#salesforce-admin — Public Fediverse posts

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The Intersection of Data Governance and AI | Salesforce Data Cloud Explained | Best Practices

#Salesforce #DataCloud #SalesforceDataCloud #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #DataGovernance #DataQuality #ResponsibleAI #DataSecurity #Customer360 #SalesforceAdmin #SalesforceDeveloper #SalesforceArchitect #PeoplewooSkills #SalesforceTutorial

Watch Now: https://zurl.co/VXbJc

The Intersection of Data Governance and AI | Salesforce Data Cloud Explained | Best Practices

#Salesforce #DataCloud #SalesforceDataCloud #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #DataGovernance #DataQuality #ResponsibleAI #DataSecurity #Customer360 #SalesforceAdmin #SalesforceDeveloper #SalesforceArchitect #PeoplewooSkills #SalesforceTutorial

Unanimous Flow Approvals – No More Workarounds

The Summer ’26 release is packing some serious Flow upgrades that move us closer to smoother automation. For the Flownatic community, this release represents a strategic shift: Salesforce is removing the roadblocks that have slowed us down, closing permission gaps, and allowing us to handle enterprise-grade complexity without the need for custom-coded workarounds.

In this post, we’re diving into two of the biggest wins for Flow Approvals this cycle: native unanimous consent for group approvals and expanded dependency visibility. Both are overdue fixes that change how we build compliance-ready automation.

Unanimous Consent

If you have ever had to build a compliance-heavy workflow that requires sign-off from an entire committee, you know the previous “administrative nightmare.” To ensure ten people all granted approval, admins were often forced to create ten separate, sequential approval steps: a maintenance disaster that was as fragile as it was tedious.

Summer ’26 introduces native unanimous consent for group approvals, turning what used to be a complex workaround into a single, elegant configuration. Here is the explanation of how these native mechanics operate:

• Individual Work Items: When a step is assigned to a group needing unanimous consent, every single member of that group receives their own unique work item in their queue.
• Approval Logic: The process is strictly gated by total agreement. The approval step only advances to the next stage if every member of the group grants their approval.
• Rejection Behavior: Accountability is immediate and efficient. A single rejection by any group member closes the step instantly. Most importantly, the system automatically withdraws all other pending work items for that group, effectively cleaning up user queues and preventing “zombie” work items from lingering.
• Security Guardrail: To maintain the integrity of the specific stakeholder group and ensure compliance, work items in these unanimous approval steps cannot be reassigned.

This is a massive architectural lever for those responsible for high-stakes data integrity, allowing us to build multi-stakeholder reviews without the bloat of previous releases.

Dependency Visibility

Historically, “god-mode” permissions have gated visibility into how your automation interacts with approval processes. Therefore, business analysts and process designers were flying blind. Summer ’26 lets teams see process logic without handing over admin access.

Previous Requirement: Previously, access to view flow dependencies within the Approvals app was restricted to users with the Manage Flow permission. This forced admins to give high-level, backend access to users who simply needed to understand process connections, creating a significant security risk.

New Requirement: Users with the Approval Designer permission can now view dependencies directly within the Approvals app.

This is a huge win for admins concerned with security. We can now empower our team members to understand the underlying logic and connections of their approval processes without handed out the keys to the entire Flow Builder backend.

Compatibility and Availability

Salesforce built these updates for the modern Lightning experience, and they’re available across all flagship editions.

Platform: These updates apply specifically to Lightning Experience.

Salesforce Editions:

• Enterprise
• Performance
• Unlimited
• Einstein 1
• Developer

Closing the Gap on Compliance

The updates to Flow Approvals in Summer ’26 are significant architectural improvements. Salesforce is eliminating the need for complex, manual workarounds that have historically crowded our orgs. These changes move us closer to a “no-code/low-code” enterprise reality where automation is both compliant and powerful. For admins who have spent years patching approval logic together, this release is a genuine exhale. And for organizations managing strict regulatory requirements, tighter permission scoping is a real compliance architecture upgrade.

As we march toward the Agentic Enterprise, these controls ensure that our frameworks remain scalable and secure. Now it’s time to put them to work. Head into your sandbox, pull up Flow Builder, and see how much simpler your next approval process can be. Happy building, Flownatics!

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11 Flow Updates in Summer 26 Release

Visual Comparison and Beyond – Flow Versions Just Got Easier

As we dive into the massive Salesforce Summer ’26 release, it is clear that the platform is delivering some serious automation upgrades. We have been watching a clear pattern for a few cycles now: Salesforce is steadily removing the friction points that have historically slowed admins down and is giving teams more control over how their automations behave. Today, we are focusing on one specific, highly anticipated quality-of-life win for Flow Builder that will change how you manage your automation versions: Visual Flow Version Comparison.

If you have ever taken over a flow mid-project, handed one off to a colleague, or simply tried to remember what you changed three weeks ago before hitting deploy, you already know the pain this feature is solving. In this article, we are breaking down exactly how Visual Flow Version Comparison works, what types of changes it surfaces, and why it is one of the most practical governance upgrades Salesforce has shipped in recent memory. Whether you are a solo admin trying to move faster or part of a team that needs tighter deployment controls, this feature has something for you.

