Technology skills shortages, technological advancement, over investment in staff all serve to create a competitive marketplace for job seekers. When it comes to staying relevant in a highly competitive tech market such as Salesforce, many often react by adding another industry certification to their CV. Whilst this is helpful, is this all you could be doing?
Resource On Demand have been recruiting in the Salesforce space since 2007. Here they share their tips on remaining relevant in a fast paced, ever changing technology landscape.
Be Prepared For Change
When it comes to workplace resilience, having a mindset that embraces change is going to help you considerably. We’ve already seen how the pandemic changed our workplaces, from being less about location to a more remote and flexible way of working. And now we’re starting to see more companies moving towards shorter work weeks, globalised teams and major layoffs following years of over investment. However, other changes we’ve started to notice is that the nature of work becoming more network orientated and often project based. And for those of us who prefer routine and habit change can be, quite frankly, unsettling. Unfortunately, there is a downside to people who prefer the status quo. They can and often do get left behind, compared to their peers. In a landscape that is as fast paced as Salesforce or high tech, embracing change, or moving jobs often, can increase skill set exponentially. However, be careful not to move too often, as employers are still put off from hiring people who are perceived to be a ‘job hopper’.
Develop Your Own Training Strategy
Our records from the past decade or more, show that individuals were typically drawn to companies that offered training and personal development as part of their perks. The draw for potential employees was often the chance to obtain much coveted Salesforce certifications. However, with salaries and costs increasing, we’ve noticed how more employers, both partners and end users, are expecting individuals to already possess a minimum number of industry certifications prior to joining them. Seeing the responsibility for acquiring and updating skills as joint, rather than offered as part of the employment package to entice top talent. Therefore, consider whether negotiating provisions for upskilling and training through the company, might be more beneficial in the long term, than an instant pay increase. And if you are going down the self-directed route to learning, don’t be afraid of adopting different approaches. Peer-to-peer learning, self-learning and more formal workshops all have their advantages and disadvantages.
Don’t Be Afraid Of Pigeonholes
Before there was just a Salesforce Certified Consultant, now we have Salesforce Certified Consultants in a specific cloud. But what does this mean for job seekers? Over recent times, we are increasingly being asked by hiring companies to find individuals with a particular industry experience, such as non-profit, financial services, life sciences and so on. It’s no longer enough to be certified, you’re now being asked to specialise in a particular industry sector. Whilst this could reduce the number of roles you could be eligible for; it does often come with a higher price tag in terms of remuneration.
Keep An Eye On The Future
With technology moving incredibly fast, it’s important to maintain focus on what skills and attributes will be needed down the road. Naturally, we might all assume that this means adding the latest Salesforce cert to your CV. Whilst this is always going to be a benefit, you need to also be thinking of adding some of the softer skills too, such as enterprise experience, consulting skills, entrepreneurialism, adaptability, and creative problem solving. With low-code or no-code options to technology solutions becoming more prevalent, employers are going to be looking more at the transferrable people-business orientated skills.
Challenge Yourself, Often
Challenges help you grow personally and professionally. Being willing to jump across specialist knowledge boundaries, technologies, and project teams, when time or opportunity allows, helps you to not only benefit others within the organisation by imparting your skills and experience, but also will help you to benefit from the shared knowledge of co-workers. These become huge selling points to a new or future employer, as it makes it much easier for them to achieve a return on their hiring investment.
In short, there is no real guarantee that your skills will be completely relevant in future. So, the only real way of mitigating any risk to your career, is to always to have an eye on both the workplace and technology trends, and be willing to embrace them, no matter where they are heading.