Marquita Sidibe, a Sr. Systems Support Analyst at Liberty Mutual Insurance, shares how she changed careers by forging a new path in the technology industry.
Meet Marquita Sidibe—a true Trailblazer, she changed careers after a decade in the service industry with help from the Salesforce Pathfinder Program. In this episode, she shares how she went from a bartender to a Sr. Systems Support Analyst of Salesforce Solutions at Liberty Mutual Insurance. Find out what advice she has for anyone looking to do the same!
Quote
“There's a big myth that when you're applying for a new job, you have to check off all the boxes and meet all the requirements. Still apply because chances are you do have transferable skills that you could use in that position.”
Episode Timestamps:
*(1:31) - Ohana Origins: Meet Marquita Sidibe
*(9:58) - What Does the Ohana mean to Marquita?
*(12:43) - What’s Cooking: Marquita’s Current Role at Liberty Mutual Insurance
*(15:17) - Future Forecast: What’s in Store for the Trailblazer community?
*(17:08) - Advice for Aspiring Trailblazers
*(17:56) - Lightning Round!
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[00:01:31] Dan: Welcome to Inside the Ohana. I'm Dan Darcy, chief customer officer at Qualified. And today I'm joined by Marquita Sidibe, Marquita. How are you?
[00:01:39] Marquita: Doing well today, Dan. Thanks for having me.
[00:01:43] Dan: Yo, thanks for coming on. So I wanna dive right into our first segment. Ohana Origins.
[00:01:53] Dan: How did you discover Salesforce and start your trailblazer?
[00:01:59] Marquita: I initially was not familiar with Salesforce. I had always been in the, uh, customer service industry, serving bartending in a country club, actually, where the most technical thing we did was to enter orders into a point of sale system on a touchscreen. So did not have a technical background at all, but wanted to do something different. And so decided to go back to school and went for software development. After graduating, I, you know, had this new credential, but really wasn't sure. Where my place was in tech. So I knew that Salesforce was in town.
[00:02:43] You know, they were occupying the biggest building we had here in downtown Indianapolis. So I just Googled how to learn Salesforce. And from there I found, um, the results of a women in tech community group. and that's how I got my first start, uh, joining this group and getting set up on Trailhead to build my first Salesforce app.
[00:03:05] Dan: I mean, so tell me first about, you know, joining that women in tech community group. What, like, how was it walking into that room and, you know, first getting to know Salesforce, it's awesome that you built an app and you and I were chatting just a little bit earlier. I built my first app too, and that's how I got to know Salesforce.
[00:03:22] So tell me a little bit about that, you know, that newness and that discovery of, of walking into that community group.
[00:03:29] Marquita: Well, you know, at first I was a little apprehensive, like going in, I'm like, oh gosh, I have no idea about any of this, but I mean, I'm here to learn and that. Apprehensiveness and nervousness quickly went away.
[00:03:44] Like as soon as I got in the room, everybody was very welcoming, you know, and the volunteers were super helpful. Got, uh, all of us set up on Trailhead with our new accounts and walked us through the steps. And by the end of it, we had built an app and I'm thinking to myself, wow, this is amazing. All these people just rallying around to help everybody learn this new tool, this new technology.
[00:04:13] And, you know, it was just intriguing to me. And I said, okay, I wanna be a part of this. So I kept going back whenever they had, um, you know, sessions to build a new app or some cool badge came out, but I stayed a part of the community. That's
[00:04:29] Dan: Awesome. And how did you find a job that came about working with Salesforce?
[00:04:35] Marquita: Ah, so it's one of those full circle moments, but I always like refer to her as my sales force Yoda, her name's Alyssa Smith, but yeah, she was a community group leader at the time because when I had went to that meeting that night, I almost skipped it cuz I also had been looking for a job for a while.
