About the collaboration between Fudura and CaseNine
The energy market is in a state of flux. New propositions, such as Energy as a Service, require a flexible attitude and changed market approach. Pieter van Harten, working as Manager ICT at Fudura, sees the role of the organization and his team changing. This requires the right support from ICT as well as streamlined cooperation with partners. "The right partner ensures that you can focus on the organization's own core activities."
Everyday change
Pieter van Harten has been working at Fudura for six years now. In the role of Manager ICT, he - together with the team - deals with all IT-related projects within the organization. This responsibility does not end with his own colleagues: relations and daily cooperation with suppliers and partners are also part of the team's activities. "Fudura originated from the government at the time. Within the organization, all commercial activities are now combined. Since the acquisition by the consortium PGGM and DIF Capital Partners, a change of focus and attitude is taking place. Specifically, the organization has great ambition and a strong growth objective," Van Harten notes.
Transformation and opportunities
Pieter's team deals with IT, including all software. Because of the transformation within Fudura, the organization is also demanding more from IT. Think of data services and smart control of assets. Van Harten explains: "Due to developments, such as network congestion, we as a society need to be smarter with the available energy. This requires a relatively large amount of measurement data. Based on this detailed data, we can perform smart analyses. The outcome determines, among other things, which assets you control and how and when this is done. Pieter: "When energy rates are negative, for example, you want the batteries to be charged. Such assets can not only be controlled intelligently, but also read out in the right way. We then make that data transparent to our customers. Then don't just think about a simple app, but rather in-depth analyses."
"We make data insightful for our customers. Not just through a simple app, but rather through in-depth analysis."
The role of Salesforce
These developments also have implications for the Salesforce deployed by Fudura. "We want to start using and deploying Salesforce better. I therefore consider it an overhaul: the platform must be able to support our growth optimally." Fudura uses Salesforce for a variety of activities. For example, assets are stored and managed in it. Salesforce also supports work order management and CRM activities. "Salesforce is not yet optimally set up for our sales activities. We are now in the phase where we determine what the desired end situation is and the roadmap that goes with it. Fudura is working intensively on this with an implementation partner and with CaseNine. The plan is to start with the roadmap this year. Various stakeholders are involved in the project, including a project leader from the business and Pieter's team from the architecture.
"Fudura uses the Salesforce platform for various activities, including asset management."
Collaboration
CaseNine takes care of the technical part within the cooperation. Pieter commented, "The cooperation is based on trust and also makes it clear to me how valuable a good collaboration is. In the past we had been working with CaseNine for some time, but for cost reasons we worked with a party in Portugal for some time." The outsourcing proved unsuccessful: the project stalled and the end result was jeopardized. CaseNine showed flexibility and took over the entire management of Salesforce. "From Fudura, we particularly appreciated that attitude. For me, this is also a telling example of a successful partnership: you feel important as a customer. Within that partnership, I also attach great value to flexibility. Especially given the large number of changes required in Salesforce, the outcome and scope is not always a given. It is important that all involved can deal with this." CaseNine cleverly responds to this, for example with the Shared DevOps team. This team manages the project for Fudura and implements changes. Together they go through the roadmap and adjust expectations.
The benefits of Shared DevOps
For Fudura, CaseNine's Shared DevOps team enables the organization to focus on its own core business and on the things where IT can really stand out from the competition. Pieter explains, "We don't need to bring in Salesforce talent because of this. Especially in a market where such expertise is scarce, this is nice. Moreover, Fudura's focus should not be on Salesforce either, but on our own activities. At Fudura there is a considerable amount of customization. Especially CaseNine's technical knowledge and expertise make the difference for us. The cooperation also gives a grip on the process: we keep each other informed and have a forecast every three months, for example. That helps with the scoping of the project."
"CaseNine's Shared DevOps team enables Fudura to focus on its own core business and on the things where IT can truly differentiate itself from the competition."
The right partner
For organizations that are also looking for a suitable Salesforce partner, Pieter has some practical tips. "Culture and size of a company are at least as important as the technical skills in-house. Make sure these aspects are aligned between your organization and the partner. Those elements really impact the ultimate collaboration and joint success. For me and the team, for example, a personal approach is very important," concludes Pieter.
These days you hear more and more about artificial intelligence (AI) and the opportunities it offers for businesses. But how can AI make your Salesforce environment smarter and more efficient? From experience, I know how important it is to automate processes and use data effectively. In this blog post, I explain the opportunities artificial intelligence offers to make Salesforce smarter and more efficient, both for small businesses and enterprise organizations.
