You’re in a meeting, surrounded by colleagues or clients, and suddenly, a curveball question is hurled your way—one you don't have an answer to. What's your play? Do you cobble together a word salad, hoping it sounds coherent? Do you freeze like a deer in headlights, or do you candidly admit, “I’m not sure, but let me find out”? The path you choose can remarkably influence your journey and your outcomes —for better or for worse.

I was speaking with a friend who manages a team of Salesforce consultants. She mentioned that new consultants often arrive with plenty of technical knowledge but lack understanding of how to manage a project in real-life client work. She added, "If they could just start with the admin cert and an iterative project management certification, that would be ideal!"

With over a decade working in, running, and overseeing Salesforce projects and implementations of all sizes, I agree with her 100%. What are these certifications and why are they the most important? Let me tell you.

A common issue for new Salesforce consultants is that its easy to teach yourself technical skills because resources abound! However getting the experience of an expert in running projects and managing clients takes years. Add to this the tendency for new consultants to get tasked with leading projects sooner than they feel ready, and we have a sink or swim story that is all-too- common and a nerve-wracking experience for most.

You don’t have to do this alone. Enter our AI senior consultant mentor…