Meet Narender Singh
Salesforce Developer Narender Singh describes his career path as “a roller coaster ride that has exceeded my wildest dreams.” He graduated from university in India in mid-2017, full of energy that he couldn’t wait to channel into his work. Soon after, the focus for that energy became Salesforce when his first employer, a small IT consultancy, placed him on its Salesforce implementation team.
Narender dove into the role with gusto and supplemented his on-the-job learning with Trailhead, the front door to the Salesforce ecosystem, where anyone can learn today’s most in-demand and relevant skills for free, earning resume-worthy credentials and connecting to global opportunities. With each completed module, he began earning badges and was proud to earn his first superbadge, Process Automation Specialist. To date, Narender has achieved an impressive 350+ badges, 14 superbadges, and 13 certifications, all of which puts him at the Triple Star Ranger level.
In his second year, Narender was named a Salesforce MVP and he received an amazing job offer in Berlin Germany — out of the blue — all because a recruiter noticed his active participation in Trailblazer Community forums. Today, he is a developer and architect at Salesforce consulting firm Salesfive in Berlin. “These unexpected successes have taught me a lot and helped me grow into a better person, both professionally and personally,” says Narender. “I’m grateful for my trailblazing journey and wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Living the developer life
Once Narender transitioned into the working world, he realized how much he really enjoyed coding. Over the years, he’s grown to realize that being a Salesforce Developer means having the ability to create solutions that improve people’s work lives. He says, “It’s fulfilling to know that my work helps others achieve their goals and make their jobs easier.”
Narender’s set up to watch TrailblazerDX, the global Salesforce Developer conference.
Along with nurturing a love of coding, Narender finds that success comes from a conscious effort to stay up-to-date with the latest features and enhancements on the Salesforce Platform. “The future of Salesforce is incredibly exciting to me because of the constant development of new products and features,” he says. “There is always something new to learn and explore.” He’s particularly excited about the Einstein announcement at TrailblazerDX ‘23, and he’s curious to see how its potential will unfold across the Salesforce ecosystem.
The future of Salesforce is incredibly exciting to me because of the constant development of new products and features.
When he wants to read more about a specific feature, Narender first turns to Salesforce documentation. “The docs are amazing and I’d recommend that everyone refer to them when needed.” Other valuable resources include the global Salesforce Developers Trailblazer Community and his local Trailblazer community groups in Berlin. He says, “I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for the people who have supported and guided me in the community.”
At home in the Trailblazer Community
Narender got involved in the community early in his career, and it opened up his world. He says, “I was surprised (in a positive way) to discover the Trailblazer Community. The very existence of such a supportive and collaborative community was a revelation to me.”
Narender at the Jaipur Developers Fest
Now, Narender considers the Trailblazer Community to be his virtual home. As he was learning, it provided use cases and problems that gave him good opportunities to practice. He became very active in the community forums, Twitter, and LinkedIn, as well as at local in-person community events, and soon, Narender was helping others by answering questions, which was a huge learning experience for him.
At his first community group event, Narender heard some words of advice that he will never forget. “Put yourself on the map, for the world to know,” said Jessica Murphy, that evening’s speaker. At that time, Narender was not confident in his communication skills, and her words inspired him to step out of his comfort zone and start sharing his work with others in the community. He pushed himself to communicate more online and offline, and to start speaking at community events. He says, “Through this journey, I discovered my passion for sharing knowledge and connecting with others in the Trailblazer Community. I am forever grateful for that one powerful statement from Jessica Murphy.”
Through this journey, I discovered my passion for sharing knowledge and connecting with others in the Trailblazer Community.
By the end of his first year with the community, Narender was blogging, speaking, and even contributing to a Salesforce Beginners tutorial series on YouTube and to open-source Salesforce utilities. Today, Narender co-leads the Salesforce Admins Group in Berlin. He continues to share his knowledge at events and in forums, and he also mentors junior developers. Narender runs a small tutorial course for Salesforce beginners lasting 3-4 months per cohort, which he finds very rewarding: “I help guide these folks on how to get started on their Salesforce journey. It’s something I do to help people and it gives me a lot of happiness.”
Narender presenting at Trailblazer Community Conference Czech Dreamin’ 2022.
Advice for new Salesforce Developers: Stay connected and practice
For those just starting out on Salesforce, Narender recommends staying connected with the global Trailblazer Community to network, share knowledge, and get help, as well as finding an in-person community group in their area. He also recommends practicing coding skills by working on personal projects or contributing to open-source projects, and using Trailhead to upskill and learn more about new Salesforce features and functionality.
Narender at the Jaipur Cloud Connect event.
In addition, Narender recommends finding role models within the community and drawing inspiration from them. Some of his own role models include Gaurav Kheterpal, Charlie Isaacs, Christian Szandor Knapp, Deepak Anand, Steve Molis, and Amnon Kruvi. He says, “The Trailblazer Community itself has been a constant source of motivation for me. It’s introduced me to incredible people who have inspired me in countless ways and helped me not just professionally, but also to grow as a person overall.”
‘Put yourself on the map, for the world to know’ — I am forever grateful for that one powerful statement from Jessica Murphy.
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About the author
Christie Fidura is the Director of Global Trailblazer Engagement. In this role, she seeks to engage and elevate the community and work directly with them to understand their challenges, concerns, wins, and inspirations. You can find Christie in the Trailblazer Community at https://trailblazer.me/id/christiefidura. A certified community manager and multiple-award winning marketer, Christie believes in technology, community, and equality.