In my 15+ years of working in the Salesforce “ecosystem,” I have worked from all perspectives of the Salesforce relationship:
- Implementation Consultant/Architect (independent, small firm, and large firm)
- Salesforce Customer Success
- Salesforce customer
Across those roles I have observed a core set of problems happen repeatedly.
Salesforce is a significant investment for companies. Unfortunately, many struggle to measure and/or maximize the return on that investment. There are two key areas where companies tend to struggle:
The first area is how organizations plan and execute their initial implementation. There is often a lack of understanding of the complexities and scope of what is involved. Bridging the gap between the promise of “low-code/no-code” implementation and what it takes to actually align the requirements and execution to that model can be challenging. It is also common that the focus is almost exclusively on the initial implementation MVP(s), with little attention paid to longer-term strategy and whether or not the immediate implementation is beneficial or detrimental to that strategy.
And, while various implementation Partners are willing to step up to do the work, they are often incentivized to sell more billable hours, both within the current project and following it. So, strategic thinking and planning up front which might minimize future billable hours is just not a high priority. Efficiency in the organization of the implementation will also minimize billable hours, so it is likely not a high priority either.
The second area is how the organization aligns around Salesforce overall. Salesforce has some distinct advantages in how it can be implemented and administered, but those don’t always align to legacy IT roles, structures, and/or processes.
Or, if Salesforce is managed by the business, there is often a lack of understanding of the value of things like basic standards and controls.
There is also often a huge emphasis placed on delivery of the initial MVP(s), but then there is a significant fall-off of ROI due to a lack of ongoing rigor and/or measurement around continued value delivery on the platform.
Unfortunately, these issues will almost inevitably lead to a point of frustration around the lack of real or perceived ROI for the platform. I cannot count the number of conversations I have been a part of where BU leaders and or C-Suite leaders are looking at the size of the checks they are writing for licenses and/or implementation and wondering if they are really seeing value that aligns to the spend.
They often want to talk to someone who can help them make sense of it, but the people most readily available come with the associated question mark of being incentivized to sell products and/or services.
That is where Big Sky Consulting comes in… We are here to provide the guidance you need and help you understand how to maximize the ROI for your Salesforce spend. We don’t sell products and we don’t do implementations. We don’t use consultant buzzwords or catch phrases. We are here to give you honest, straightforward advice.
Kevin Mossman
Founder and CEO