What Are Flow Versions?

To truly understand the value of this new feature, we first need to talk about what flow versions are and how Salesforce handles automation architecture. In Salesforce, Flow Builder does not simply overwrite your active automation when you make a change. Instead, it utilizes a strict versioning system. Every time you open an existing flow, make adjustments, and click “Save As,” you create a new version of that flow.

This means a single flow can have dozens of versions, each capturing a snapshot of the automation’s logic at a specific point in time. However, only one version can be active at a time. This architecture is absolutely crucial for safe deployments and enterprise governance. It allows administrators to build and test new logic in a draft version while the older, active version continues to run uninterrupted in the production environment.

Furthermore, if a new deployment causes unexpected errors, this versioning system provides an immediate fallback mechanism, allowing admins to quickly deactivate the broken version and reactivate a previous, stable version.

The Old Way of Flow Version Comparison

Despite the benefits of having multiple versions, comparing them has historically been a nightmare for Salesforce administrators. Before the Summer ’26 release, if you took over a flow from another admin or simply forgot what you changed a month ago and needed to know the exact differences between Version 12 and Version 13, you had very few good options.

You generally had to open two browser tabs and manually click through every single node on the canvas, playing a tedious game of “spot the difference.” Alternatively, developers had to export the flow metadata and manually parse through raw, abstract XML files to find changes in the code. For a platform championing “low-code” and “no-code” solutions, this was a highly technical, time-consuming, and error-prone process. It often led to deployment risks when undocumented or accidental changes slipped through the cracks unnoticed.

The Summer ’26 Solution: Visual Flow Version Comparison

The Summer ’26 release completely revolutionizes flow management by solving this exact problem. Flow Builder now includes a visual comparison tool that allows you to identify flow version changes at a glance. Instead of relying on abstract tables or manually comparing complex XML files, admins can now visually identify differences side-by-side directly on the Flow Builder canvas. This tool improves overall readability and significantly reduces the risk of deployment errors by bringing transparency directly to the builder interface.

Types of Changes Highlighted

When you use the comparison tool, Flow Builder highlights modifications at a highly granular level, tracking everything from broad element changes down to specific configuration adjustments. When comparing versions, the interface will highlight elements and tag them with specific terms to indicate what happened:

Added: This indicates a brand-new element that exists in the newer version of the flow but was entirely absent in the older version being compared.

Updated: This status applies to elements that exist in both versions but have undergone configuration adjustments. The underlying logic, variable assignments, routing rules, or properties of the element have been altered between the two versions.

Removed: This highlights an element that was present in the older version but has been actively deleted or removed from the canvas in the newer version.

Changed Connector: Connector(s) are tied to different elements.

Compare Transform Element Changes

One of the most powerful aspects of this new visual tool is its deep integration with Transform elements. Data transformations can be incredibly complex, often containing dozens of individual field mappings. The Flow Version Comparison tool now provides a detailed breakdown of transform mappings, joins, and formulas.

If you modify complex data transformations, the tool makes it incredibly simple to easily identify any added, updated, or removed field mappings. You can review detailed configuration changes for complex transformations without having to manually inspect every single mapping line.

Supported Flows and Conditions

So, how do you access this new feature? The process is wonderfully straightforward and supported under standard Flow Builder conditions. To compare versions, you simply open a flow and navigate to the version dropdown menu at the top of the screen. From there, you select Compare Versions.

Once initiated, the tool provides flexibility in how you view the data. You can switch seamlessly between a table view (for a list-based breakdown) and the visual canvas view. To dive deeper into a specific modification, simply click an element with changes to get more granular details and see exactly what configuration adjustments were made.

Supported Licenses and Availability

Salesforce has made sure this highly anticipated feature is widely available to the ecosystem, not just restricted to premium tiers. The Visual Flow Version Comparison tool applies to both Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic. It is available across a comprehensive range of licenses, specifically in Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer editions. Whether you are a solo admin in a small business or part of a massive enterprise deployment team, you will have access to these critical visibility tools to keep your automations safe and predictable.

The Automation Visibility You’ve Been Waiting For

The ability to visually compare flow versions is exactly the kind of quality-of-life win that Flownatics have been asking for. No more tab-switching, no more XML spelunking, no more hoping you remember what you changed three weeks ago.

For admins managing complex orgs, this feature is a genuine risk reducer. Deployment reviews get faster. Handoffs between team members get cleaner. Audits stop being a scramble. And for any admin who has ever activated a flow and immediately wondered what actually changed since the last version, this is the answer.

Salesforce is taking the no-code and low-code automation story seriously at the enterprise level, and Visual Flow Version Comparison is proof that robust lifecycle management tooling is no longer reserved for developers. It belongs in the builder interface, and now it finally is. If you are not already reviewing your most critical flows and documenting version histories, Summer ’26 is the perfect time to start. This tool makes it easier than ever to build that habit.