[00:04:55] You know, I was in the Pathfinder program and graduated from that and became certified. And still hadn't found anything, but she was a panelist in that user group meeting that night and said that Liberty was hiring and encouraged people to apply. So I did
[00:05:12] Dan: Incredible. So gimme the details. What was your first job and you know, what, you know, what was your title like and your initial impression as you, you know, took this?
[00:05:23] Marquita: So after, um, getting hired on at Liberty, like my official title was a Salesforce business analyst. And that position at Liberty entails like being an admin as well as a business analyst. You know, you do your requirements gathering, but you also get to build figuratively with clicks, not code, which I love.
[00:05:44] Cause I love to have my hands in this stuff at first. Kind of scary cuz it was new. And you know, I was brand new to the ecosystem with my first official job outside of just building on Trailhead. So the training wheels had come off a little frightening to be in a large organization with a real org, real people, real data.
[00:06:07] But, um, my team super supportive and I've learned a lot from them along the way. And now I'm a senior system support analyst with Liberty just celebrated my three year anniversary on the fifth last week.
[00:06:23] Dan: I mean, well, congratulations on three years. That's awesome. Yeah, well, I mean, so you've been a trailblazer now for a little over three years, you know, I would love for you to brag just a little bit.
[00:06:33] I mean, what would you say is one of your biggest successes that you've had so far, you know, working with Salesforce or just something you're most proud of thus far?
[00:06:42] Marquita: I just will never, ever forget when I. First graduated from there's a few things first graduated from Pathfinder, getting my certification and just getting.
[00:06:56] Call from Liberty with the offer and knowing that everything I did, it's paying off, like I'm actually going to have a real job in the ecosystem. And definitely the golden hoodie moment when Leah gave me that golden hoodie, like I just remember, you know, streaming watching Dreamforce from a screen. And then here I was at Dreamforce getting a hoodie from the lady herself.
[00:07:24] Dan: That. I mean, that gives me chills. I, because I was there on Howard street that day, you know, when they closed off Howard street and it was only like, I think 500, you know, trailblazers in the audience. Yeah. And it was a very special moment. So that's awesome. So on the opposite side of the spectrum, though, what would you say is your biggest lesson learned?
[00:07:43] Marquita: You know, when we've been in this space for a while, it's sometimes easy to forget. Not everyone knows Salesforce. I remember being at Dreamforce last year and my husband and I were on the elevator at the hotel. Someone that actually lived there, worked at the hotel. So lived in San Francisco, you know, ground zero Salesforce headquarters.
[00:08:06] But she says to us, I see that Salesforce logo all the time. What is it? And it just like kind. Set me back to where, oh, all this tool that we are just so invested in and we eat, sleep and breathe. There's people out there that don't know about that. And so I would say one of my biggest challenges would be when I'm trying to help users in our organization, just trying to remember.
[00:08:31] Not everyone knows Salesforce, not everyone knows what it is. Uh, once they do they'll realize how great it is, but I just have to keep that beginner's mindset. Think back to how it was when I was first introduced to the tool, instead of just jumping right in to say, oh, you can do this and this and this and click here.
[00:08:50] Like I have to dial it back a notch and kind of give them, you know, Info micro dose them with info baby steps. Cuz it can be overwhelming when you're brand new. But yeah, once I have that beginner's mindset, it helps me help them.
[00:09:06] Dan: If you could go back to Marquita, just starting out. What advice would you give yourself?
[00:09:13] Marquita: I would tell myself that you do not have to know how to code. To have a job in technology. I think one of the biggest misconceptions about working in the tech space is that you have to know how to code. You have to sit down and write code and that's not true. Yeah. So that's what I would tell myself. And I think that believing that sometimes keeps people away.
[00:09:40] I know when I've tried to tell close friends and family. That aren't in our space. Hey, Salesforce. They're like, oh, I'm not technical. I don't know how to code. And then I'm like hard stop. Neither do I . So, yeah, that's what I would tell myself that you don't have to code to be in tech.
