AwesomeAdmin Trailblazer Award Winners

This week on the podcast we interview Zac Otero, who took control of his destiny, stuck to his goals, and was determined to build his career. Zac's story is one of passion and perseverance despite your current situation. Telling Zac's story is the reason we podcast, despite having to overcome work-related restrictions he invested in career and used the podcast along with community-generated content to up-skill himself. Zac describes himself as "the Blue-collar Admin" because of his manufacturing background. But Zac is anything but blue collar- in my book he is a rockstar. I am so glad that we could help to tell Zac's story because it embodies the passion and commitment that Salesforce Admins have to advancing their careers.&nbsp; After the recording... I want to share a&nbsp;behind the scenes story that happened after we wrapped up our recording with Zac. As we were packing up the podcast equipment we asked Zac if there was "anything we could help him with?", expecting his answer to be about some feature or something he was stuck or trying to&nbsp;learn. His answered floored us. He said "Yeah, actually I'm trying to get in to present at the Career Center in Springfield so that I can present Salesforce to other people looking to change careers."&nbsp;Barely a year into being an Admin and Zac is already thinking about how he can pass on what he learned to others! Thank you Zac, that is truely the Ohana Spirit we embrace at Salesforce. Links   Zac Otero&nbsp;on Twitter:&nbsp;https://twitter.com/ZacOtero   Zac Otero on the Success Community: https://success.salesforce.com/profile?u=0053000000BfC4i   #ButtonClickGuest We want to get your suggestions for guests&nbsp;on the podcast and we need your help! So tweet your guest suggestions, support, etc using the hashtag #ButtonClickGuest to help us get more AwesomeAdmins&nbsp;on the podcast. We want to remind you that if you love what you hear, or even if you don't head on over to iTunes and give us a review. It's super easy to do and it really helps more Admins find the podcast. Plus, we would really appreciate it.

It's possible: The story of Zac Otero

Today on the ButtonClick Admin podcast, we’re speaking to Mark Tossell, a brand new admin based in Sydney, Australia. In May of 2016, Mark left his previous career where he didn’t have any CRM experience to take a job as a Salesforce admin. We’re very excited to share Mark’s inspirational story in our last episode of 2016. More on Mark’s session: Join us as Mark shares his journey as a brand new admin. We’ll learn about some of the challenges he’s faced and how he’s overcome them with the help of Trailhead, Premiere Plus Support, and the Salesforce community. You should  subscribe for the full episode, but here are a few takeaways from our conversation with Mark Tossell. &nbsp; Make Trailhead your best friend. “It seemed to be the right fit at the right time. I love technology; I love changing the way things work and solving problems,” says Mark when asked why he decided to take a position as a Salesforce admin. To prepare, Mark says, “I spent a week furiously watching YouTube videos, many of which were from Dreamforce, until I met my new best friend which is Trailhead. I spend 40-50 hours a week going through Trailhead.” Know how to visualize a process and implement it in the system. When asked what his biggest challenge has been as a brand new admin, Mark says, “Being able to accurately picture a process in the system that will work in the business.” You need to be able to imagine how the process can be done in Salesforce and then create it in the system. “The second challenge for me has been the people side of things: convince people the benefits of the system, get them using it, get them active in the system, enforcing data integrity and all of those adoption issues,” says Mark. Salesforce in a Day helps with adoption. Adoption is something every admin struggles with. A Salesforce in a Day training session can help. “I put together a program which began with an overview of Salesforce: what it is, what it does, what it can do. Then I just touched on the basics: navigation, leads, context, reports, chatter,” says Mark. “By the end of the day, I felt that people had a good overview of the system. I thought it was very helpful in our organization,” he says. Use Trailhead and Premiere Plus Support to prepare for admin certification. Since beginning work as an admin in June, Mark has received his Salesforce admin certification. “I took it for the first time on Saturday, and I’m really excited I passed!” he says. When asked what helped him prepare, he says, “once again, Trailhead was a massive help. Also we have the Premiere Plus Support, so because of that, we have videos from the Salesforce University that are made available to us. Those were really helpful.” Documentation is key. If he could go back and do anything different, Mark says, “I would have better documentation, not only concerning changes I’ve made to the system but also documenting conversations I’ve had with staff and management concerning their requirements, responses to questions that I have asked because sometimes those things come back later on and it’s good to have a paper trail.” Mark also says, “Salesforce can do so much, and there are so many aspects of it that sometimes I am trying to achieve ten objectives at once. Once thing I’m learning to do is become more focused and concentrate on one or two key objectives at a time. I believe if I had done that earlier on, I’d be further along in the project than I am now,” he says. Harness the Power of Community. The community has had a huge impact on his journey. “The broader Salesforce community has been a tremendous help and encouragement to me over the last six months. The local Salesforce community has been very supportive and helpful as well,” says Mark. For more insights, make sure to follow Mark Tossell on Twitter (@MarkTossell). Links:  Mentorship Central with James Goerke True Facts About Baby Echidnas by ZeFrank Mary Scotton...