Explore related content:

11 Flow Updates in Summer 26 Release

Open a Page Action: Redirect Users After a Screen Flow

Choices, Choices: What Are Radio Button Groups Best Used For

Warn and Inform with Native Toast Messages in Salesforce Flow

Open a Page Action: Redirect Users After a Screen Flow

For years, Salesforce administrators and developers building Screen Flows have run into a familiar, frustrating wall: the post-flow navigation gap.

Picture this scenario: Your user opens a flow on an Account record. They carefully fill out a series of screens to log an issue or create a related record, clicks “Finish,” and then… nothing. They are left sitting exactly where they started. To see their work or continue their task, they are forced to manually scroll down to a related list, hit refresh, or use global search to find the record they literally just spent two minutes creating.

How Admins Can Solve Screen Flow Navigation Issues

The ecosystem relied on custom Aura components, LWCs, or unofficial open-source extensions like UnofficialSF. These handled simple browser redirects but came with real tradeoffs. Code maintenance, package dependencies, and unnecessary complexity piled up fast. What should have been a standard declarative process required custom development instead.

With Salesforce’s introduction of the native Open a Page core action, that workaround era is officially over. You can now dynamically launch Salesforce records or any external URL directly from your flow, seamlessly bridging screen transitions or gracefully redirecting users upon flow completion. Let’s dive deep into how this feature works, its availability, and step-by-step instructions on implementing it using a real-world, high-impact use case.

Use Case: Instant Case Redirection from an Account Page

Instead of forcing the agent to hunt for the new case in the related lists, we will use a Screen Flow that captures the context, creates the Case record, and uses the Open a Page action to automatically pop open the newly created Case record in a clean browser window or tab upon completion.

Flow Configuration

As visualized in our Flow Builder layout, the architecture of this solution is exceptionally clean and entirely declarative, requiring only five steps from start to finish:

1. Start (Screen Flow): Initiated directly via an action button or embedded component on the Account record page. It establishes a context variable, recordId, to automatically pull the parent Account’s ID.

2. Assign Account (Assignment Element): Maps the inbound recordId to a structured record variable (CaseRecordVar.AccountId). This ensures that the newly created Case is perfectly related back to the calling Account from day one.

3. Case Screen (Screen Element): A clean user interface containing input components where the service agent fills out essential details such as the Subject, Description, and Priority.

4. Create Case (Create Records Element): Takes the values collected in the Case Screen alongside the mapped Account ID and writes the new Case record directly to the Salesforce database. Crucially, this element stores the resulting Case ID back into our single record variable (CaseRecordVar.Id).

5. Open Page (Action Element): The magic step. Positioned right before the end node, this core action consumes the freshly minted Case ID and redirects the agent’s browser focus instantly.

Why it works: The action executes directly within the flow transaction and acts as the ultimate user-friendly transition point. The user experiences a logical, smooth progression from gathering details to reviewing the finalized record.

How to Configure the “Open a Page” Action Step-by-Step

Setting up the action inside your Flow properties panel requires minimal configuration but yields incredible utility. Once you drag a new Action element onto your canvas or click the plus sign below your Create Records element, search for and select Open a Page. Fill out the parameters as follows:

• Label: Open Page (or a highly descriptive name like “Redirect to New Case”)

• API Name: Open_Page

• Page Type: Select Salesforce Record Page from the dropdown. (Note: You can also choose External Page for arbitrary web URLs).

• Record ID: Bind this dynamically to your case creation variable: {!CaseRecordVar.Id}

• Object Name: Type or select Case to tell the framework which layout style to load.

• View Mode: Select the radio button for View (loads the standard record detail view) or Edit (pops open the record in edit mode). For this use case, choose View.

• Where to Open the Page: Select New Browser Window to open the record in an independent tab, keeping the original Account window pristine and undisturbed. Our tests for this use case showed that all options produced the same result opening the case on a new browser tab and changing the focus of the browser to the case (tested on MacOS using Chrome).

Availability & Deployment Scope

This enhancement isn’t locked behind premium tiering. Salesforce has made it widely available across the platform ecosystem to immediately improve user experiences:

• Environments: This change applies fully to both modern Lightning Experience and classic desktop layouts (Salesforce Classic).

• Editions: Supported across a massive suite of tiers, including Essentials, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, Unlimited, and Developer editions.

Pro-Tips for Salesforce Admins

Use Stored Record Id: If you use a record variable to create the record, your brand new Id will be populated in the record variable. For all other methods you can refer to the create step to use the new Id.

Leverage External URL Redirection: Don’t limit your thinking entirely to standard Salesforce records! By switching the Page Type parameter to an external configuration, you can dynamically pass parameters via a query string. This launches third-party legacy ERPs, internal document management portals, or customized external tracking systems right inside your flow sequence.

Don’t Over-Rely On “Where to Open the Page”: OS and browser settings often dictate what happens next. Your outcome may not match what is listed as a choice in the pulldown.

Why Better Flow Navigation Drives Salesforce User Adoption

Small friction reductions transform a CRM into a platform users actually enjoy. For years, the post-flow navigation gap was a persistent pain point for admins. The common fix involved Aura components, LWCs, and community-built extensions. These workarounds got the job done, but they were never the right long-term answer.

