Calling it Quits: When It's Time to Find a New Job

Being a Salesforce Administrator is a hot position to be in right now! In most markets, there are more positions than there are people to fill them. So, you have the pick of the litter when it comes to jobs. Knowing when to make a switch can sometimes be a difficult decision. Hopefully these three reasons to find a new job will make your decision making process a little easier.

You're Bored

In the beginning, you probably found your position to be exciting; learning about a whole new organization, making changes or even implementing the system. There was plenty of work to be had and you executed well. It was even fun and you couldn't see yourself in a new position. This is something I call "new job euphoria." But now, several years later, you are finding that there are perhaps little to no projects or the projects that you are working are entry-level.

Boredom is a good indicator that you need a new challenge and if your company isn't going to give it to you then perhaps it is time to look for something new.

A Lack of Salesforce Investment

Salesforce itself is a huge investment for most organizations but those that truly see the value pour money not just into the cost of licenses, but also into AppExchange packages, growing the Salesforce team and engaging with the local community. When companies are not making these investments, there is trouble. Perhaps the company was naive in thinking that Salesforce would run itself or not cost anything above and beyond the licensing and an administrator. Now that there are additional costs being requested at the name of process improvement, they balk at the expenditure.

If this is the case, it is probably time to find a new company. One of the organizations I worked for was like this and it was very frustrating because it showed me that they were not confident enough in my knowledge, or in their strategic direction to invest more into the Salesforce platform. In fact, I recall having several discussions with leaders to determine if Salesforce was even going to be renewed. The lack of dedication told me that I didn't belong. Instead, I moved to a company that fully embraced Salesforce and saw it as a business critical application. My job satisfaction has grown exponentially as a result.

While this article is older, it perfectly describes why an investment in Salesforce is necessary. Sound familiar?

No One Cares

I was giving a "State of Salesforce" presentation to a team of executives. My goal was to show them the current state of the system, where we could improve our usage and help them to understand that the adoption issues we were facing were due to their lack of engagement. When I explained that there was a region that had particularly low adoption scores, I was told by their managing executive that he was not going to force them to use it; that he didn't care too much if they decided not to use it. Whoa! That was not what I was expecting to hear.

In another example, several years after we deployed Salesforce I was speaking with some sales reps at a sales conference and asked if they were excited for the next day's Salesforce training. They said (and notice the quotes) "we have the guillotine ready for you!" While I didn't take that as a literal death threat, it told me that no one really cared about Salesforce. I then began to think "why am I investing so much time and energy into something that no one cares succeeds?"

There are a number of reasons to look for a new position but if you are experiencing any of these three, you may need to seriously consider looking for something new. As I mentioned at the beginning of the post, there are terrific opportunities just waiting to be had and if you are being sought after by recruiters, take this opportunity to leverage your network and expertise to find something you will love!

What are some other Salesforce related reasons why you would leave a company?

Photo Credit: HYPER via Flickr