- October 11, 2022
- 1:13 pm
For businesses searching for highly qualified and reputable IT staff, knowing the differences between a Salesforce Administrator and a Salesforce Consultant can save valuable time, money, and frustration. Both positions are essential for a successful digital transformation, but they have very different responsibilities and job functions.
To get the most out of the Salesforce platform, businesses need someone who understands how to configure and customize, to meet the organization’s unique and often complex demands. Once the system is up and running, the role of day-to-day platform operations management will need to be filled.
What is a Salesforce Consultant?
When an organization is contemplating a future transition to the Salesforce platform, collaborating with an Official Salesforce Consulting Partner is an excellent first step. Digital transformation can be daunting, but partnering up with an experienced consultant helps ease the anxiety and ensures a smooth transition.
A Consultant’s responsibilities are assisting in the organization’s planning process. As well as executing short- and long-term digital strategies, assessing the current business landscape, understanding the goals and objectives of the client, and crafting a step-by-step approach toward success. Consultants are able to design the best Salesforce solutions to maximize efficiency and improve processes along the way. Moreover, the most reputable consultants have a deep understanding of the business functions and translate these into technical requirements.
What are the daily responsibilities of a Salesforce Consultant?
Most enterprises choose a team of Salesforce Consultants to guide the company through its digital transformation. These professional IT developers act as the project manager, business analyst, and technical architect—all rolled into one. Throughout this early stage of the project, their daily responsibilities often include:
- Extracting complex technical requirements from the business processes and pain points from discovery sessions with the business stakeholders
- Designing custom solutions that meet those company-specific demands
- Educating clients and answering questions about how Salesforce will increase company efficiency to grow their businesses
- Keeping up with the latest updates in the Salesforce platform to ensure best-in-class customer service to their clients
- Providing training and support to end users
- Helping clients develop a cybersecurity strategy for all phases of the transition
- Making recommendations regarding custom Salesforce mobile app UI/UX design so that the applications’ look, feel, and styling enhances the company brand
- Working with a Solutions Architect to design proposed solutions
What is a Salesforce Administrator?
Once a business begins its digital transformation, it needs someone to maintain and administer the system on an ongoing basis; that’s where the Salesforce Administrator comes in. The administrator is responsible for the day-to-day operations, maintenance, and management of a company’s Salesforce Org. Additionally, Administrators also play an essential role during the company’s ongoing digital transformation processes. The Admin team helps educate the Consultants on the company’s operations while also assisting in defining a coherent strategy for achieving new milestones. Administrators remain looking for ways to prevent possible system disruptions during the transition to maintain business continuity.
What are the daily responsibilities of a Salesforce Administrator?
The Administrator plays a significant role in the day-to-day operations of a Salesforce Org. Their daily responsibilities often include:
- Managing and maintaining the company’s Salesforce databases and applications
- Assigning, tracking, and maintaining all user authentication protocols
- Creating workflows
- Customizing dashboards
- Managing authentication profiles and permissions protocols
- Working with company managers to ensure that all employees and end users operate Salesforce in the most efficient ways possible for maximum productivity, profitability, and business growth
- Helping Consultants clearly understand the sometimes-complex administrative responsibilities of different departments within the company—enabling the consultant to design custom Salesforce solutions that best streamline those interactions
- Developing, implementing, maintaining, and updating all in-house training and support protocols
- Interacting with company managers and stakeholders to ensure that the transition is smooth and cost-effective
Clearly, the Administrator plays a critical role in the digital transformation process of any organization. Besides managing the day-to-day administrative tasks, the Administrator is often the first line of defense against cybersecurity threats and breaches.
The Best of Both Worlds
Forward-thinking business leaders understand that digital transformation is not a one-time event but an ongoing journey that requires long-term commitment and investment.
Ideally, companies transitioning to the Salesforce platform should include both Administrators and Consultants on their team. This strategy allows businesses to benefit from the knowledge and expertise of both groups to ensure a maximally successful transition.
While both roles require an in-depth knowledge of Salesforce technology, administrators focus more on the system’s day-to-day operations, while the Consultants tend to focus more on providing strategic guidance for the future—and maximizing the use of Salesforce for the company.
Consultants are also not confined to the beginning stages of the digital transformation process. Businesses often hire these reputable professionals during periods of business expansion or the rollout of a new product or service.
In many cases, it may be best practice to hire the Consultant before hiring the Administrator. This approach is especially beneficial for businesses in the early stages of their Salesforce development because they have not yet clearly defined their specific goals and requirements. By hiring the consultant first, enterprises benefit by:
- Generating an objective, outside perspective on how they can improve their business processes and operations using Salesforce
- Working with a reputable consultant to develop a customized strategy that meets company-specific milestones
- Partnering with a reputable consultant who gently guides them through the digital transition process every step of the way
So, which is better?
In the end, the Administrator maintains the day-to-day operations and builds upon the foundation. The Consultant plans and constructs the solutions catered to the needs of an organization, as well as advice on best practices, and supports higher-level organizational changes, i.e., mergers and acquisitions. Through their combined efforts, the Salesforce administrators and consultants are vital in facilitating the business’ needs, allowing users to return to their organization’s primary mission.