The Open a Page action delivers a seamless experience with zero custom code. Use it to redirect users to a new record, launch an external portal, or guide next steps. The use case we walked through is just one of dozens of high-impact scenarios where this action can eliminate confusion and keep your users moving forward.

Let me know, if you plan on using this action: Where will you use it?

Explore related content:

11 Flow Updates in Summer 26 Release

Choices, Choices: What Are Radio Button Groups Best Used For

Field Access Summary

How to Create, Customize, and Share List Views in Salesforce

Yes. Yes. Yes. I did it. A perfect debug run the first time wiht this automation. That is actually a first.
#SalesforceAdmin #AwesomeAdmin #Automation

#today
I can't wait to turn in my final draft of this document and project hopefully tomorrow. I was going to do it today but I'm still finding errors which might get me rejected. They are small but I have to be picky this time.
#AwesomeAdmins #SalesforceAdmin #Documentation

⏰ Last call! The BIT Academy Open House is tomorrow!

Hear from Elliott Natale, BIT Academy Director, on why you don’t want to miss it. 🎥👇

👉 Career seekers, employers, VR counselors – this event is for you.

📅 Wednesday, August 20
🕘 9:00AM MT / 11:00AM ET

🔗 https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_jsk_15hdSPaAw2kXIhCM-Q

#BITAcademy #WorkforceEquity #Apprenticeships #DigitalAccessibility #SalesforceAdmin #PledgeForImpact #TeamBIT

⏰ Last call! The BIT Academy Open House is tomorrow!

Hear from Elliott Natale, BIT Academy Director, on why you don’t want to miss it. 🎥👇

👉 Career seekers, employers, VR counselors – this event is for you.

📅 Wednesday, August 20
🕘 9:00AM MT / 11:00AM ET

🔗 https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_jsk_15hdSPaAw2kXIhCM-Q

#BITAcademy #WorkforceEquity #Apprenticeships #DigitalAccessibility #SalesforceAdmin #PledgeForImpact #TeamBIT

We love seeing our apprentices shine! 🌟
Kevin Karmann’s journey from BIT Academy to Salesforce Admin is a testament to what happens when accessibility meets opportunity.

Grateful to Workforce Navigators for spotlighting his story!

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kevin-karmann_guiding-the-way-how-mentorship-and-accessibility-activity-7356369478344953856-40Gj

#BITAcademy #SalesforceAdmin #Trailblazer #ApprenticeshipSuccess #PledgeForImpact

We love seeing our apprentices shine! 🌟
Kevin Karmann’s journey from BIT Academy to Salesforce Admin is a testament to what happens when accessibility meets opportunity.

Grateful to Workforce Navigators for spotlighting his story!

🔗 https://www.linkedin.com/posts/kevin-karmann_guiding-the-way-how-mentorship-and-accessibility-activity-7356369478344953856-40Gj

#BITAcademy #SalesforceAdmin #Trailblazer #ApprenticeshipSuccess #PledgeForImpact

We’re proud to celebrate (again!) BIT alum Luis Salazar, now a Salesforce Admin at — you guessed it — Salesforce! 🩵

His neurodivergent-friendly ChatGPT project was named one of Mentra’s Top 5 Demo Day innovations. No surprise — he also won our 2024 Demo Org Jam! 🔥

Luis, you keep raising the bar. 👏

#TeamBIT #PledgeForImpact #SalesforceAdmin #AccessibilityInTech #NeurodivergenceInTech #Mentra

We’re proud to celebrate (again!) BIT alum Luis Salazar, now a Salesforce Admin at — you guessed it — Salesforce! 🩵

His neurodivergent-friendly ChatGPT project was named one of Mentra’s Top 5 Demo Day innovations. No surprise — he also won our 2024 Demo Org Jam! 🔥

Luis, you keep raising the bar. 👏

#TeamBIT #PledgeForImpact #SalesforceAdmin #AccessibilityInTech #NeurodivergenceInTech #Mentra

Agentforce Hackathon TDX25: My Hackathon Tips

When Salesforce opened registration for TDX 2025 (TrailblazerDX), they also announced the Agentforce Hackathon, which was to be held before the main event. The event was free to attend and it came with a bunch of prizes including a grand prize of $100,000.

Hackathon

A hackathon is a fast-paced event, usually lasting from one to several days, where people collaborate intensively on technology projects. Participants—such as developers, designers, and product managers—team up to tackle challenges or create new solutions from scratch.

Key features of a hackathon include:

1. Collaboration: People from different backgrounds work in small teams to develop a proof-of-concept, prototype, or even a fully functioning product.

2. Innovation and Creativity: There’s usually a focus on rapid ideation and experimentation. This environment encourages participants to test out new ideas or use emerging technologies.

3. Time Constraint: A hackathon often runs over an intense, short period—like 24 or 48 hours—though some may last for several days. The time limit pushes teams to produce results quickly.

4. Competition or Challenge: Many hackathons incorporate prizes or judging criteria around best idea, best design, or most innovative project. This gamified element helps motivate participants.

5. Community and Learning: Hackathons also act as social and educational events. Newcomers can learn from more experienced participants and meet potential collaborators or employers.