How is Salesforce deploying AI?
Salesforce is integrating AI into its solutions in several ways to support employees and customers:
- Predictions for sales and service, such as which leads are most promising.
- Chatbots and virtual agents answering customer questions.
- Einstein Discovery for discovering trends and insights in data.
- Intelligent data import with Einstein Data Insights.
- Personalized recommendations for sales associates.
The power of Einstein AI within Salesforce
Artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly important to businesses. But how can AI make your Salesforce platform smarter and more efficient?The solution is called Einstein, Salesforce's AI engine. Einstein integrates AI capabilities into Salesforce in a variety of ways to support customers.
1. Predictions with Einstein Discovery
One of its key applications is Einstein Discovery. Using smart data analysis, this solution can make accurate predictions. For example, for:
- Sales forecasting - which leads have the most potential value?
- Churn predictions - which customers may be considering switching?
- Capacity planning - how many service workers are needed at peak times?
By analyzing complex data patterns, Einstein Discovery can spot trends and risks early. This allows sales and service teams to respond accordingly.
2. Chatbots with Einstein Bots
Einstein Bots provides powerful chatbot technology to answer simple questions from customers and leads. The AI helps the bot understand what the user is asking. And can escalate a call to a human agent if necessary. This unburdens service agents so they can focus on more complex issues. At the same time, the customer has 24/7 self-service through the chatbot.
3. Personalize recommendations
Another example is Einstein Recommendation Builder. This technology analyzes user behavior to suggest personalized product recommendations and content.Or consider Einstein Lead Scoring, which uses AI to lead to better lead qualification. This allows sales teams to focus on the most promising leads.
The future
Salesforce continues to invest heavily in AI. For example, there are more and more "self-healing" processes that adjust themselves automatically. AI chatbots and virtual assistants are also predicted to play an even more prominent role as a first point of contact for customers. AI is thus a staple of Salesforce's future.
With this blog, I hope I've been able to give you a good idea of how artificial intelligence can make Salesforce even smarter and more efficient. Whether you're a small business owner or work for a large organization, AI can help you streamline workflows, save time and gain valuable insights from data.
Still have questions about how your company can use AI? If so, please be sure to contact me.
Does your organization work with Salesforce Industries solutions? If so, you probably recognize the challenges in testing and implementing new features and processes. Indeed, traditionally, developers share one common sandbox environment.
However, this brings numerous disadvantages:
- Work is very slow because multiple developers are working in one environment at the same time
- There is a constant risk of developers inadvertently disrupting or overwriting each other's work
- Experimentation is difficult because every adjustment has an immediate impact on others
- No insight into what has been modified and by which developer
- No version management possible (assuming changesets are used)
These limitations create slow innovation cycles and a high time-to-market for new Salesforce features. Fortunately, Salesforce offers a highly effective solution to these challenges with Scratch Orgs.
What are Scratch Orgs?
Scratch orgs are short-lived, isolated Salesforce development environments that automatically disappear after a maximum of 30 days. In this way, each developer can have a completely separate development environment to work in without interfering with other team members.
This offers enormous advantages for the development and testing process:
- Every developer has their own environment to develop and experiment quickly and risk-free
- No more chance of inadvertently disrupting someone else's work
- New features can be tried and delivered very quickly
- Standardizing licenses, security settings and integrations gets a lot easier
- More complex Salesforce configurations are risk-free to test
- Scratch orgs you can set up many times faster than a traditional sandbox
- Also, you can really set up a scratch org your own way
Optimal support for Salesforce Industries
Specifically, for organizations working with Salesforce Industries, Scratch Orgs offer tremendous benefits. Complex Industries configurations, omnichannel solutions and OmniStudio components can be developed and tested in isolation without impacting other systems.
This greatly accelerates the implementation of new Salesforce Industries features. Developers can try out complex solutions without the risk of disrupting existing implementations. The ability to get new components to production more stably is also important.
Live demo where Theodoor van Donge Tech Lead creates a scratch-org
Conclusion
Scratch orgs help companies working with Salesforce (Industries) become as much as 50-70% more efficient. They often accompany the implementation of a CI/CD process because scratch orgs are specifically designed to be used in a CI/CD pipeline. This is not necessarily the case with sandboxes, although they can still be used in a CI/CD process.
