is a behind-the-scenes look at the people building the future of user research and turning ideas into tools that make research faster, more collaborative, and more human.

Schuyler Weisel is a Customer Success Manager at Rally, working closely with our customers to understand their goals, guide their onboarding, and help them scale research across their organizations.

What is your background and what led you to Rally?

I come from a market research consulting background, working with companies across different industries to understand customer needs and turn them into strategic recommendations. After taking a sabbatical to travel, I planned to return to market research because I’ve always been driven by curiosity and the strategic problem solving side of the work.

But when I came back, I realized I’d been missing the next step. I would make recommendations but not get to be a part of the implementation, or move on to the next project without having the chance to become fully embedded in any one product or business. I wanted that deeper involvement.

That’s what led me to customer success at Rally. It felt like the perfect segue. I still get the parts of market research consulting that I love, the relationship building, and the problem-solving, with the addition of parts I was missing. I get to go that extra step by becoming embedded in a product and helping customers solve real problems – ones that I understand having been in a similar pair of shoes myself. Rally ties all of that together in a way that just made sense.

What does a typical day look like for you as a CSM at Rally?

One of the things that drew me to this role is that no two days look the same. A lot of my time is spent on customer calls and working sessions, looking at their workspace, understanding their challenges and business objectives, and figuring out how to implement Rally in a way that makes sense for them.

Outside of calls, I take what I’m learning and talk it through with the team. We are really collaborative across marketing, product, support, and sales, and we’re always working through how to solve customer problems or look at something in a new way.

As a CSM, we are probably the closest to the customer on a day-to-day basis, so it is a great chance to work cross functionally and be that voice of the customer. What's nice about Rally is that the product's whole purpose is to help you talk to your customers more often and more easily, and we actually practice what we preach. We're constantly talking to our customers and learning from them, so there's this nice full circle moment of what we do every day.

You joined Rally pretty recently. What was it like diving into the team and getting to know customers?

It's been a really smooth transition. I came in with a familiarity with the industry, but still had some nerves around transitioning into a new role. The team is incredibly collaborative and invested in each other’s success. Everyone is willing to jump in, answer questions, and challenge your thinking in the best way. That level of support isn’t something I think you find at a lot of companies.

I was also prepared for a lack of resources that you might find at a typical startup, but I was pleasantly surprised by how much Rally already has in place. There is so much context to help you understand the market, our customers, the mission, and the product. It helped enable me to focus on strategy and impact from day one.

It might feel early, but have there been any projects or customer moments that have been especially exciting so far?

Some of the most rewarding moments so far have been in the onboarding stage because the impact is so immediate. Watching the number of users grow, the studies they are running, and even the panel building side of things go from zero to hundreds or even thousands of users has been super rewarding.

Being able to make an immediate impact on the product has also been really exciting. Rally’s team is so impressive and fast moving. There will be times that I make a suggestion for an improvement and within the week or even the day, it is updated in the product. It is cool to be able to see. If a feature request that I passed along from the customer is added, being able to see the excitement from the team, along with the positive impact it has on their workflow, is fun.

As I’ve taken over existing accounts, it has been exciting to bring a different perspective. Having a fresh pair of eyes helps you see their challenges in a new way.

One example is panel building and panel management with an energy company. We spent time talking through what they had already tried and came up with a robust list of new solutions, and they have already started implementing some of them. Seeing their panel numbers grow and watching them share their progress has been really exciting because you can see the results right away.

What is one thing that makes Rally’s approach to customer success stand out to you? 

I picked up on this even during my interviews: we genuinely care about our customers. At Rally it never feels transactional. It is truly strategic.

A lot of CSM roles focus solely on keeping customers on track with certain numbers or running QBRs. While there is still an element of that here, it is much more about understanding customers' workflows, what they are trying to solve, and partnering with them to figure out the right path forward. We pull in learnings from other customers, share ideas, and help them think through things in a bigger way.

There is a genuine curiosity about what our customers are doing rather than a check the box mindset. That is what makes Rally unique.

And as a plug for our customers, they are incredibly open to that kind of partnership. Not every organization has people who want to collaborate that deeply. Our customers are naturally curious as well, and willing to work with us in that way, which helps make the relationship even stronger.

What has been most helpful in getting up to speed and learning the product during your first couple of months?

One thing that has been super helpful for me is taking the time to really explore and learn the product. We get our own sandbox, so I can poke around in the dark corners, try things out, and just get hands on. We also do an onboarding project where we run some of our own internal research. Having something so tactical builds muscle memory and helps you understand all the different layers and nuances of the product.

Another thing that has made a huge difference is Slack. You get multiple layers of value from it. You can read and search through old messages and see what's already been solved, but you're also exposed to constant communication from other parts of the business in real time. That visibility shows you what Rally can do, the creative ways customers are using it, and the kinds of problems they run into. Beyond that, there's a culture of asking questions openly. Because everyone can see and benefit from those answers, you build collective knowledge. So instead of each person solving the same problem independently, solutions get surfaced and shared across the whole company.

How would you describe Rally’s culture and what it feels like to work here?

I think startups get a bad rap, sometimes for good reason, but Rally is genuinely the opposite of what you might expect. It starts from the top. Our founders, Oren and Alec, are incredibly open and create a culture where it is okay to fail, share wins, and talk honestly about where you want to improve, and that mindset carries through the whole organization.

Collaboration is huge here. It never feels cutthroat. People support you, challenge your thinking in a healthy way, and want to see you succeed.

You also feel it in how people give and receive feedback. At a lot of startups, it can seem like there is no time or space for that, but I have never felt that here. People genuinely want you to grow, because when you grow, Rally grows.

How do you feel Rally prioritizes and supports your growth in the role and your long term growth?

It’s twofold. One part is having clear goals and open communication about what I want to achieve, alongside what’s expected in the role. Having both makes it easier to understand where I’m heading.

The other part is the empowerment piece. If you see something you want to improve or try, you’re encouraged to just do it. There’s no red tape for small changes, and for bigger ideas you propose it and almost always hear, “Go for it.”

That autonomy makes it easy to explore things you’re interested in or areas where you can make an impact, even outside the typical lines of your role. Rally is an amazing place to grow your career. I came from a non-traditional CS background, and I’ve felt nothing but encouragement to learn, experiment, and figure out what works for me.

What would you tell someone who is considering joining Rally’s CS team?

I would tell them to be ready to think strategically and go deep with customers. This is not transactional customer success. You become a true partner in your customers’ Research Operations, helping them think through their workflows, challenges, and how to scale research across their organization.

A big misconception about customer success is that it is mostly reactive or just teaching people how to use a product. At Rally it is much more strategic. You are putting together the pieces of the puzzle and helping customers understand how everything fits.

It is also a really exciting moment to join. We have strong product market fit and a growing customer base, but we are still small enough that every person can have a massive impact on how we scale customer success. You get to help build the playbooks and systems that will shape how Rally partners with customers going forward. If you get energy from solving problems and having real strategic impact, this is the right place to be.

💜 Interested in joining a team that builds the systems powering the future of User Research? Check out our open roles and come say hi.