Hackathons are hosted by a variety of organizations, from tech companies and startups to universities and nonprofits, each often targeting a specific theme (e.g., healthcare, finance, machine learning, social impact). They can serve as a way to spur creativity, recruit talent, or generate new ideas and products in a short period of time.

Salesforce Agentforce

Salesforce Agentforce is a digital platform that enables organizations to build and deploy autonomous AI agents across various business functions. These agents can perform tasks such as customer service, sales development, and marketing automation, operating 24/7 to enhance productivity and efficiency. Agentforce integrates seamlessly with existing Salesforce applications, allowing businesses to customize agents to their specific needs, thereby augmenting their workforce with AI-driven capabilities.

Agentforce Hackathon

For the Agentforce Hackathon you were asked put together a team of max 5 people. You could build your team before getting to the Hackathon, or pick your team there. Although initially it looked like all TDX participants could join, Salesforce later announced what type of participants will be allowed. International participants from many countries, recent Salesforce employees and Salesforce vendors were ineligible to participate in the event due to legal constraints.

The event started at 4:00 PM on Monday and continued until midnight that day. The teams came back the next day as early as 7:00 AM and worked until latest at 8:00 PM on Tuesday. Food, coffee, soda and snacks were provided. Everyone who submitted a survey at the end of the event received a t-shirt. There was a grand prize of $100,000 as well as more vertically focused smaller prizes like best use of Slack. The winners were announced on Wednesday during the keynote. Congrats to the winners.

My Hackathon Experience

Overall the event was simultaneously fun and exhausting. Most people arrived in San Francisco after a long travel, and they were also impacted by the timezone changes.

I did not have a team or an idea ready when I went there. I collaborated with Lynda Kane and Andrea Stratton, two people I know in the Salesforce ecosystem. Collaborating with different brilliant minds was one of the best parts of the experience.

The event required demo skills as you had to record and submit a 5 min long video along with the documentation at the end of the event.

I’m a builder at heart, and I was proud that we had a working solution by the end. That was a key goal for me. Additionally, the event gave me an opportunity to lock in and experiment with Salesforce Agentforce for 13-14 hours. It is a great way to learn the features hands on.

One of my teammates, Lynda, said, “Working with Andy and Andrea for the Hackathon was fun and a great collaborative experience. This was an excellent way to get hands-on with the tools and build on our skills. The way I need to write instructions for prompts and agents is finally starting to click for me.”

Collaboration was a key part of the hackathon, and Andrea Stratton, one of my teammates, found the hands-on challenge to be a valuable learning opportunity: “I appreciated getting to learn from other community members with different skillsets and backgrounds,” she said. “Having to work with Agentforce without a guided walkthrough that we get with Trailhead was a worthwhile challenge and learning experience.”

The Result

Our team successfully completed the Salesforce Agentforce TDX Hackathon. As Team Kudosforce, our solution looks at reviews submitted by customers and creates immediate feedback and actionable insights into Slack to expedite continuous improvement.

It was wonderful to work with Lynda Kane and Andrea Stratton at this event.

Watch the demo video below.

Tips for Hackathons

1. Since the time is very restricted, it helps to build a team before the event and align on working principles.

2. The idea is the most important part, so it would be helpful to discuss it before the event.

3. While it’s important to have an idea you like before Hackathon, you can not produce work and build the solution before the event. This is against the rules.

4. Review the submissions of the previous winners. This is public information. See what resonates with the judges.

5. I’d say a big visionary idea is more important than a practical use case that you can build 100% within the time provided. Some aspects of your solution can be mocked and you can communicate that. That is totally OK.

Conclusion

Participating in the Agentforce Hackathon at TDX 2025 was an unforgettable experience—intense, rewarding, and a fantastic way to push creative and technical limits. The event reinforced the power of collaboration, rapid ideation, and hands-on experimentation with new Salesforce technologies. Whether you’re a seasoned builder or a first-time hackathon participant, the key is to embrace the challenge, stay adaptable, and focus on crafting a compelling solution.

Now that we have Agentforce & Data Cloud dev orgs available, preparing for a hackathon has become much easier. If you’re considering joining a future event, check out the upcoming Agentforce Virtual Hackathon and get involved! With $140,000 in prizes, there are plenty of opportunities to win:

🏆 Overall Grand Prize – $50,000 in cash (1 winner)
🎖 Honorable Mention: Most Impactful – $20,000 in cash (1 winner)
💡 Best Use of Slack Prize – $25,000 in cash (1 winner)
🎨 Honorable Mention: Most Creative – $20,000 in cash (1 winner)
🎤 Honorable Mention: Best Demo Delivery – $20,000 in cash (1 winner)
🗳 People’s Choice (Public Voting) – $5,000 in cash (1 winner)

If you’re up for the challenge, start preparing now! Have questions or insights? Drop them in the comments!