[00:09:58] Dan: And so I wanna ask you about the meaning of Ohana.
[00:10:00] And I asked this of all of my guests, because really people describe it differe a little bit differently based on where they're coming from, but how would you describe the Ohana and what does it mean to.
[00:10:11] Marquita: In the trailblazer community, it's like just giving, coming from the service industry. It's pretty much the norm to keep knowledge a secret. Let's say if you're a bartender and you come up with this really cool drink, you're not telling a soul how you made that drink. It is not like that at all in the Ohana. Nobody. Gay keeps knowledge when people build something cool or they learn about something cool. They cannot wait to share it. They are shouting it from the mountaintops.
[00:10:43] And I love that. And it's not just technical knowhow. Like if someone has resources or connections, or a new position, and they know someone's looking for a job, they're sharing that information, you know, it's, um, it is a family.
[00:11:04] Dan: Yeah. And before we get into our next segment, are there any special stories or Ohana moments that are a little behind the scenes that you would wanna share?
[00:11:11] Obviously I know you, you talked a little bit just about, you know, the Dreamforce, uh, golden hoodie moment, but any other specific or special Ohana moments, uh, that you would wanna.
[00:11:24] Marquita: During Pathfinder, we had this week long technical training to get us ready to get certified. So that room where we had our week of technical training with the Salesforce instructor was the very same room where I went to the community user group and heard about.
[00:11:43] My now job. So it's like maybe that room's magical. I don't know.
[00:11:48] Dan: And you've mentioned Salesforce Pathfinder a couple times. I mean, I know what the program is, but what would you explain what the Salesforce Pathfinder program is for ever for our listeners?
[00:11:59] Marquita: Absolutely. The Salesforce Pathfinder program started off as, um, a workforce initiative program.
[00:12:06] The goal was to scale up 500 Hoosiers and it started out as a pilot program with 50 people. And I was in that initial pilot program, but it's since expanded and is now in the UK as well as nationwide. But it is to skill you up. Get you set up with the Salesforce skills that you need to learn in order to find employment in this ever growing ecosystem.
[00:12:33] There is an admin track, a developer track, a Tableau track, a business analyst track, and it's pretty much changed my life.
[00:12:43] Dan: Let's get into our next segment. What's cooking. So Marquita, you are now the senior systems support analyst of Salesforce solutions at Liberty mutual.
[00:13:00] You know, talk about how you got to where you are now. O obviously when you first started to, to where you are now in your current role, like, what did it take?
[00:13:09] Marquita: I definitely had a lot of help along the way from, you know, just deciding to make that. Career change and leaving the service industry. A lot of support from my family and the trailblazer community and Liberty.
[00:13:25] Taking a chance on this Pathfinder, newly graduated, newly certified with. You know, not any real world, real org experience. And it's taken a lot. And the continued support of my family and friends in the trailblazer community and our close knit, you know, trailblazer community within Liberty. That's what it's taken.
[00:13:51] And. I'm still learning, growing thriving.
[00:13:54] Dan: That's incredible. So in, at Liberty mutual, from a Salesforce admin perspective, what challenges are you seeing now and how are you applying what you've learned from Salesforce to these challenges?
[00:14:07] Marquita: I think the challenges I'm mainly seeing go back to, um, when I was saying earlier, just remembering.
[00:14:14] Some of our users don't really know Salesforce. So challenges, I would say like adoption and I'm sure you've heard this plenty adoption adoption, getting people off of their Excel spreadsheets and into Salesforce. And I get it like new is scary at first, you know? In my role as a, you know, the business analyst, part of my role is teaching hosting training sessions and, you know, sending users links to trailheads.
[00:14:44] So yeah, that's really how I, uh, bring that sales force learning piece into getting them scaled up.
[00:14:52] Dan: So what's next for you? And how are you shaping the future?