Admin Inspiration from Down Under with Mark Tossell

Today on the Salesforce Admins podcast, we’re speaking to Michael Lupino, the CRM manager for L’Oreal corporation. Michael is currently helping L’Oreal migrate from Classic to Lightning, while creating new apps and other amazing things within the tool. He’s here to share his experience and a few helpful tips for you to be successful with Lightning. More on Michael’s session: Join us as Michael shares his journey with CRM and how he moved L’Oreal corporation from Classic to Lightning. From getting buy-in from users to designing new apps, we’ll learn how Michael managed this transition with the help of Trailhead and the Salesforce community. You should  subscribe for the full episode, but here are a few takeaways from our conversation with Michael Lupino. &nbsp; Use Trailhead to keep track of possible capabilities. Michael got started with Lightning about a year and a half ago. “When we started to look at Lightning, we saw lots of positive benefits in being able to adopt the tools and build more modular, reusable applications that can serve a variety of purposes and reduce some of the code and technical debt of having some of the other tools in the platform previously,” he says. So, how did he get started with the process? Michael says, “I found that Trailhead was a very excellent resource for keeping track of all of the possible capabilities, in addition to providing a roadmap to help figure out the art of the possible. Trailhead helped us develop ideas that could then translate to our business.” &nbsp; Get buy-in from the users. Getting buy-in from users wasn’t hard, explains Michael. As he points out, “everyone loves the modern look and feel of Lightning. I love the capabilities of being able to provide a more innovative user interface that can be customized to the application that they’re using.” Michael says, “I was fortunate enough to build some new applications within the tool for our users to bring them into Salesforce. It allowed me to start from almost a clean slate, to gather requirements and to deliver something to suit those needs.” &nbsp; Embrace the move from Salesforce One to the Napili Template. Michael was also involved in moving a community that was built on Salesforce One to the Napili template. “Moving to that template has been incredibly powerful. Our users have a very large international participation, so we were able to provide a consistent look and feel that would mirror on a mobile device, a tablet, and a desktop. The brand was incredibly excited about this and continue to be excited about the possibilities of what they can do inside the community,” says Michael. &nbsp; Don’t expect moving to Lightning to be an overnight process. Moving to Lightning has been an ongoing process, and he’s learned a lot. As Michael explains, “A lot of planning went into the process. In some cases, we had to wait for Salesforce to catch up with the Lightning release, which they’ve done a tremendous job of doing. Because of that, we’ve been able to effectively determine which sets of users are the best ideal candidates to move.” When it came to moving from Visual Force to Lightning, Michael says, “the very first thing I look at was: what skill set is needed to go from that journey in Visual Force to Lightning? Going through the material and attending a Salesforce University course provided a good framework for the types of skills that are needed.” &nbsp; Stay up to date with blogs and webinars. When asked what tips he’d have for admins looking to stay up to date on all things Salesforce, Michael says, “In addition to looking at the release notes and the changes that are happening, I found that the blogs, such as admin.salesforce.com, have been a good source of information. What I really love is the success community. Being able to read each other’s posts and comment has been a very exciting place. Joining webinars has been another great source.” &nbsp; For...