Explore related content:

TDX 2025 News: Salesforce Agentforce 2dx and AgentExchange

How to Get Your AI-Powered Enhanced Developer Org with Agentforce and Data Cloud

New Agentforce Specialist Certification

Your Ultimate Guide to Dreamforce 2024

#Agentforce #Hackathon #Salesforce #SalesforceAdmin #SalesforceDeveloper #TDX25 #TrailblazerDX

Here's the thing I made that WordPress lost its shit over. It's a study guide for the Salesforce admin exam I made myself (with the help of wifey for the cover). I'd written up a little something about it, but to hell with that. I wanted to make flash cards and wanted ALL the info in one place, which Salesforce doesn't provide in a decent manner. So here it is. Any help editing or formatting, go nuts.

These are the 7 files I printed to make this bad boy: https://drive.proton.me/urls/V4EHCTZVX0#QtneDpYea2UY

#Salesforce #SalesforceAdmin #DIY #projects #wip #TextFiles #writing #CRM #DIYProjects

Here's the thing I made that WordPress lost its shit over. It's a study guide for the Salesforce admin exam I made myself (with the help of wifey for the cover). I'd written up a little something about it, but to hell with that. I wanted to make flash cards and wanted ALL the info in one place, which Salesforce doesn't provide in a decent manner. So here it is. Any help editing or formatting, go nuts.

These are the 7 files I printed to make this bad boy: https://drive.proton.me/urls/V4EHCTZVX0#QtneDpYea2UY

#Salesforce #SalesforceAdmin #DIY #projects #wip #TextFiles #writing #CRM #DIYProjects

Transform Element Now Supports Join Collections

With the Salesforce Spring ’25 release, a new feature has been introduced for flow builders: the ability to join collections using the transform element. This functionality opens up new possibilities for combining related data in flows. It is now easier to analyze and present information in a structured way. For many flow builders, especially those who haven’t worked with joining collections before, this might seem like a complex new tool. But it allows users to merge datasets based on related keys or conditions, without needing to manually write complex logic or loops. Cool, right?

In this blog, we’ll dig into how this new feature works, the types of joins available, and how the transform element simplifies the process of joining collections. As described in the release notes, users can now combine source collections from related flow resources into a target collection. This could be particularly useful when you need to combine data from Salesforce with external systems, such as merging order records to create a more comprehensive view of customer transactions. The result? A single, unified dataset that can be displayed in a flow screen!

To grasp how this functionality works and how it can be applied, we’ll first explain the concept of join collections and what an INNER JOIN means. Then, we’ll explore a practical use case that demonstrates this new functionality in action.

Join Collections

Join functionality in collections allows you to combine data from two or more datasets based on a related key or condition. This makes it easier to analyze and correlate information. The most common types of joins are INNER JOIN, LEFT JOIN, and RIGHT JOIN. An INNER JOIN returns only the records that have matching keys in both collections, focusing solely on the intersection of datasets. A LEFT JOIN returns all records from the left collection and matches from the right collection, filling in NULL for non-matching right-side data. Conversely, a RIGHT JOIN returns all records from the right collection and matched records from the left, with NULL for any unmatched left-side data. This functionality is essential for tasks like merging customer data with transaction records, identifying missing information, and ensuring comprehensive reporting in data processing workflows. For now, the transform element only supports INNER JOIN.

Transform Element

Many of you will remember from my other posts, that the transform element is a welcome recent addition to the flow arsenal. It helps us to save loops, and makes many operations easy.

The transform element is a powerful tool that allows you to map and manipulate data between different data structures without needing complex logic or additional steps. It enables users to take data from one source, such as a record, collection, or variable, and reshape or reformat it to match the structure required by another destination, like a different object or variable. This includes mapping fields directly, applying formulas to modify values, and even handling nested data for more advanced scenarios. By simplifying data manipulation, the transform element reduces the need for multiple assignments or loops. This makes flows more efficient, easier to maintain, and visually streamlined. It’s particularly useful when integrating data between related objects or preparing data before updates or creation in Salesforce.

Essentially, transform element processes one or more collections on the source side. It outputs variables, or collections on the output side. Transform element can also process Apex defined variables, which are custom structures that are similar to custom objects, but can be generated by code or integrations.

The transform element can now take two source collections and use join keys to produce an inner join. This resulting collection includes field values from both source collections. This functionality is especially useful, when you have an Apex defined collection variable you need to send the data to as an output. This custom variable structure can not be defined and produced within the flow canvas, so far.

Combine Collections with Inner Join

Let’s follow a use case to see how this functionality works.

Let’s say I would like to combine Account fields and Contact fields joining the two collections using the AccountId and produce an output similar to person account.

Since I cannot create an output structure using flow builder for this use case, I created a custom object to store the results. In a normal business scenario, this would generally not make sense.

Follow the build for demonstration purposes:

1. Create a custom object to hold a few field values from the contact and a few from the account.
2. Create an autolaunched or screen flow.
3. Add a get element to get the contacts in your dev org.
4. Add a get element to get the accounts in your dev org.
5. Add a transform element to create the join.

🔥 Bonus

If you have too many accounts (limit = 2,000), add a limit to your gets to avoid error. You could use the assignment element with equals count operator. This will allow you to see the count of records in source and output collections.

