Salesforce certifications as a stepping stone to a first position in the industry
Today I want to talk about Salesforce, but from a different perspective. Since I started in this industry, many people have asked me what roadmap to follow to enter this sector, especially starting from having no experience in Salesforce, and even if they don't have a technical profile, as was my case when I started.
Before getting into the subject of how to train in Salesforce and subsequently enter the ecosystem, it is important to define clearly what Salesforce is. Salesforce was initially designed as software to support sales teams, hence its name. It was created as a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) focused on automating sales and streamlining tasks and processes for sales representatives, who have little time to manage data, organize tasks, schedules, etc. Salesforce was born with this purpose in 1999.
Today, in 2023, Salesforce is the world's largest cloud ecosystem, providing solutions for sales, service, analytics, marketing, platform, applications, the Internet of Things, and artificial intelligence. With it, both large and small companies can connect with their customers from anywhere in the world and meet the needs not only of their sales departments, but of all their areas.
As stated on Salesforce's own website, more than 150,000 companies worldwide use this platform to drive their growth, which can give us an idea that becoming certified in Salesforce and becoming an expert in its solutions is highly demanded and valued.
But in addition, one of Salesforce's great strengths has been its ability to offer easy access to learning through its Trailhead learning platform, creating a large community of trailblazers to share knowledge, doubts, and ideas.
Why get certified in Salesforce?
Salesforce certifications are globally recognized credentials that offer you an interesting competitive advantage that can lead to job opportunities worldwide.
In fact, Salesforce certifications will allow you to:
- Become an expert in the Salesforce industry.
- Demonstrate your commitment to personal and professional improvement.
- Find job opportunities in companies around the world. At this point, I'll give you an interesting fact. According to a report by consulting firm IDC, it is estimated that by 2026, more than 9 million jobs will be created in the Salesforce ecosystem worldwide.
- Advance in your career. Keep in mind that Salesforce has about 40 certifications that reflect the continuous enrichment of this ecosystem, where new features -called 'releases'- are launched every four months, requiring continuous learning for everyone working with Salesforce.
By 2026, more than 9 million jobs will be created in the Salesforce ecosystem worldwide
Where to start with Salesforce training?
Recently, Salesforce has released an Associate certification, designed to validate the knowledge of those who have started in the Salesforce ecosystem and/or have a few months of experience. It is the most basic certification offered by Salesforce.
Following this is the most popular credential, the Administrator certification, recommended not only for its knowledge of configuring the Salesforce platform, but also because it is a prerequisite for most other certifications.
In theory, all companies that implement Salesforce require some type of ongoing administrative support for the platform, which means that becoming a Salesforce certified administrator is often a good starting point and makes sense for those who want to get started in this world.
But, as mentioned earlier, obtaining this certification does not simply limit you to being a Salesforce administrator. It is a role, but it is primarily the foundation for developing your career in Salesforce.
Certified Salesforce professionals perform various roles within the ecosystem. There are those who work directly for Salesforce's end clients as internal professionals who manage, administer, and handle technical development and architecture, or perform other IT roles, such as business analysts and CRM managers.
There are also those who work as Salesforce consultants in consulting companies that implement their product solutions for clients and perform integration and advisory work.
These roles are associated with the following certifications:
- Administrator: The goal of the Administrator certification is to train individuals to configure a Salesforce instance. The following certifications are included:
- Administrator
- Advanced Administrator (which requires Administrator as a prerequisite)
- Marketing Cloud Administrator (required for configuring Marketing Cloud)
- CPQ Specialist
- Platform App Builder
- Salesforce Developers: Among their main functions is designing, developing, and implementing the Salesforce platform, simplifying processes, and adapting CRM functionalities to the specific requirements of each project and client.
Certifications in this role include:
- Platform Developer I
- Platform Developer II, which requires obtaining the previous certification
- JavaScript Developer I
- Industries CPQ Developer
- OmniStudio Developer
- B2C Commerce Developer
- Salesforce Accredited B2B Commerce Developer
- Marketing Cloud Developer
- Salesforce Architects: this is one of the careers where the certification level is quite challenging. Certifications in this role are organized in a pyramid structure, with the base being made up of architect specialization certifications, and the top being the coveted Technical Architect certification. You can start your professional path as a Salesforce Architect with any of the following certifications:
- B2C Commerce Architect
- Salesforce Accredited B2B Commerce Administrator
- Salesforce Data Architecture and Management Designer
- Salesforce Sharing and Visibility Designer
- Salesforce Identity and Access Management Designer
- Integration Architecture Designer
- Development Lifecycle and Deployment Designer
- Hoku Architecture Designer
- Application Architect
- Marketing: for those interested in the Marketing area, Salesforce offers several marketing credentials:
- Marketing Email Specialist
- Marketing Cloud Consultant
- Marketing Cloud Administrator
And for B2B-focused marketing, Salesforce offers:
- Pardot Specialist
- Pardot Consultant
- Consultants: these profiles work with clients to understand their requirements and translate them into the platform. They have a deep knowledge of the clouds used in the project, both technically and functionally/business coverage of the cloud. Some of the most representative certifications for this role include:
- Sales Cloud Consultant
- Service Cloud Consultant
- Field Service Lightning Consultant
- Community Cloud Consultant
- Nonprofit Cloud Consultant
- Education Cloud Consultant
- Einstein Analytics and Discovery Consultant
- OmniStudio Consultant
In addition to Salesforce certifications, Trailhead offers hundreds of training modules -Trails, badges, and superbadges- that allow you to explore new skills and knowledge about Salesforce and its solutions.
Prerequisites for these certifications
Apart from having a good level of English -since Salesforce certifications are in this language- the only requirements you need to obtain these certifications are an open mind and good analytical thinking. If you also have experience and knowledge in some of the areas mentioned above, you are in luck.
However, whether you want to get certified as a developer, administrator, or architect, practical experience is essential for future job positions. If you are fortunate enough to work in an environment where Salesforce is already in use, you can refine your skills on the job. Otherwise, take advantage of the tools that Salesforce offers you through its Trailhead platform, which is free and the ideal place to get started in this exciting world.
Conclusion
Salesforce has created an ecosystem of products and services beyond its main CRM tool, creating a high demand for Salesforce professionals worldwide and facilitating their training through its Trailhead platform and the vast community of users that compose it.
If you're interested in becoming part of this ecosystem, I hope this post has given you a good idea about the different Salesforce certifications, the roles you could play, and enough reasons to know that you have a long way to go.