Wondering how Scratch Orgs can accelerate your Salesforce implementation? Then contact us for a no-obligation consultation.
Are you looking for an easy way to import CSV files into Salesforce without having to write complex code? Then DataWeave is the solution for you.
DataWeave is a new tool from Salesforce that has been available since 2021. It allows you to convert CSV files to usable data formats such as JSON.
Why is DataWeave so useful?
- It prevents you from having to write more complex code each time to import CSV files. By default, DataWeave already has functionality to read and folder CSV data.
- It is faster and easier to implement. For example, you can call DataWeave from, say, a Flow.
- You save development capacity because you don't have to program as much.
How does DataWeave work?
DataWeave is a standard part of Salesforce, so you don't need to purchase it separately. It is built into most Salesforce licenses, check carefully in advance which edition your organization uses.
To set up DataWeave, there are a few simple steps:
- Ask a Salesforce developer to create a DataWeave script. This contains the instructions for converting the CSV data to JSON, for example. The developer can deliver this script within a few hours.
- The developer then creates a small Apex class in Salesforce that calls the DataWeave script. This is an adapter of sorts. Again, this takes a few hours at most.
- Finally, the developer links the script to an existing process or Flow. For example, to your monthly data import flow. Thus, it automatically calls the DataWeave script as soon as a new CSV file arrives.
And that's it! Your CSV data is now effortlessly converted to a usable format by DataWeave. So all it takes is a few hours of work from a Salesforce developer to do the setup. Then, you can continue to import all CSV files without further modifications.
Salesforce Engineer Theodore prepares files for deployment in DataWeave
Conclusion
DataWeave makes importing CSV files very easy. With built-in support for CSV and powerful transformation options, it is the solution to quickly and easily integrate data without cumbersome code.
Key benefits at a glance:
- No more complex code required thanks to built-in CSV and mapping functions
- Save on development capacity and resources
- Effortlessly convert large amounts of CSV data to usable formats
- Suitable for both one-time imports and recurring bulk imports
Wondering what DataWeave can do for your business? Feel free to get in touch.
How ENGIE B2B Netherlands best responds to a dynamic market
A rapidly changing market places high demands on IT, such as a flexible attitude and the ability to respond quickly to new opportunities. ENGIE Nederland successfully deploys Salesforce solutions for this purpose and works intensively with CaseNine's experts. In conversation with Leon ten Hove (ENGIE Netherlands) about expectations, opportunities and a solid cooperation.
Leon ten Hove works at ENGIE Netherlands as Manager Global Energy Management & Sales (GEMS IS NL). In this role, Leon's responsibilities include managing a team of 60 colleagues. The team's responsibilities include IT for the business market and energy management solutions. ENGIE's core activities include supplying energy products for the business market. This includes gas and electricity, but also related trade products, such as solar panels.
Change and opportunity
Leon has now been with the energy supplier for more than 14 years. The organization is currently facing interesting changes, driven in part by the current energy transition. "We are dealing with the substantial increase of renewables on the market. This is energy derived from natural sources, such as solar and wind. These renewables are having an impact on the market. For example, consider the
strong increase in solar panels and wind turbines, as well as to the availability of heat pumps. Among other things, customers have the option of self-generation. These trends create variation, including in the area of predictability of energy consumption. It also causes us to look at buying and selling energy in a different way," Ten Hove said. Investments in renewable energy have been further accelerated by external factors, such as the war in Ukraine. Leon: "The increased gas prices, for example, underline the need to invest in renewable energy. This speed is also necessary. The goal of being CO2 neutral by 2045 shows considerable ambition."
"ENGIE Energie Nederland is facing interesting changes, driven in part by the energy transition."
The role of IT
The rapid changes in the market also place new demands on IT. Leon commented, "The challenge for IT is to respond quickly and flexibly to the changes. A telling example of this are flex products: products and services that are geared to the new demands of the market. Such products have quite an effect on our processes. We are now engaged in an Operational Excellence project to get all products properly in the systems. Another concrete example is the changed predictability in the field of purchasing and selling energy, or forecasting. The traditional forecasting models are no longer adequate. They are being replaced by new models, and IT plays an important role in this. Finally, we are also dealing with the digitization of the overall landscape."
