Intro to Salesforce Trailhead: 3 Key Takeaways [Event Recap + Slides]
Fun! Food! Free stuff! Sounds like a great time on any summer evening, but it’s especially enjoyable when you’re kicking off the Summer of Trailhead with the Salesforce NJ User Group.
Undaunted by the sweltering heat, local Salesforce professionals assembled at the Internet Creations event space last week for an intro to Trailhead, a bit of networking, and some delicious eats.
Based on the turnout and buzz at the event, everyone was excited to hear Anthony Pica and Glen Wilson, our funny and charming co-leaders, introduce the fun and free new way to learn Salesforce. Following the presentation, they refereed a fierce trivia competition, fielded questions from the audience, and doled out the free swag. (For more Trailhead musings from Anthony and Glen, check out our Trailhead Q&A.)
Missed the event? You can still view the slides below:
Anthony and Glen did not disappoint! Gleaned from the Trailhead presentation, here are our three key takeaways:
1. Whether you’re new to Salesforce or a seasoned user, Trailhead has something for you.
For those completely new to Salesforce, the value of Trailhead as a way to learn the basics is clear. Similarly, business users might gravitate to Trailhead as a way to gain new skills and take full advantage of platform functionality. For example, customer service specialists may look at the beginner and intermediate admin trails as part of their professional development, while those new to a company that uses Salesforce can leverage Trailhead to get up to speed on the platform.
But what can Trailhead offer seasoned Salesforce users?
“Trailhead gives us the best of both sides of the fence for both admins and developers,” said Glen. Not only because Trailhead covers both declarative and programmatic development (among other skills), but also because it presents a wealth of information that you may not have known or thought about before. According to Glen, the content of the modules “can be more challenging than the challenge itself.” He also recommended checking out the resources at the end of each module for additional information.
2. Trailhead is designed to facilitate learning.
Salesforce has long been committed to learning, and Trailhead represents the company’s most engaging instructional design to date.
By curating available information into guided learning paths called “trails,” Trailhead enables users to learn in the most effective way. “As you progress through the trail, you build upon the knowledge you attain,” said Anthony. This also ensures that your have the foundational knowledge you need to move on to the next topic and to complete challenges. Of course, you can still focus on just one module if that’s what you need at the time.
Whether you are following a guided learning path or blazing your own trail, it’s important to keep in mind that Trailhead is about enjoying the learning experience.
Or, as Anthony said, “Whichever path you take, Trailhead is fun.”
Photos from the July 28 Salesforce NJ User Group Intro to Trailhead
3. Trailhead will continue to evolve.
With two new trails added right before the NJ User Group event, attendees were treated firsthand to Salesforce’s commitment to keeping Trailhead content fresh. Even more new trails are expected to be added leading up to Dreamforce.
However, new content updates aren’t limited to just new trails. The recently-announced Trailhead Projects are another hands-on way to gain experience building Salesforce apps.
That said, Trailhead is still in beta. It currently does not replace the Salesforce PDF workbooks, although this might be possible in the future.
Want to relive the Summer of Trailhead magic? Check out the video below:
A great time was had by all, and we’re already looking forward to our next User Group Meeting in Q3. We’ll be announcing the topic soon, so stay tuned!
Are you local to the New York Metro area and want to get involved in the Salesforce community? Click here to join the Salesforce NJ User Group.
About the Salesforce New Jersey User Group
The New Jersey User Group is where people in the tri-state area can comfortably share ideas, network, and discuss everything related to Salesforce and technology to be more successful. All are welcome to join and are strongly encouraged to participate. Our intent is to create an environment where individuals feel able to openly ask questions, share struggles, and ultimately learn from everyone’s success.
For more information or to join the Chatter group, visit: http://ic.force.com/njusergroup.
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- Q&A on the Salesforce Spring ‘16 Release Notes [Event Recap] - February 3, 2016
- Explore the Salesforce Spring ’16 Release Notes with the NJ User Group - January 7, 2016
