From Salesforce Client to Practice Lead: My Journey and Lessons Learned (Part 4)
This is Part 4 of a series on my career journey in the Salesforce ecosystem. Start with Part 3 if you haven’t already.
My time at Salesforce Professional Services gave me substantial professional growth — deep expertise in Data Cloud, collaboration with some of the best in the ecosystem, and visibility into how the platform is used at the highest level. But at a certain point, I found myself pulled toward a different kind of challenge.
I wanted to build something. I craved the agility of a smaller organization where I could drive change quickly, where decisions weren’t filtered through layers, where the work I did had direct and visible impact.
The Opportunity at Prolocity
Prolocity gave me exactly what I was looking for — the chance to establish a Data Cloud practice from the ground up.
Since joining, I’ve managed implementations across Data Cloud and Marketing Cloud, led webinars and public speaking engagements, and spoken at Salesforce Connections and the New York World Tour. That last one was a milestone I’m genuinely proud of — not just professionally, but personally. Public speaking doesn’t come naturally to me, and getting on that stage was the result of pushing past a real discomfort.
We’ve also led Prolocity’s initiative to become a Salesforce Agentforce Partner, which has put us at the forefront of where the ecosystem is heading.
What I’ve Carried Forward
Three lessons have shown up consistently across every phase of this career:
Relationships matter. The trust built with colleagues and clients has shaped every opportunity I’ve had. This has been especially meaningful working with mission-driven nonprofits, where the stakes feel different and the relationships feel more personal.
Reputation is everything. How you work and how you treat people determines what doors open for you — sometimes years later, in ways you didn’t anticipate. I’ve experienced this firsthand, and it’s reinforced something I try to be intentional about every day.
Identify opportunities and take ownership. The most meaningful moments in my career came from stepping up when I saw a need — not waiting to be asked. That instinct, more than any specific skill, is what I’d point to as the thread running through this whole journey.
What’s Next
This series has covered a lot of ground — from the client side, through the partner ecosystem, to Salesforce itself, and now to leading a practice. While this concludes the series, I’ll keep writing about technology, leadership, and the intersections between them.
There’s a lot more to come.