The IT environment
Time for a look under the technical hood. ENGIE Nederland uses a combination of SAP and Salesforce. Leon says: "Basically, we use SAP in the back-end, for contract management and invoicing, among other things. We use Salesforce for the front-end, for internal and external CPQ processes, among other things. The chosen technology stack - Salesforce and SAP - is generally determined together with headquarters, but we can deviate from this at the local level. In practice, something like this will only happen if there are region-specific reasons for this." For the deployment of technology, ENGIE always looks critically at suitability. For example, the energy supplier uses Vlocity (Salesforce Industries) because the solution offers the right basic components. Especially in the area of quotations, the organization is making great progress. "Originally, we did not have a proper quotation module. The consequence was the relatively large amount of manual work, copying data from SAP into other environments, such as Microsoft Word. This takes time and is error-prone. Moreover, this lacked real-time insight for our account managers. That situation made it more difficult to deliver detailed quotations in a short period of time. Now we use the CPQ module for almost all products. The system is seamlessly linked to our back-end systems. This major challenge is currently about 90% complete. We are now working on the final part of the project, our 'specials,'" Ten Hove said.
"We use Salesforce for the front-end, for internal and external CPQ processes, among other things."
Collaborating with experts
For the Salesforce project, ENGIE is working intensively with CaseNine. Ten Hove commented, "For Salesforce Industries we use CaseNine's expertise. Especially in the project phase, the team stands out in terms of expertise, knowledge and skill. The cooperation is intensive: we hire experts, who thereby become an extension of our internal team. I like the fact that the resources match our questions and needs well. As an organization, we are used to doing a lot of things ourselves. That means that in practice we don't outsource many activities either." It is also important for ENGIE that the organization has access to the right advice, at the right time. Here, too, CaseNine plays an important role. Leon: "In practice, I notice that we receive substantive quality advice from CaseNine. I find transparency in the cooperation very important. This means clear advice, even if such advice may be 'less nice' for us as an organization to hear. It is important to my team that we have the opportunity to bring and keep the necessary knowledge in-house as well. We always look for a good balance between internal and external expertise. We work together with CaseNine's DevOps team. In this, we share responsibility. That works pleasantly, for example with training sessions, in which we exchange knowledge and really operate as a team."
"We always look for a good balance between internal and external expertise."
Demonstrable improvement
The solid cooperation between ENGIE and CaseNine gives the desired result. For ENGIE, it is now possible to create real-time quotes and share them with customers in a short period of time. The organization also now no longer needs to revisit previous quotations, so customers can now make quick decisions based on complete information. Leon: "The lead time for producing a quotation has been significantly reduced. Where previously this could take a week to ten days, our account managers now often manage to respond the same day."
Cooperation from solid foundations
ENGIE itself spends a lot of time setting up a clear analysis and setting up the scope of an IT project. Leon: "For our suppliers, I find it important that they can make a good translation to the technical aspect and the associated costs. I also expect them to be transparent about the things that are or are not possible. The match with the demand is really important. This also prevents disappointment afterwards, for example unforeseen costs in a follow-up phase. Herein also lies an important responsibility for us as clients. You have to know exactly what you want and, above all, describe what you expect. This prevents discussions and ensures a smooth process in execution."
"For our suppliers, I find it important that they can make a good translation into the technical aspect and the associated costs. I also expect them to be transparent about the things that are or are not possible."
Follow-up steps
Leon's team is continuously working on further improvements and adjustments to the IT infrastructure. The rapidly changing market demands a flexible attitude and quick adjustments. "We are now focusing on our back-end. The SAP-based CRM system is now ten to fifteen years old and thus insufficiently flexible to anticipate all changes in time. We are ultimately working toward one base for maximum flexibility."
In the rapidly evolving world of technology, Artificial Intelligence (AI) plays a central role in transforming businesses and processes. Salesforce, as a leading player in Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software, has embraced this revolution and is harnessing the full potential of AI. This synergistic collaboration between Salesforce and AI has dramatically changed the dynamics of customer engagement, sales strategies and data analytics.
Let's dig deeper into five best practices to effectively leverage this collaboration between Salesforce and AI and take your business to new heights:
1. Deep Understanding of AI Technologies.
It is critical to understand the basics of AI technologies, such as machine learning, natural language processing and predictive analytics. This not only helps you appreciate their power, but also allows you to identify the right AI applications that best fit your organization's needs.
