Talent Hub Talk

Personal brand, learning to code and the Salesforce Ohana with David Liu

When you think of Salesforce development, for a lot of people, one name springs to mind. David Liu. Based in San Francisco, he was speaking at Down Under Dreaming in Brisbane recently, and so we took the opportunity to record this chat with him, live from the event. David famously taught himself to code, and is now a Technical Architect at Google, with the CTA held firmly in his sights. As a result of his own experiences, David founded a very successful and renowned blog and resources hub, SFDC99, which has visitors daily from all over the globe, benefitting from his easy to follow tutorials. He explained to us, and the audience at Down Under Dreaming, that absolutely anybody can teach themselves to code, and more importantly perhaps, why he thinks that they should. Since his first steps of teaching himself Apex, David has been awarded Salesforce MVP status six times, as well as the inaugural Salesforce Developer Golden Hoodie at the 2018 Dreamforce, and has 17 Salesforce certifications under his belt to date. In this podcast, we discuss his views on Salesforce development, the Admin/Dev hybrid role, what he looks for when he's interviewing talent, and his top pieces of advice for those considering a move into the Salesforce industry. You can follow David on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/dvdkliu/and Twitter at @dvdkliu, and of course, check out his website, SFDC99.

From a non I.T background, to CTA and a Master of I.T with Jannis Bott

Today we talk with Salesforce Certified Technical Architect, and co-leader of the Sydney Salesforce Developer Group, Jannis Bott. Jannis came to visit Australia nine years ago with a plan in mind to return to Germany after 8 months. He'd put his plan in action of becoming a neurosurgeon having completed his mandatory civilian service prior, in the health space, driving an ambulance for the Red Cross. However, on Australian shores, Jannis discovered Salesforce, and rapidly found that he had a special talent which led him to the point nearly 2 years ago, when he joined the Salesforce elite of achieving the Certified Technical Architect credential. The CTA is the absolute pinnacle of any Salesforce career, and as an ambition held by so many in the ecosystem, you'll want to hear Jannis talk to Ben Duncombe about his own path to Salesforce CTA, and how he approached his preparation alongside a study buddy, travelling on a similar professional journey. We discuss his views, his deep insights, and understand more about what it's actually like to be a Salesforce CTA, including the other goals that people can strive for. You can follow Jannis on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jannisbott/ and if you're a Sydney based Developer, find out more about the User Group that he co-leads at https://trailblazercommunitygroups.com/sydney-au-developers-group/

Training Architects to pass the CTA review board with Sebastian Wagner

Today we talk with Salesforce Certified Technical Architect, Sebastian Wagner, Master Coach of FlowRepublic, an organisation that provides holistic training and coaching programs, designed to build the skills required on the path to CTA. The CTA credential is the absolute pinnacle of any Salesforce career, and an ambition held by so many in the ecosystem, and so you'll want to hear Sebastian talk to Ben Duncombe about his own journey to Salesforce CTA, and how he now helps others on their own journey to the review board. We discuss his views as to how he identifies if someone is, or isn't ready, the challenges people face in the review board itself, and insight into the success and value he has been able to provide through his work with FlowRepublic. You can follow Sebastian on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/se6wagner/ and find FlowRepublic at https://www.flowrepublic.com/

Transitioning from other technologies into Salesforce with Matt Robison

Today we talk with Salesforce Technical Architect, Matt Robison, who fell in love with Salesforce having spent a significant period of time previously working in the development space with other technologies.

Matt fully immersed himself within the Salesforce Community right from the beginning, and his Salesforce career has progressed rapidly since initially securing his first Salesforce role as a Salesforce Developer 18 months ago. Today, Matt is a Salesforce Technical Architect, and we took the opportunity to ask Matt to talk us through his journey.

We discuss his views about what differs from other markets, what makes Salesforce interesting to other Developers, and pinpoint any potential challenges.

Finally, we talk to Matt about what the Salesforce Community groups have meant to him, and his exciting aspirations for the future.