How L'Oreal is rolling out Lightning with Michael Lupino

Today on the Salesforce Admins podcast, we’re speaking to Umair llyas, a Senior Salesforce Consultant at Acumen. Umair did a fantastic presentation in December at Salesforce World Tour which was all about helping admins transition to Lightning. Along with having a great presentation, Umair works as a hands on mentor to help admins make the transition to Lightning, learn more, and do better at their job. Join us as Umair shares his journey from the world of nonprofit and teaching to his role as a Senior Salesforce Consultant and admin mentor. We’ll learn Umair’s top tips for admins transitioning to Lightning and hear about some of his favorite Lightning features and capabilities. You should  subscribe for the full episode, but here are a few takeaways from our conversation with Umair llyas. Communication is key. A former teacher who worked extensively in the nonprofit world, Umair didn’t start out in Salesforce. However, he’s used skills from his previous career to help mentor admins. “Salesforce already provides a lot of great resources to help admins learn the system on their own. I like adding to that with soft skills that they can’t necessarily learn online,” says Umair. As Umair points out, “Communication is one of the biggest things you should focus on. As an admin, you’re not the one using the system. Your users are using the system. If you’re not in constant communication with them, how do you know what’s best for them?” &nbsp; Lightning isn’t just a user interface upgrade. How should admins get started with Lightning? Umair says, “I start by helping the admin understand that Lightning isn’t just a user interface upgrade. It’s an entirely new user experience. The way you do things in Classic is not the same as the way as you would do things in Lightning.” Secondly, admins should make use of the resources available to them. “There are plenty of lessons available to you on Trailhead to help you get Lightning ready,” says Umair. He also encourages admins to use Lightning Migration Assistant. “It’s an entirely different page within your set-up that walks you through everything you need to do to get ready for Lightning. One of those pieces is the Lightning Writing Assessment, this really cool report that shows you all the different items you need to touch upon before you can move into Lightning,” says Umair. &nbsp; It’s all about change management. “I’ve seen a lot of people I’ve worked with miss the ball on this,” says Umair. As he explains, “moving to Lightning is not as easy as flipping a switch. It involves communicating with your end users, knowing what’s possible in the system, figuring out how to equip your end users to use the system, providing support after you go on Lightning. It’s a journey that you have to take with your end users, clients, and customers.” However, he says the result is worth it. “Yes, it’s daunting. We’re naturally afraid of things that look different and that we haven’t used. But at the end of the day it’s something that’s going to benefit your users,” says Umair. &nbsp; The first step is hardest. When it comes to learning Lightning, a lot of Salesforce admins don’t know where to start. Umair’s advice: “Just take one step forward and everything works itself out.” “In the beginning, you’re not going to know everything, but that’s the fun,” says Umair. For more insights, make sure to follow Umair llyas on Twitter (@UmairSF). &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;

How to Get Started with Lightning with Umair Ilyas

Today on the Salesforce Admins Podcast we’re talking about what our amazing Salesforce Admins and Developers are doing to create more entryways for more people of color in tech. As our guests, we have Shonnah&nbsp;Hughes, a Salesforce MVP, mentor and women in tech chapter leader; Selina Suarez, a Product Manager at Salesforce and advocate for education equality; and Rakia Finley, a CRM and Salesforce Developer and the Chief Strategy Officer at Surge Assembly. Join us as we discuss some of the amazing things our Salesforce Admins and Developers are doing to encourage diversity and bring more people of color into tech. Learn how Shonnah Hughes is using Trailhead to teach Salesforce to students in her community and how Selina Suarez has partnered with Monroe College to create Salesforce Bootcamps. You’ll also get the inside scoop on how Rakia Finley worked on the Obama administration’s White House Council on Women and Girls to help create more pathways for women of color to get into tech. You should  subscribe for the full episode, but here are a few takeaways from our conversation with Shonnah Hughes, Selina Suarez, and Rakia Finley. &nbsp; Engaging students with #Trailhead4All. As Shonnah explains, #Trailhead4All is a community-based initiative that provides Salesforce training via Trailhead to youth in her local community. “It’s a call-to-action for all community members to reach out and give back to their community utilizing Trailhead,” says Shonnah. “I took that call-to-action personally. Who doesn’t love Trailhead? It’s an amazing tool. It’s used by everyone in the community and makes learning Salesforce easy and fun,” she says. As Shonnah explains, #Trailhead4All has had a huge impact on her life. “I’m able to go into local classrooms and talk to them about my career, my journey, my path and how Salesforce Trailhead can help them as well. Being able to see the looks on their faces, the joy and the fun they’re having while learning is priceless,” she says. &nbsp; Partnering with Monroe College to create Salesforce Boot Camps. When asked why focusing on technology and college students so important to her, Selina says,&nbsp; “my passion comes from the fact that I grew up in the inner city of New York City. I came from an area that no one I knew went into technology. I wanted to change that and give people who had the potential a blueprint.” She’s partnered with her alma mater, Monroe College, to create Salesforce boot camps. As Selina shares, “last year, we did a two-day full immersion boot camp where used the user group community in New York City and Salesforce employees, and we created a curriculum that did a couple of different things. First, we focused on: what Salesforce is, the ecosystem, what kind of skillsets you need, and what kinds of jobs are out there.” “Next we went through Trailhead to show them how to build an app from beginning to end,” she says. As Selina points out, “If you’re going to use social media to grow your career you need to be where your industry is. We ended the two days by having LinkedIn come in and tell the students how to leverage social media to grow your career.” &nbsp; Be intentional about making diversity a priority. While it’s crucial that we partner with elementary, high school, and college students, it’s also important to partner with government entities. Rakia Finley worked on the Obama administration’s White House Council on Women and Girls to help create more pathways for women in color to get into tech. While she saw lots of amazing initiatives that targeted students, she felt something was missing. “The companies that were going to hire these people, they weren’t prepared for this workforce. They didn’t have true institutional knowledge of how they can create an inclusive workforce, how they can create checks and balances to make sure that inclusive workforce is founded on equality and inclusion. I wanted to be a...

