I had the pleasure of attending London’s Calling recently, the world’s largest Salesforce community conference, so I present a small diary piece both about my day and the community vibe that I felt. It’s just one data point, but contributes to the overall conversation about how Salesforce is doing in the Real World.
I’ll be covering:
- How Did The Talk Go
- The Salesforce Economy
- Salesforce Careers
- Architect Dreamin
- Attendees
- More Events
- My Next Steps
How Did The Talk Go
Roger and I spoke on “Perfectionism and other workplace mental health challenges“. The background is that we wanted to talk about common neurodivergent issues. In writing the content we realised that there were themes and lessons that could benefit everyone.
We had a full room, with the floor space being vigorously used. Quite frankly we had a few shell-shocked faces in the audience by the end, but at least it meant the warnings of people pleasing and realistic expectations hit home(!)
The messaging around perfectionism, masking and burnout clearly resonated although, for me, it was Roger’s piece on masking that hit home the most. I’m now angry at how society – i.e. collectively, almost subconsciously – forces people into a position where we pretend so much that we lose touch with who we truly are. More to come on this in an article I am now writing.
One person came up to me and said that they felt “seen” for the first time, which was horrifying but truly an honour. When I hear that I know that the body is clicking into a healthier shape, for the same thing happens to me from time to time, particularly when I go to my local ADHD group. First you need to identify a problem, then articulate it, before you can fix it – we’ve got a long way to go, but at least we are talking about these issues now.
The good news: the session is still available on the Whova app right now for those that have a London’s Calling ticket. It will also be available, to all, on YouTube later in the year and that Roger and I will also do an online-specific version in September. Details to be announced nearer the time.
Salesforce Careers
This epiphany comes via someone else, but I’m happy to share: If you are coming into the ecosystem brand new, rather than start off on the Admin track, consider going straight to agents instead.
The reason? Well, as the ecosystem matures there will be plenty of Administrators around and perhaps fewer roles. Also you’re competing with people who may have years or even decades of experience. If you go for agent roles then everyone is brand new, so the playing field is level, and you can prove yourself as much or as little as anyone else. If you do go down the Administrator route (because you want to be more thorough), you will simply find yourself at the back of the queue with newbie Administrator skills and no Agent skills, when everyone will be looking for agent skills anyway.
For example, no one is really looking for Classic skills. You can always hack those, but Lightning (understandably) is what is expected.
The Salesforce Economy
Despite Salesforce’s growth it feels like there is shrinkage. And that’s before the latest price rises. 8% growth sounds good, but it’s a long way down from the boom years.
The working theory – from myself, the conference and my LinkedIn connections – is that this is because small and medium-sized clients are leaving. Salesforce instead is generating income from the enterprise side. It’s a choice, even if it doesn’t resonate with me.
Nevertheless, based on London’s Calling and hearing from others who had just attended other Dreamin events, the community is still solid, with the best of intentions, and proudly paying it forwards whenever possible in a very inclusive fashion.
We are no longer beholden to Salesforce and as long as the maths add up – that Salesforce is the most suitable product – we will continue to work with it. Matt Pieper recently posted a short and sharp summary about his experience of working with Hubspot (he’s well worth following if you don’t already).
Architect Dreamin
Architect Dreamin took place in London just a couple of days before London’s Calling. Although always good, I was told that it has found its feet.
Attendees came away with heads blown, minds stretched and the workshops were exactly what they wanted. Given that it’s rather a demanding crowd – well done!!
So if you are an aspiring Architect, then you need to attend, because this is the easiest way to do it – be in the room and brainstorm with the best! Quite where that room will be next year is anyone’s guess. I heard Finland, Spain and Ireland all mentioned. Keep your eyes on the socials to stay in the loop.
Attendees
As I write this up, do you know what I didn’t spot? People purely touting for business. Genuine listening skills were on show. I say this as a good thing.
I got the feeling that everyone at London’s Calling knew why they were there: to improve themselves and catch up with others. Nothing more and nothing less. And I suspect most were there on their own dime, or had had to lobby to be there – not a paid by work jolly. So the intention and desire to get the most out of the day was really strong. A thoughtful crowd which leads to really good conversations regardless of who you talk to.
Pro tip: I always make time to speak to newbies as well as experienced old hands.Particularly people standing by themselves looking uncomfortable. We’ve all been there and it’s really fun to break the barrier and to be the one to introduce them to someone else and set the ball rolling.
If you speak to others you don’t recognise, you can meet old friends you simply didn’t recognise because you’ve only ever communicated by Zoom… but you are all used to me by now, aren’t you? I also met someone flying all the way in from India just to present which is inspirational – though apologies to Tejkaran Singh for not getting to his next-best action session – and a youngster from Finland which just shows you that age is no barrier. Though I think that there should be an age-bar on a 26 year old getting a CTA (the highest academic achievement in the Salesforce universe) and then becoming a coach. I now struggle to program my oven clock. 😭
More Events
There was a ridiculous amount of Salesforce-related events happening in London both whilst I was there, and the following week. I needed to head back to Glasgow, but if you want a write up of the Community Sprint and Agentforce World Tour, then I recommend Ellie Matthewman’s article. She’s also fun to follow on Bluesky.
Next Steps
Now London’s Calling – and all the prep work that went into Roger’s and my presentation – is out of the way, I feel I have my mental bandwidth back – like a blockage removed. Totally worth it, but it was frustrating simultaneously as there’s so much I want to do.
There’s another blog coming out shortly, an ApexHours article about to land, and I’ll get back to hawking my wears: if anyone wants a tech-industry understanding ADHD coach, send them my way for a nil-cost discussion! I’m absolutely loving my clients, but I definitely have space for more – though not nearly as much as I used to!
I write about neurodivergency matters, with a dash of inclusivity and tech. Subscribe directly to avoid missing out; you can have a nose through my back catalogue. Want even more? You can also follow me on Bluesky and/or LinkedIn.