You can follow Matt on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-robison-salesforce/

The power of the Trailblazer Community with Lorna O'Callaghan

Today we talk with Sydney WiT co-leader, Lorna O'Callaghan to discuss her background and roles within the Salesforce ecosystem, including her most recent move which encompasses people management. We touch on her views of the differences between working for a customer versus a consultancy, mentorship, and strategy.

Having relaunched the Women in Tech Trailblazer Community group alongside her co-leader Maddison Deans, we talk to Lorna about what the Community groups have meant to her, and the exciting plans for the group going forward.

You can follow Lorna on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lornaocallaghan/

Salesforce projects and customer success with Nolan Keenan

Today we talk with Nolan Keenan to discuss his deep insight and experience of Salesforce projects and how they have evolved over the past decade.

As a previous employee of Salesforce, we chat about life working for the organisation themselves, how Nolan initially became a part of the ecosystem, and the roles he has held over the years.

We discuss what companies can, and should do when embarking on a Salesforce project with regards to the best methodologies to use, as well as best practice for project management in a more general sense.

You can follow Nolan on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/nolankeenan/

Q&A from listeners on Salesforce recruitment trends in ANZ and the USA with Christopher Hopper

Today we talk with USA based Salesforce Recruiter, Christopher Hopper to discuss current and emerging trends in the Salesforce market, both in the ANZ, and the USA. We unpack both the similarities and differences and how candidates and clients can maximise their success.

Thank you to all of the listeners who wrote in with questions for Ben and Christopher. They answer a selection of these on the episode, such as "is it better to know a little about a lot, or a lot about a little" when it comes to Salesforce, as well as their tips for accelerating your Salesforce career in innovative ways.

We last met up with Christopher last year at Dreamforce and so it was an insightful conversation, catching up on what has evolved in the Salesforce talent market in the past 12 months.

Christopher comes from a technical background himself which gives him a unique insight, and he shares in Talent Hub's values of being socially engaged and so he's a valuable voice and content creator to follow on social media. You can find him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/thecrmtechrecruiter/

Effectively performing a remote Salesforce role with Jodi Church

Today we talk to Perth based Salesforce Solution Architect, Jodi Church, who runs the Women in Tech User Group in the WA region. Jodi has recently relocated back to Western Australia from the UK and remained in her role with her UK based employer, now working 100% remotely. She talks to Ben Duncombe about how she makes it work, her Salesforce journey, and how she initially moved into the Salesforce ecosystem to the role that she's in today. She discusses her professional ambitions within the Salesforce space, and the goals that she has to grow both the WA market and the Trailblazer Community group that she runs there

Passing the Salesforce CTA review board at 28 with Jan Aertgeerts

Today we talk to Belgium based Salesforce Certified Technical Architect, Jan Aertgeerts, who has recently secured this elusive credential, which is the absolute pinnacle of any Salesforce career, and an ambition held by so many in the ecosystem.

He talks to Ben Duncombe about why he pursued the CTA and at what point he felt that it was a realistic goal to actively undertake. He shares his deep insights into approaching the exam, and how the 601 workshop and the support of mentors played a part in his preparation.

Jan's journey to Salesforce CTA has been enhanced by the major projects he has driven in his role, and he discusses not only these, but also his goals for the future and what keeps him excited in the world of Salesforce.

22 interviews later.. how resilience pays off when starting your Salesforce journey with Kierin Spark

Today we talk to 9x Salesforce certified trailblazer, Kierin Spark, as he shares own journey of breaking into the Salesforce ecosystem and continuing to accelerate in his Salesforce career.

He faced tough challenges when he first started interviewing for Salesforce roles, but he made up for any limitations in hands-on experience, with his passion for the platform and resilience to overcome obstacles which stood in his way to get to where he is today.

Kierin explains his own approach to Salesforce certifications, and how best to prepare for a successful outcomes. He shares his tips for securing your first Salesforce role, and continuing your Salesforce development journey, and we discuss his own ambitions from here.

Kierin's story so far is a must listen for anybody listening who is starting in their own Salesforce journey at the moment.