Times like these get you to think – how prepared are you for the inevitable crash of our industry?
Oracle, IBM, HP – these companies were once the “Salesforces” of their generation. But every great company has a rise and a fall. And Salesforce is no exception.
Make no mistake, the Salesforce industry will decline during your career. It’ll happen as quickly as how Salesforce hit Oracle. And once you realize the decline is here, it’s already too late to prepare.
You need to be ready for an industry shift starting today. Here are my recommendations:
![]() |
Salesforce Administrators |
Admins will likely struggle the most during the transition:
That said, it’s certainly not a doomed career path. Here’s what I’d do to prepare:
![]() |
Salesforce Developers |
Developers have the strongest career security of the main Salesforce paths during a transition:
Nothing is guaranteed though. Developers still need to prepare for the worst:
![]() |
Technical Architects |
Technical architects are also well positioned to overcome industry shifts:
Technical architects too should prepare for industry changes:
No matter how secure you think your job is, we all need to plan for the long-term.
Hope for the best and prepare for the worst!
David
Hi David
I am really excited to learn and work in salesforce environment but could you please guide me the path to start
You’ll see some great posts on this in page 2 of this site!
Hi David,
I’m about to start your 15 week coding plan, but I do not yet have professional experience as an admin (I do have the admin certification and 5 superbadges).
Do I need to work as an admin first to have a reasonable or realistic chance of becoming a salesforce developer?
If I were in your position I’d probably start learning dev. It could be a while when you’re technically “ready” and that might push things forever.
Hey David, this is great! I’m just finishing up your pluralsight classes. What would you suggest is a good next step for learning to code? I have some examples I am starting to play with but am finding I still don’t know enough to go beyond what process builder and visual flow.
Thanks Natalie! Two things I’d recommend. First is the final project on bit.ly/go-apex and second is to start with some Lightning components. Trailhead is the place to go for the latter!
Actually I am high School student next I study to Salesforce developer…I can’t understand
Now can I do study or not
It’s still the hottest thing on the market. I wouldn’t assume it stays hot your entire career though. At some point you’ll have to pivot.
David, I appreciate the insight; however, the article didn’t state why this is being shared. The CRM industry projections show an increase in demand and jobs throughout the next few years. Do you see a particular downturn?
The time frame for this article is across a career. The projections are probably a lot shorter term than that. More importantly though, projections are revised all the time!
Hey David,
What would be your advise for someone who wants to learn coding now and to become a sfdc developer?
Is it a right career choice to learn sfdc development during this time? Or do you suggest any other language for a bright career opportunities..
Thanks in advance!
Madhu
It’s really a fantastic time to be a Salesforce developer, and it will be for 5+ years from now. This post just highlights the importance of not getting too complacent!
Hi David,
Would you recommend this book: Head First Design Patterns (per article above) to a seasoned admin who is learning to code? I just completed 2 of your beginner APEX course in Pluralsight and currently working on SOQL.
Or should I wait until I get more coding experience?
Point being, will I be able to relate with fundamentals behind design patterns or it would make more sense to me after I get more involved with coding projects?
Let me know your thoughts.
Sai
Definitely until you have more coding experience and doing it full time!
Thank you!
Thank you David for sharing this…
David, thanks again for sharing your timely advice and best practices in this time of uncertainty!