[00:14:55] Marquita: Keep excelling in my career and my company. We have a partnership with the Pathfinder program where we hire interns for six month paid internship, and also just to keep advocating for people like me, that aren't necessarily from like a traditional tech background to try it out.
[00:15:17] Dan: So let's get into our final segment now, the future forecast. So what do you envision as the future of the Salesforce?
[00:15:35] Marquita: The last time I saw on Pathfinder's website, there were some numbers saying that the Salesforce ecosystem will grow by the year 2026 and create 9.3 million jobs. So I see the need for the people to fill those jobs growing exponentially. And yeah.
[00:15:58] More jobs, more people. Yeah.
[00:16:01] Dan: And well, give us a little bit of a prediction then on the trailblazer community, what, what do you think that looks like in the future?
[00:16:08] Marquita: Ah, it's already so inclusive. I, um, was joking with my husband the other night. I said, you know, what, what if there was a trailblazer community group for Salesforce kids?
[00:16:19] Like kids, they wanted to learn the platform, you know, it's gamified. I love that idea. They're stuffed animals. Like, you know, my kids like it, so yeah. Who knows?
[00:16:30] Dan: That's I love that idea. It's an incredible idea. Following on that, that future predictability, what do you think the future of actually Salesforce looks like.
[00:16:39] Marquita: You know, in looking at their acquisitions, you know, like with Tableau and slack, I think they're just going to continue providing that customer 360 view, setting themselves to be like a business' one stop shop, provide everything that their customer needs. And, you know, here lately, even business related content, you know, with the launch of Salesforce plus, so it's, you know, continuously growing.
[00:17:08] Dan: So Marquita, do you have any advice for any aspiring trailblazers out there?
[00:17:15] Marquita: I do, especially the new ones. I think there's a big myth that when you're applying for a new job, you have to check off all the boxes and meet all the requirements. But if you meet eight out of the 10 requirements and think you shouldn't apply, don't do that still apply because chances are.
[00:17:37] You do have like transferable skills that you could use in that position. I've said this before, but think about applying to jobs like a Salesforce record. Sometimes you don't always need to check every box in order to save the record and move on and get your confetti. So, yeah, that'd be my advice.
[00:17:56] Dan: I love that piece of advice. So before letting you go, let's have fun with a quick lightning rod. You ready for this?
[00:18:05] Marquita: Sure.
[00:18:12] Dan: Okay. What's your favorite Salesforce product right now?
[00:18:14] Marquita: Experience cloud.
[00:18:16] Dan: What's your favorite Salesforce character?
[00:18:17] Marquita: Oh, Blaze hands down.
[00:18:20] Dan: Well, let me, let me put on top of that. What's your favorite Marvel character?
[00:18:24] Marquita: Oh, oh gosh, Captain America is one of my faves right now.
[00:18:29] Dan: Favorite brand of anything besides Salesforce?
[00:18:33] Marquita: Love me some Star Wars?
[00:18:34] Dan: Who doesn't, who doesn't right? Secret skill that is not on the resume?
[00:18:40] Marquita: Uh, theatrical makeup and cosplay.
[00:18:43] Dan: Whoa, interesting. You just won front row seat tickets to your dream event. What is it?
[00:18:50] Marquita: San Diego Comicon.
[00:18:51] Dan: Awesome. I love it. So Marquita, this has been so much fun, but before I let you go, I let the listeners know where they can find you and is there anything else you'd like to share or plug.
[00:19:01] Marquita: I am on Twitter. It's, um, Marquita Sidibe at Twitter. And also I'd like to direct the users to, um, the Salesforce+ series, the trailblazer series, where you can go and see some amazing stories of trailblazers for some inspiration. My episode is episode four and also the Salesforce Pathfinder program. That's how I got my start and it's at salesforce.pathfinder.com.
[00:19:31] Dan: Awesome. Well everyone check out Marquita on Salesforce+, thank you so much, Marquita. Great to see you.