When you revive a program as important and impactful as Salesforce Military, you’re setting yourself up for a challenge – and Salesforce has found this out first-hand.
Faced with increased scrutiny from a community that remains skeptical about the program’s future, tensions are rising before Dreamforce, where Salesforce is set to detail Salesforce Military’s onward plans.
A Revival Effort
Earlier this year, Salesforce officially revealed that one of its largest community programs, Salesforce Military, was being revived. This came after a community feedback survey detailed that the program’s support was a significant talking point.
The program – which went dark just over a year ago – is now led by Tom House in the Director position and Josh Mendez in the Manager position. Both military and ecosystem veterans, it appeared as if Salesforce had begun to understand the weight of bringing back a program like this in the right way.
Tom explained that this time around, the program and its suite of support were once again available, with a fresh focus on three key areas: A Future Ready Workforce, Networking, and Mentorship.
Salesforce has also announced that the program and community will once again have a key presence at some of the company’s biggest flagship events, including Dreamforce and TrailblazerDX, where members can expect meetups specifically for the military community.
Losing Support
However, this week, former community members have taken to LinkedIn to express their frustrations with Salesforce and the program, announcing that they will be stepping away from further activities.
Matt Pieper, a veteran and ecosystem voice, posted that he would no longer be associated with the program, citing its ‘rapid decline’ as a reason.
“The view of this program’s leadership is that the community should come to them rather than them come to the community,” he wrote. “‘Let’s talk at Dreamforce’ is the party line.”
“The leaders are not engaging on Reddit, LinkedIn, or the community portal that they own. We’ve seen no new upskilling or certs published – including hashtag#Agentforce, Data Cloud, or RCA – in an era where these are the in-demand skills and jobs.”
“Today, I believe that the best skills to have are platform agnostic, and will gladly join a program that builds these skills rather than be used as a marketing arm and provide the bare minimum.”
Matt, who initially spurred a promising round of discussion on the future of the program last year, has been open about remaining skeptical but being open to change, making this decision one that is felt across the community.
Andrew Day, veteran and Salesforce Consultant, also announced that he will be stepping away from the program.
“With the way that the Salesforce Military program is being run now, it’s clear to me that their goal is to promote themselves,” he wrote. “Being a publicly traded company, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. Their legal obligation is to shareholders. If that’s where it started and stopped, I wouldn’t have a leg to stand on for how I feel. But the fact is, they made promises.”
Perhaps most surprisingly, though, is the announcement from Jonathan Fox – an ecosystem member who has long been connected to Salesforce’s military efforts.
He spoke positively about his initial experience with the program, but then detailed how 90 days into the new program, we have seen “very little.”
“Was the new hire and the ‘relaunch’ just a damage limitation exercise because we publicly told the community they had failed us?” he wrote. “Were the listening sessions just empty promises and false hope.. I sincerely hope not, but with still very little transparency, communication, and progress back to that community and program that we once had, it certainly feels that way.”
Standing in the Defense
Amidst all of this, former Senior Vice President of Trailhead, Ann Guadard Weebly, came to Salesforce’s defence, citing her support for the work being put into reviving the program.
“Programs and products evolve,” she wrote. “They adapt, learn, and improve. Salesforce Military is no different. It is evolving, and the mission remains alive.”
“I am proud of this community. I spent nearly a decade leading and championing Salesforce Military with one purpose: to create access and belonging so people could rise”.
“I believe in Tom House, MBA’s leadership. I believe Salesforce remains committed to the mission. And most of all I believe in the alumni whose success stories are the true measure of this program’s impact.”
Although Ann does not currently work for the program or work in the Salesforce ecosystem anymore, for such a prolific voice to speak out in this way illustrates the rising divide. One side is experiencing a betrayal and a growing disappointment – the other believes the program and community deserve more time to get it right.
A Tough Job Up Ahead
The future of Salesforce Military may become clearer in two weeks’ time, but with such pressure on Salesforce to deliver, explain, and ensure guarantees, the right spokesperson and lead is needed.
Although Tom and Josh now lead Salesforce Military, Salesforce is currently recruiting for the Head of Trailblazer Community & Global Workforce Development, whose core responsibilities center around leading the community, inspiring personal and technological unification, and supporting the Salesforce Military relaunch.
Whoever this person is, they will likely face an uphill battle in the early days. Salesforce’s veteran community is passionate, engaged, and focused – but will speak out if they feel the mothership is underdelivering.
Final Thoughts
For Salesforce, Dreamforce will hopefully be the perfect time to establish Salesforce Military’s plans, with an emphasis on collaboration, growth, and community feedback. However, it is clear that they still have some community members to convince.
Ultimately, the message from everyone – even those who have stepped away from the program – is one that shows care. The community wants the program to do well – it benefits thousands, but what the results of this look like is a different story altogether.
