How to Prepare for the Departure of a Salesforce Admin

A Salesforce Admin is an essential role that is responsible for the daily maintenance and care of an organization’s CRM or GMS. While we want to think that folks will stick around for the long haul, we have to acknowledge that change happens, and staff turnover doesn’t have to negatively impact an organization’s database system, especially if there’s a solid transition plan in place. In this blog post we’ll cover some of the key elements to include in a transition plan, as well as share some tips on how to ensure your organization won’t be left in the lurch when the Salesforce Admin moves on to a new job, relocates, or who knows, maybe even wins the lottery!

Why is the Role of Salesforce Admin So Important?

Before we dive into the nitty gritty of preparing for an Admin’s departure ( and hiring to fill the position) let’s cover some details of the Admin role. For most nonprofits and foundations, the Salesforce Admin is an essential team member with deep technical expertise. Their duties can vary, but generally include the following responsibilities:

• Maintaining and enhancing current functionality updates (like fields, picklist values, automation, etc.)
• Maintaining a roadmap for new functionality and collaborating with stakeholders to implement solutions within defined timelines
• Managing and monitoring integrations, sandboxes and new releases
• Troubleshooting issues – automation breakdowns, technical debt, data reconciliation
• User management- check in with users and identify areas for improvement, ensuring user adoption, identifying power users
• Data Management – Data uploads and exports, data monitoring, reports and dashboards
• Training new staff and CRM/GMS users and creating and maintaining detailed process and procedure documentation

As you can see from the list, the Salesforce Admin does a lot to help keep the CRM/GMS running smoothly. In addition to the above responsibilities, the Admin is often the main point of contact for most things CRM-related in the organization. This includes process and procedure details, an important (and often overlooked!) component of an effective transition plan.

How To Minimize the Impact of an Admin’s Departure

When an Admin leaves, there will be consequences for the whole organization. This includes time spent recruiting to fill the role, training the new hire, and possibly allocating some Admin duties to other staff in the interim. Some tasks, like setting up new users or generating reports, might have to be put on hold until the role is filled. As with most things, planning ahead and communicating clearly will help ensure a minimum amount of disruption to the organization.

Create a Transition Plan

Spending the time to put together a comprehensive Admin transition plan might feel arduous, but the incoming Admin will thank you for providing a detailed plan that will form the foundation of their training in the new role. This exercise is also a great way for leadership to work with the outgoing Admin to ensure that all the necessary details of the role are captured and well-documented. The transition plan should include the following information:

• A write-up describing the purpose of the CRM/GMS (i.e. – the organization goals related to its operation), history and current status towards the goal of a high-functioning system.
• An organizational chart that highlights who is involved internally as executive stakeholder, power user, etc.
• An overview of CRM Steering Committee information including members, meeting dates and examples of past/upcoming agendas, plus an explanation of the role and duties the Admin will be responsible for.
• A training plan that includes a detailed list of the organization-specific tasks the Admin will be expected to perform, as well as updated process and procedure documentation. Think of this as a list of tasks that the admin does weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annually.
• An overview of all accounts the Admin will be using and links to passwords for said accounts. This would not only include Salesforce but any integrations or tools that are used. *It is extremely important to transfer over these accounts to an existing staff member before the Admin leaves to avoid any disruption in service.
• Documentation on the ticket management system or other utility being used to track user requests, items in progress and roadmap enhancements for prioritization and pursuit in the future.
• Training curriculum and materials in use to onboard new users to the system, as well as a communication plan for users that includes details on how to engage with the Salesforce team for assistance once the admin leaves.

Ensure Documentation is Up-to-Date

Hopefully your outgoing Admin is leaving on good terms and provided enough notice to ensure they can help create the transition plan, which includes updating all of the Salesforce process and procedure documentation. This will look different for each organization, but generally includes a mix of technical and functional information.

• Technical details can include custom objects and fields, flows, workflow rules, validation rules, integrations, permission sets, user profiles, sandbox environments, data backup and recovery processes, as well as any other system configurations specific to your organization.
• Functional details includes user training, as well as standard operating practices supported by Salesforce (e.g., donor management, grant tracking, program work, frequently used reports, dashboards, and list views, data entry standards, naming conventions, deduplication criteria, user guides, and a directory of internal resources or external consultants who can provide support.

This comprehensive documentation will ensure critical knowledge about your Salesforce system is preserved, reducing the learning curve for the incoming Admin and keeping operations running smoothly during the transition.

Cross-Train Staff

Ideally, you’ll have the job posted and a lot of great candidates lined up to interview for the job, but delays happen, and it’s always a good idea for the outgoing Admin to do some cross training with other staff in the organization who are skilled with, and interested in, using Salesforce. Prioritize those aspects of the Admin job that they would be most likely to step in and handle, and make sure they are aware of the required time commitment.

Start the Recruitment Process ASAP

It’s easy to underestimate the amount of time it takes to fill a Salesforce Admin position, and starting the recruitment process as soon as possible will help minimize disruption to the system and ensure you have the time to find the perfect fit for the role. Also, keep in mind that the longer the role stays vacant, the messier things can get in your CRM, which means a tougher job for the Admin to get things back on track. When you’re posting the job, consider sharing it in Salesforce-specific places like the Trailblazer Community and Watt’s List, in addition to LinkedIn and other similar job sites.

Ideally, there will be some overlap between the new person starting and the outgoing Admin, which can be a huge plus when it comes to training on the new system. If it’s taking longer than expected to fill the role, or if you’re restructuring and/or not ready to hire new staff, hiring an outside consultant for Salesforce Administration is also a good option to consider.

Keep the Vision Front and Center

Implementations are transformative initiatives that generally take several months to complete. During that time there can be fluctuations in staff enthusiasm or capacity, and regularly revisiting the vision and underlying ‘why’ behind the project can help staff connect the dots between their individual roles and the larger project goals. As a project manager, it’s your role to help keep morale high among your internal team members. This will help people feel engaged and ensure their input is heard and valued, key components of a Change Management strategy, besides being good project management practices.

Next Steps

The duties of a Salesforce Admin are integral to the smooth functioning of an organization’s CRM/GMS. Filling the role when an Admin moves on can feel daunting, but with planning and preparation you can ensure the recruitment and onboarding process is as smooth as possible. Some organizations might not be ready to fill the position right away, and in that case hiring an outside Managed Admin Consultant can be the perfect interim or long term solution.

We’re here to help! Interested in learning more about how our Managed Admin or Salesforce Implementation services can help your organization? Contact us today to schedule your initial consultation.