To build out this element, configure the join keys for each source collection (contacts and accounts). Then, select the join fields to return into the target collection (combined person custom object).

An INNER JOIN with multiple keys combines two source collections based on matching key pairs. You must ensure that all specified key pairs match for a record to be included in the result. This is called a composite key join, and it is ideal for complex data relationships. It’s useful when a single key can’t uniquely identify or relate records. In this case, we will use a single key.

Output Collection

Transform element only supports inner joins as this point, so left vs. right source selection doesn’t matter. However, the selection will matter once Salesforce expands the functionality beyond inner joins.

This element will produce one row of data for each contact that has an AccountId in the Account lookup. Output excludes contacts without accounts and accounts without contacts, focusing only on matched records.

Conclusion

This is yet another transform functionality that saves us loops. We can combine field values from two related collections, and output a single collection without having to loop.

The transform element is mainly designed to address integration use cases efficiently. This functionality will be especially useful for processing integration response data that is structured in an Apex-defined variable type.

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#Apex #LowCode #Salesforce #SalesforceAdmin #SalesforceDeveloper #TransformElement

Can You Start With a Loop Inside Your Schedule-Triggered Flow?

Salesforce automatically runs schedule-triggered flows at specific times and intervals without needing user interaction. These flows are ideal for tasks that need to occur on a recurring basis, such as daily data updates, batch record processing, or sending scheduled notifications. By configuring the start time, frequency (daily, weekly, etc.), and conditions for triggering, admins can efficiently manage routine operations, ensuring data consistency and reducing manual workload. Schedule-triggered flows help streamline business processes and maintain system accuracy by automating time-based actions.

There are three common misconceptions about schedule-triggered flows

1. New schedule-triggered flow builders usually think they must get all the records their flow needs to process, loop, and process all records in a single flow interview. In other words they need to bulk-process their flow logic themselves at the time of build. I will show you below, that this assumption is incorrect.
2. New flow learners have a hard time understanding how their start time is scheduled. When should they use a schedule-triggered flow versus a scheduled path in a record-triggered flow? I will explain how you can correctly decide in this article.
3. Most flow builders assume that schedule-triggered flows require an object selection in the start element. Later in this article, I’ll demonstrate how schedule-triggered flows can be designed to run at a specific future time, automating processes that aren’t necessarily tied to records of a particular object defined in the start element.

Get and Loop Elements Right After the Start Element Anti-Pattern

When building a schedule-triggered flow, you select an object in the start element and optionally add conditions. Here’s a metaphor to explain: Imagine you want your flow to run next Saturday at midnight and update all cards with a face value of 3 to 13. In a deck, there are 4 such cards. Your logic only needs to handle one record (one card). The flow engine automatically creates separate interviews for each matching record (all 4 cards), processing them without manual loops or retrieval. This means all 4 cards are updated efficiently, with the flow engine handling bulk processing for you. No extra logic is needed—just define the criteria, and the engine does the rest.

Let’s return to Salesforce and discuss how schedule-triggered flows are executed. Suppose you want to process all Contact records in your org where the Title is ‘Director’ and update it to ‘Senior Director.’

Here’s how you’d set it up:

1. Configure the start element to run on the Contact object.

2. Add a condition to the start element to filter records where the Title equals ‘Director.’

3. Add an update element to change the Title from ‘Director’ to ‘Senior Director.’

When the flow runs at the specified date and time, the flow engine processes each matching record individually. For example, if there are 4 matching records, the engine will execute 4 separate flow interviews, one for each record. These interviews are batched, with each batch containing up to 200 interviews (or records). So, for 4 records, the flow executes in a single transaction, while for 201 records, it would execute in 2 transactions.

Avoiding Common Pitfalls: Why You Shouldn’t Manually Loop Through Records in Schedule-Triggered Flows

What new learners tend to do is configure the start element, then proceed to get all contacts in the org where the title is Director, loop through them and process them. If there are 4 matches in the Org, this multiplies the update execution need and produces inaccurate results. Your single interview will run 4 loops, executing on 4 matching records and producing 4 interviews. That is actually 16 executed loops that are needed.

In summary, you build your flow to handle a single record, set up your start element to define which records the flow need to run on, and don’t worry about the rest, the flow engine will take care of it.

Schedule-Triggered vs. Scheduled Path in Record-Triggered Flow

While there are overlaps, the usage of schedule-triggered flows are different in nature than the scheduled path under record-triggered flow. Here are the parameters that need to be considered:

• When you have a specific date and time you need your flow to execute – e.g. next Thursday at 11:00 PM – then you must use a schedule-triggered flow.
• When you have a frequency requirement for recurring actions, then you must build a schedule-triggered flow.
• When you need to relate your execution time – 1 hour after or 1 day before – to a record being created or updated (DML), then you must use a scheduled path in a record-triggered flow. Remember though: you cannot determine the time of the action for offsets longer than a day. If you have an email action and a 1-day after offset, the system will send the email at the same time the create/update occurred one day later.

Certain situations can generate approximately the same outcome using either solution. This is generally a confusing topic when you first start diving into time delay operations using flow.

