Career

Are Salesforce Professionals Happy Working in the Ecosystem? Our Survey Finds Out

By Sasha Semjonova

The biggest wish for many of us, no matter what industry we’re in, is to be in a job that we actually enjoy. If you’re working in a volatile industry (like the Salesforce ecosystem can arguably be considered), then your odds can be even less favorable than normal.

But, that doesn’t mean employee satisfaction suddenly goes down the drain either. The results from our first annual SF Ben Salary Survey have helped paint a picture that can answer the question: are Salesforce professionals happy working in Salesforce? And the answer may well surprise you…

Tech Market Satisfaction

Job satisfaction is always going to depend on a number of different factors that will differ from employee to employee. Some of these include how respected workers feel in the workplace, satisfaction regarding career opportunities and progression, salary satisfaction, and more. 

According to the PwC 2023 Global Workforce Survey, tech workers report higher job satisfaction compared to other workers, with 64% of tech employees reporting job satisfaction compared to 56% of all other respondents. 

That being said, it is also reported that employee satisfaction hit a new low last year, with both the tech and nonprofit sectors reaching these lows last December. This has been attributed to the push back into office working for hybrid workers, and mass layoffs. 

Salesforce have felt these effects heavily, both with the layoffs and the push for in-office work again after the pandemic. It is not a unique case in the wider tech ecosystem and as the latest 10k Ecosystem Talent Report states: 

“The pandemic forced companies to rapidly undertake strategic digital initiatives aimed at enabling a remote-first workforce. But as society and the economy have corrected from the boom caused by free money and low interest rates to the new normal of slower spending and more uncertainty, the focus has changed to driving more efficiently while weathering the storm.” Nick Hamm, CEO of 10K

This, of course, is bound to have effects on employee satisfaction as fears surrounding the loss of sustained lifestyles, salaries, and jobs in general mount. So, what has actually happened? 

The Metrics

In order for us to gain a comprehensive understanding of the current state of employee satisfaction in the Salesforce ecosystem, we’ll be focusing on these key metrics:

  • Feelings of respect and value for current Salesforce ecosystem employees
  • Satisfaction with career opportunities in current role
  • Equality satisfaction in current role
  • Equal pay satisfaction in current role

Respect and Feeling Valued

Very fortunately, feelings of respect and appreciation are widely felt in the ecosystem. 84.7% of respondents said that they felt respected and valued in their roles, with the highest rates of satisfaction observed in administrator, program manager, solution architect, and technical architect roles.

The lowest rates were reported by Marketing Cloud consultants and Account Engagement (Pardot) Consultants, with 73% of respondents for both roles feeling respected and valued.

Career Opportunities 

If we take a look at our respondents’ views on the market as a whole, an overwhelming majority (87.1%) admitted that the market has been more challenging than in previous years. Juniors in the industry felt this most, but the pinch was felt across the board, even extending to director-level positions.

This is unfortunately coupled with a decline in career opportunities. Of the respondents, 54.4% said that there have been fewer opportunities within their roles, 20.4% said there have been more, and 25.2% said it has stayed the same.

Opportunities for progression and growth will look different in different roles, but we can assume that factors like budget constraints, employees needing to wear multiple hats, and shrinkages in certain teams that have been observed over the last few years have a part to play in this. 

Quite understandably, this has most likely had some influence on the number of people in the ecosystem looking for a role. 56% of respondents admitted that they had been searching for a role in the last 18 months, and although it’s impossible to fully understand why (due to nuances), being in a turbulent ecosystem and tech industry certainly won’t help.

Equality 

In 2024, the tech industry remains white and male-dominated. Whether that is the case for the Salesforce ecosystem is more difficult to prove, and the conversations around it tend to depend on experience, org size, and role. However, out of our survey respondents, just under 60% identified themselves as male and 56% of them were white/caucasian.

When asked about equal value within their organizations, the results, although mostly positive-looking at a glance, indicate that there is still clearly work to be done. Although satisfaction rates were high for mixed and multiple ethnicities, white, and Asian backgrounds, others fall below what we should all expect in this diverse market.

Equal Pay 

When it comes down to the conversation of pay and pay satisfaction, it’s important for it to be regarded as one of the most important factors to consider in employee satisfaction, especially in the current economic climate. 

Surprisingly, opinions on whether Salesforce salaries have increased or decreased are pretty evenly split, despite what the general discourse on it suggests. 31.2% of respondents said that they believed salaries had increased over the last 18 months, with 34% of respondents saying they believed they stayed the same, and 34.8% of respondents saying they believed that they had decreased.

However, to assess satisfaction, we need to look at different metrics. Fortunately, 74.2% of respondents say they believe their employer promotes equal pay opportunities and rights for all employees. While this may be true, we also need to look at personal salary satisfaction. 56.7% of respondents say they feel their salary is fair and equal compared to others in their role, with 43.3% of respondents disagreeing with this statement. 

This close to 50/50 split indicates a very mixed set of opinions. There are a number of reasons that could be attributed to this, including a decrease in salaries compared to 3-5 years ago, feeling like a salary doesn’t match up with a responsibility list, or salaries not matching up to the rising rate of inflation.

Satisfaction With a Career in Salesforce

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, we need to look at the satisfaction levels of a career in Salesforce as a whole

When we asked our respondents which factors were most important to them when it came to a career in Salesforce, the top three answers were work-life balance, compensation, and company culture. Additionally, according to our report, the most satisfied roles in the ecosystem are customer success workers, solution architects, and administrators. 

Satisfaction trends do tip towards the more positive side, with the majority of our respondents stating that they felt 80-90% satisfied in their careers. This makes for an interesting talking point when you take a look at whether or not professionals are considering changing jobs or industries in the near future – 57.6% of our respondents answered yes.

We will be the first to admit that a career in Salesforce is much easier to navigate if you’re already in it in some way rather than coming at it completely from the outside, but this doesn’t erase the issues that remain in the ecosystem. Salaries are following a downward trend, layoffs are more frequent than they used to be, and, as BBC writer Elizabeth Bennett wonderfully puts it: “company loyalty is out – touting yourself is in.”

READ MORE: Top 5 Insights from Our Mega Salesforce Salary Survey With 3500+ Professionals

Final Thoughts 

So, let’s answer the question: are Salesforce professionals happy working in Salesforce? I would say the answer is yes.

This being said, I think we can observe that professionals aren’t blissfully happy and content with their careers to the point where they don’t recognize that certain avenues need to change. Although professionals mostly enjoy their careers in Salesforce, they aren’t afraid to “jump ship” or try something new if it could end up being better for them and their careers.

The Author

Sasha Semjonova

Sasha is the Video Production Manager and a Salesforce Reporter at Salesforce Ben.

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