2. Targeted Team Training
Invest in thorough training for your teams. Make sure your team is familiar with the AI tools and functionalities offered by Salesforce. A well-trained team can unlock the full potential of AI and effectively integrate it into their daily operations.
3. Targeted Implementation of AI Functions.
When implementing AI features, it is crucial to have a clear goal in mind. Set specific goals for what you want to achieve with AI in your CRM platform. Whether improving customer service, optimizing work processes or personalizing marketing strategies, a clear direction ensures successful integration....
4. Continuous Learning and Improvement
The AI landscape is evolving rapidly, and it is essential to always stay on top of the latest developments. Both the Salesforce platform and AI technologies are constantly being updated and improved. Encourage your teams to explore new features, participate in trainings and workshops, and share best practices to continuously improve the use of AI.
5. User Feedback and Adaptation
Listen to your team's user experiences and feedback. They are the ones who work with the system every day and have valuable insights about what works and what doesn't. Use this feedback to make adjustments and improve the system to create a seamless and productive work environment.
At the heart of these best practices is a commitment to the balanced and strategic integration of artificial intelligence into the Salesforce CRM platform. Through a thorough understanding of AI technologies, thorough team training, targeted implementation, continuous learning and adjustment based on feedback, you can take full advantage of the collaboration between Salesforce and AI.
It's not just about technology, but also a mindset. A mindset focused on continuous growth, innovation and providing customers and users with the best possible experience. If you want to read more about this, let us know. We may write about this next time.
We have prepared for you a concise summary of the Salesforce event of the year. Below is an overview of the most important developments.
During Dreamforce '23, Salesforce's newest product was introduced: the Einstein 1 Platform. This platform combines the power of Salesforce Data Cloud and Einstein AI to provide businesses with a trusted AI environment. It allows them to effortlessly integrate different data sources and easily develop AI-driven applications without requiring technical programming skills. This opens the door to entirely new CRM experiences that perfectly match users' needs.
One notable aspect was the importance of a strong AI strategy combined with a solid data strategy, something Parker Harris, co-founder and CTO of Salesforce, emphasized. Salesforce's metadata framework, which has served as a kind of "connector" for data between different applications for nearly 25 years, plays an essential role in this. It provides a unified view of data across the organization, regardless of where it comes from. This allows companies to leverage powerful AI applications and workflows, leading to increased productivity, reduced costs and an excellent customer experience.
Another important topic discussed was the problem of customer data fragmentation caused by the use of various applications in organizations and the challenges of integration. Salesforce's metadata framework addresses this problem by structuring and understanding data across Salesforce applications. This enables customized user experiences and actions through smart tools such as Einstein and Flow, without the need for complex integration code.
The Einstein 1 Platform also includes the Einstein Data Cloud, a powerful data engine that integrates and harmonizes different types of data. This results in a comprehensive view of the customer, enabling innovative CRM experiences. A special mention deserves Einstein Copilot, an intelligent assistant integrated into every Salesforce CRM application that helps users with their work. It understands natural language questions and provides reliable answers based on Data Cloud business data.
In short, the Einstein 1 Platform is a breakthrough innovation, bringing together Salesforce Data Cloud and Einstein AI to transform CRM experiences. It enables companies to create AI-driven applications and workflows with easy development tools. This mobilizes the power of AI and data to increase productivity, reduce costs and deliver exceptional customer interactions. This opens the door to an exciting new phase of technological advancement and business success.
All in all, Dreamforce '23 was a successful event, where the unveiling of the Einstein 1 Platform created excitement. We are already looking forward to next year!
Introduction
Are you a developer or architect? Do you also find it difficult to work with the Industries CPQ shopping cart? Do you also struggle with where to adjust to meet customer requirements? Use this new visual tool where we explain exactly when what happens. In the future, we want to explore whether we can go a step further and add more details. Let us know which area you would like to see more in-depth and what you find useful.
Why:
For many people, the Industries CPQ shopping cart is a mystery. It is difficult to understand what it does and in what order things take place. Developers find it difficult to know where to intervene in the Industries CPQ to modify its behavior.
How:
Using this visual tool we designed, people working on Industries CPQ will find it increasingly useful to use your visual tool to design and build customizations on top of the Industries CPQ shopping cart.
Who:
Developers and architects working with the Industries CPQ shopping cart.
I hope this article will help you. Want to know more about OmniStudio FlexCards? Then read our blog: 'FlexCards: The Easy Way To Create Lightning Web Components' to learn more.
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