Be a Change Maker with Shonnah Hughes, Selina Suarez & Rakia Finley

Today on the Salesforce Admins Podcast we’re speaking with Jesse Grothaus, one of our newest Salesforce Admins from Vetforce. Join us to learn about how Jesse applied the skills he learned in the army to his role as a Salesforce consultant, how a newcomer thinks about the Salesforce Ohana, and some great tips for preparing for Certifications. You should  subscribe for the full episode, but here are a few takeaways from our conversation with Jesse Grothaus. A Made-for-TV Movie Journey to Salesforce From a young age, Jesse knew that he wanted to be a Special Operations Soldier and, “sure enough, on my 18th birthday I was in the recruiter’s office.” He spent the next eight years doing his childhood dream job while also getting his degree through the army, which led him to tech. He started in tech support and moved into sales, where he first encountered Salesforce. Jesse liked working Salesforce to build reports that could help his team, but his life changed drastically when he was involved in major car accident. He had to take two years off from work to recover, partially because of undiagnosed head trauma. His therapy for that required him to learn a new language and new skills, which is how he came across Vetforce and Trailhead. Learning Salesforce was actually therapy for Jesse, and helped him in his recovery. Part of his condition affected his memorization and abstract memory, so he had to break down for himself, “how do we as humans remember and memorize things?” A wiki site called ArtofMemory.com helped him learn the techniques of professional memorizers, people who can memorize the order of 50 decks of cards. With that help, he passed his Certification and Vetforce invited him to Trailhead DX, where he made the connections that eventually landed him a job in Salesforce consulting. If they were casting the movie, Jesse would love to be played by Hugh Jackman. Vetforce Vetforce came to Jesse’s attention via a friend on LinkedIn, he saw something offering free job training for veterans involving Salesforce, which he had already had experience with through his previous job. The program is a part of the Salesforce Ohana Group and links to veterans in the workforce. “I don’t know if a lot of people know this, but veterans have a big struggle in terms of getting good employment when they get out of the military. A lot of veterans get these awesome, amazing skills in the military but it turns out that ‘kicking down doors’ isn’t necessarily the best thing to put on your resume,” Jesse says. Salesforce wanted to help, so they started offering free training classes and curated Trailhead training courses to help vets get job placements. In Jesse’s military work, he would advise high-level commanders in a particular region on psychological warfare strategy and tactics, “and now as a Salesforce consultant I’m often meeting with high-level business executives and giving them guidance on what I think they should or should not be doing based on their Salesforce organizations to help their business grow.” For Jesse, the most useful skill is “sitting down with leadership, looking at the big picture, and figuring out how we can contribute to their big picture.” Trailhead DX “I had no clue what Trailhead DX was until I was invited to come out,” Jesse says. He didn’t know what to expect. He knew there’d be some great talks, but the surprise was that on day one the folks from Vetforce promised him that by the time he walked out of Trailhead DX he’d have a job. Being at a Salesforce event was so much more than Jesse thought it would be, “It was like drinking Kool-Aid out of a firehose.” The Ohana is a big part of that and is really what makes everything work so well. Jesse puts it well: “Salesforce doesn’t horde business for itself. It doesn’t try to hide its API or make it some big secret. Instead of competition, it encourages a family or gathering around it, and they’re very...

Jesse Grothaus on our Vetforce Ohana

Let's face it - life is better when you dance! That's why we're inviting all #AwesomeAdmins to take part in a special dance challenge guaranteed to get you movin' and shakin'!

It's as easy as 1-2-3 to get involved in the challenge! First, learn the dance moves! Second, share a video of the dance! And third, nominate 3 #AwesomeAdmins to take the challenge!

It's possible: The story of Zac Otero

The Salesforce Admins Podcast

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