I am often asked by current and prospective students what their job prospects are if they attain the Salesforce Administrator Certification, Sales Cloud Consultant Certification, Service Cloud Consultant Certification, Marketing Cloud Consultant Certification, Platform App Builder Certification, Platform Developer I and II Certifications, etc. I wanted to take a moment to discuss how to leverage certifications strategically to make yourself a more attractive candidate - especially to Salesforce Consulting Partner companies.
Salesforce focuses on their core platform. What started as a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solution, over time, blossomed into a customizable PaaS (Platform as a Service). Recently, Salesforce has reached the maturity level of branching into specific verticals, such as the Government Cloud, Health Cloud, Commerce Cloud (via the Demandware acquisition), and more. Salesforce employs a partner network of Independent Software Vendors (ISVs - these are companies that build and sell solutions on top of the Salesforce Platform via the AppExchange) and Consulting Partners. I want to focus on these Consulting Partners for a moment.
A consulting partner company specializes in Salesforce implementations for companies. They provide consulting services and steer clients toward best-practice principles, enabling clients to customize the Salesforce platform to fit their specific business needs. Within this Salesforce Partner eco-system, these partner companies can reach Silver, Gold, Platinum and Global Strategic status with Salesforce. These tiers that Salesforce Consulting Partners can attain are measured using a complex scoring system, that weighs several different factors. One of these factors, and how it can relate to you, has to do with the number of certified individuals a Consulting Partner company has on staff.
If you boil it down, what certifications you bring to the table in a job interview with a Consulting Partner company will make you more attractive in their eyes. If you have several certifications, you will be worth more "points" to the company as they aspire to move up the tier system, from Silver, to Gold, to Platinum. One thing to note is that in this scoring system, the Salesforce Administrator Certification does not figure for any points for Consulting Partners. The Administrator Certification is a pre-requisite however for the Consulting certifications. So you have to pass the Administrator exam in order to go for the Consultant ones.
Refer to this graphic for the scoring system, and make note of the Certifications and Expanded Knowledge sections to see the various certifications and their points for Consulting Partners.
In conclusion, keep Salesforce Consulting Partner Companies in mind when you are going down your own learning path of certification(s). Use this inside information to your own advantage so that you can get a great job and launch your career in the cloud.
For more information on the various Salesforce Certifications and Career Paths that are available, enroll in my 1.5 hour Introduction to Salesforce Certifications and Careers Course for free.