Embracing Change: A Tale of Professional Transformation & Possibilities

Marzena’s journey is marked by a relentless pursuit of knowledge, balancing full-time work, parenting, and career advancement. In this interview, she shares insights about the time commitment, live lectures, and independent study that shaped her learning experience. She highlights the challenges faced and the invaluable skills acquired during the training with our Workforce Development Partner letsjoin.cloud, emphasising the importance of patience, persistence, and problem-solving.

Please introduce yourself.

My name is Marzena, and I live in Poland. I am a happy mother of two teenagers and a wife, with a passion for dogs and fishing. I graduated from the University of Life Sciences and Human Resources and Team Management. With 20 years of experience in Customer Service and Sales, I aimed to expand my knowledge in system administration as a Service Cloud user. I made the decision to participate in one of the first Salesforce training programs in the Polish market, organised by letsjoin.cloud. Over a span of 18 weeks of online courses, I gained practical experience and a knowledge base as a Salesforce Administrator. Soon after, I began working in the Digital & Technology department at HEINEKEN, involved in projects encompassing this ecosystem.

How did you learn about Salesforce?

In my previous role as a Customer Service Manager, I was engaged in the Service & Sales Cloud implementation project. This is how I familiarised myself with Salesforce as a user. I assisted the Scrum team in requirements gathering, improving the Customer Service business process, testing the Service Cloud solution, ecosystem launch, and onboarding. I discovered how advantageous working in the cloud is for a remote team and how significantly it eases a manager’s responsibilities. I began seeking sources of knowledge about the tool by watching videos and reading articles online. I became a part of the Salesforce Admin Community in Poznan, a city in Poland. After that, I engaged with the Salesforce online self-learning platform – Trailhead and completed the Administrator Career Path.

How did you find the course (time commitment, live lectures, independent study)?

It’s incredible that you can juggle full-time work, be a full-time parent, and still manage to advance your career. Naturally, there were days when I felt tired, especially with evening training sessions twice a week, alongside using Trailhead, and other online platforms for learning while developing my own Salesforce application. During weekends, I often dedicated time to troubleshooting and dealing with the challenges I encountered. Besides learning, I was building an online store as part of a training project. Some days, I spent hours investigating and finding solutions to move forward. This experience taught me patience, fostered persistence, and helped me devise methods to seek solutions on the internet based on documentation and the experiences of others.

Learning resources are readily available for everyone, whether beginners or those with prior experience. The quality of free materials is exceptional. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to grow in a technology-rich world and utilise numerous outstanding resources.

How much time did you need to find a job and how did the job hunt go?

During my Salesforce Administrator training, I was contacted by a recruiter regarding a Salesforce position focused on Service Cloud-based projects. The job interview consisted of several stages and spanned over several weeks. I hadn’t anticipated my dream job would come my way so swiftly. Three months later, I commenced a project role in Salesforce within an international and agile environment at HEINEKEN.

What is your job like, how shall we imagine it?

My work is much more interesting than I had previously imagined. Every day, I find new ways to use Salesforce and help our customers. Working in an agile environment is a pleasant surprise. However, the best part is the great people here, whose support I really appreciate. It’s amazing how much I learn from the stakeholders and colleagues I work with. Through my daily work, I “Brew the Joy of True Togetherness” to inspire a better world in line with my company’s EverGreen strategy. It’s important to understand that only together can we grow, develop technology, and take care of our world and each other.

I am growing in my role as a Product Architect and supporting the activities of the Business Analyst. I face a lot of challenges, learning about different roles and issues. I know it’s just the start. However, in my opinion, every challenge is a gift – without learning new things, I wouldn’t get better.

Do you need soft skills in your work?

I work with PEOPLE and for PEOPLE. In such a role, being open to others and having the willingness to understand what others are communicating, even if they don’t say it directly, is important. Whether it’s remote or in-person work doesn’t matter. Communication skills, empathy, a desire for continuous learning, and openness to changes are practically essential here. The work environment is very dynamic, so it’s good to keep that in mind.

How well did the course offered by letsjoin.cloud meet your expectations in terms of salary and job opportunities and learning new skills?

Thanks to professional training, I’ve gained momentum. My life has completely changed, and I don’t regret making this change. The feeling that this is the beginning of an exciting professional journey gives me a lot of motivation for growth and action. I have the support of my manager, team and of the company, which adds a lot of positive energy to me. I’m even more curious about new challenges, feeling that the world is open to me, and age doesn’t matter here. What counts is who I am and who I want to be.

What have you gained since participating in the training program?

My life has become more dynamic, and creative, and I feel very good in this environment. In recent months, I’ve learned a lot, obtained three Salesforce certificates, and more. I’ve gained insights into various areas of IT. My new job has completely changed my family’s life and mine for the better.

What do you like about Salesforce?

I am fascinated by working in a cloud environment. I appreciate the flexibility of the system and the ability to adapt it to the needs, it is an amazing tool. You can’t get bored here, there is always something new to explore and experience. For me, Salesforce equals development. When I previously worked as a Customer Service Manager, I fell in love with Service Cloud and how it made my daily work easier.  

What type of people would you recommend Salesforce to?

I believe Salesforce is ideal for individuals who thrive in a dynamic work environment, embrace new concepts and changes, are curious about the world of technology, and aim to leverage its power to enhance business operations.

One sentence – What is it like working in the Salesforce Ecosystem?

Salesforce brings people together, offering them the chance to utilise their talents in various fields. With the accessibility of this technology, anyone who desires to learn and grow can discover their role in the IT world, regardless of age or education.

We also interviewed Ignus Meiring, Global Innovation & Technology  Manager for Salesforce and Marzena’s manager at HEINEKEN. 

Why did you decide to hire Marzena, a truly successful trailblazer?

In two words: Passion and Eagerness. Passion for Salesforce as a technology. As Marzena had previously worked with Salesforce in a business context, she understood the impact that ‌ technology could have on our business. Eagerness for Knowledge. Apart from the learning opportunities that Marzena has through us, she is also hungry for more knowledge and spends a lot of her personal time to further broaden her skills. She is also part of our internal training squad that supports other team members with career learning.

What has she brought to your company?

Her positive energy and go-get attitude are contagious. She motivates and supports colleagues to grow in their learning path. Also, her many years of business experience in customer service brings a needed knowledge set to a typically technical role.

Where do you see the benefits of companies hiring talent without the traditional tech background?

Something to take into consideration is that tech skills can be taught. Passion and willingness to learn, not so much.  If you find a person that is passionate and willing to learn, teach them. They tend to be more valuable to your organisation in the long run, than a person who was hired purely for technical knowledge. They also tend to be good people managers in the future.

Looking for a training provider in your region? Check out our Workforce Development Partner Directory and visit our website to learn more about all our initiatives!