This is how it all started…

When I was in engineering, I was a Java and Android developer. In my 8th semester, during the placement process, only one technical company participated, while the others were non-technical companies. Unfortunately, I was not selected by any technical company. I received an offer from one of the non-technical companies, but I decided not to join because my aspiration was to work in a technical role.

After my graduation, I began searching for an off-campus technical job. During that time, my childhood friend introduced me to Salesforce in 2018 and assisted me in securing my first job as a Salesforce intern in August 2018. I worked there for 5 months. Later, I participated in a mass placement drive for the 2018 pass-outs and was selected by Cognizant as a fresher. I joined Cognizant in March 2019.

In Cognizant, I was placed in one of the 60 grouped trainee batches. During the training period, we were unaware of the specific domain in which we would be placed. Following three weeks of common training, we underwent a test. The top 35 trainees, including myself, were selected for Salesforce training, while the remaining 25 were assigned to dot net domain training.

Deciding to specialize in the Salesforce domain, I embarked on my professional journey as a Salesforce developer. Two years later, in 2021, I began mentoring new trainees at Cognizant. After four years, in 2023, I extended my mentoring role to trailblazers through the Trailhead mentorship program. Eager to share my expertise and mentorship with a wider audience, I founded sfdcGenius—a community where we learn, practice, and execute. Welcome to sfdcGenius!

Shivam Srivastava

Salesforce Consultant