Object Selection

You may have noticed, the Object reference in the start element of the schedule-triggered flow is marked as optional. Most people never try this alternative. When you build a schedule-triggered flow without an object selection, you create a scheduled job to run in the future. This flow, as opposed to the other flows with object selection, will for sure run only one transaction containing one single flow interview. Therefore this is a flow that can include loops and collections. Having a loop at the start of this type of flow is not an anti-pattern. Remember that you can use the transform element, collection filter and sort to lighten the load when you deal with collections.

🚨 Use case 👉🏼 Streamlining Operational KPI and Trendlines for Optimization

Conclusion

The power of scheduled jobs in Salesforce lies in their ability to automate time-dependent tasks, ensuring consistency, efficiency, and reliability across business processes. By utilizing scheduled jobs—whether through schedule-triggered flows, Apex schedulers, or declarative tools—organizations can automate repetitive tasks like data cleanups, report generation, and batch processing without manual intervention. This not only saves time and reduces errors but also ensures that critical processes run during off-peak hours, optimizing system performance. Scheduled jobs also enhance scalability, allowing businesses to handle large data volumes and complex workflows with minimal oversight.

Using schedule-triggered flows make scheduled jobs more accessible to most profiles on the Salesforce platform. It is sometimes better to handle some actions after hours while the Org usage is down to avoid potential system performance issues. Flow builders should always consider this tool to produce the automations that will enhance the company KPIs and goal attainment performance.

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Popular Validation Rules for Salesforce Flows including Phone, Email and Address Fields

Salesforce Flow validation rules are essential for ensuring data accuracy and consistency in automated workflows. By setting specific conditions that data must meet before it is saved or processed within a flow, these rules prevent erroneous or incomplete information from moving forward in the workflow. For instance, you might create a validation rule that requires certain fields, such as phone, email and address, to be filled out or ensures that a value falls within a specified range before the flow can continue. This not only enforces data quality standards but also helps avoid downstream errors that could disrupt business processes or lead to poor decision-making. With flow validation rules, Salesforce admins can maintain control over data integrity while enhancing user experience by proactively catching errors.

Below are a few popular flow validation rules I used in my projects

Name

Standard length for Name Fields is 40 for First Name, 20 for Middle Name and 80 for Last Name.

First Name

Error message:

Your entry needs to be shorter than 40 characters.

Validation rule:

LEN({!First_Name})<=40

Social Security Number (USA)

Error message:

Please enter 9 digits for the SSN field.

Validation rule (this rule allows for dashes):

OR( 

REGEX( {!Social_Security_Number} , "[0-9X\-]{11}"), 

REGEX( {!Social_Security_Number} , "[0-9]{9}") 

) 

Address

Standard length for address fields are 256 for Street Address and 80 for City. The ZIP (Postal) code can be in XXXXX or in XXXXX-XXXX format (USA).

State Code

Error message example:

Please enter a State Code consisting of two capital letters.

Validation rule:

NOT( 

 AND( 

   NOT(ISBLANK({!State})), 

   OR( 

      LEN( {!State}) <> 2, 

      NOT(CONTAINS({!State}, UPPER({!State}))) 

    ) 

 ) 

) 

ZIP (Postal) Code (USA)

Error message example:

ZIP code needs to be in XXXXX or in XXXXX-XXXX format.

Validation rule:

REGEX({!MailingZIP} , "\d{5}(-\d{4})?")

Revenue

Error message example:

Your entry needs to be shorter than 16 digits.

Validation rule (Currency upper limit):

{!Revenue}<10000000000000000

Email

Error message example:

Please enter a valid email address.

Validation rule:

REGEX({!Email_Address},"[a-zA-Z0-9._%+-]+@[a-zA-Z0-9.-]+.[a-zA-Z]{2,4}")

Phone number

Error message example:

Please enter a 10 digit phone number.

Validation rule:

AND( 

LEN({!Mobile_Phone})=10, 

NOT(REGEX({!Mobile_Phone} ,"^[a-z A-Z]*$"))) 

Incorporating Salesforce Flow validation rules into your automated workflows can be transformative for maintaining data accuracy and enforcing business standards. These rules not only ensure that critical data points like names, social security numbers, and contact information meet required formats but also prevent incomplete or invalid entries from progressing through your system. By using validation rules to define acceptable data criteria, you create a more reliable, error-resistant environment that supports both user confidence and data integrity. 

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Looking for a quality Salesforce Administrator? Reach out to us to learn more about our placement services.

Scott recently achieved his Salesforce Admin Certification through our prep course. He has extensive experience as a technical consultant, even earning his Salesforce Associate Certification as well!

Scott's unwavering determination and commitment, coupled with his two certifications, will pave the way for success.

#salesforce #SalesforceAdmin #disability #employment #tech

Looking for a quality Salesforce Administrator? Reach out to us to learn more about our placement services.

Scott recently achieved his Salesforce Admin Certification through our prep course. He has extensive experience as a technical consultant, even earning his Salesforce Associate Certification as well!

Scott's unwavering determination and commitment, coupled with his two certifications, will pave the way for success.

#salesforce #SalesforceAdmin #disability #employment #tech