<p> <strong><em>Becoming a Salesforce Leader Blog Series: 6 Key Questions</em></strong></p> <p> You have implemented Salesforce and your users are starting to get ramped up and on board. Now you have to learn to manage your system to ensure that you get maximum ROI and your users are being supported. But it just seems so difficult....how do you manage backlog, innovation, releases, quality standards, ongoing adoption, and metrics? There is so much to think about post go-live and you must become proactive and organized in your approach. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> In this blog series, we will discuss the 6 key questions that you will need to focus on to ensure that your Salesforce instance is consistently changing in lock-step with your user requests and business needs. By focusing on these 6 key factors, you can make sure that you and your organization become a leader in Salesforce innovation. Let&rsquo;s start with the first 2.<br /> <br /> <strong>Question 1:</strong> How do I manage the influx of change to my instance?<br /> Once you have users on the system it can be tough to deal with the large amount of requests that begin pouring in. Because users are key to the success of your system, it is imperative to listen to what they have to say. Additionally, you will have to deal with executive requests, changing business landscapes, department needs, etc. Having a solid system in place to determine how you manage this backlog is imperative in order to keep your users happy, your system up-to-date, AND your sanity.<br /> <br /> <strong><em>Strategy:</em></strong> There are many tools you can use to collect these requests. You can use applications built on force.com or Salesforce&rsquo;s core functionality to maintain a collection of user requests. But most importantly, it is key to train your users on the different levels of priority. Schedule a meeting to discuss how you define major, medium, and minor requests and projects based on the core capabilities and needs of your business. Once your employees have a solid understanding of how to prioritize, each request can be initially sent through your governance board---a collection of executive champions from key departments that will meet to determine what are the top business priorities. Additionally, it is a great idea to schedule your own monthly releases. This way your changes are predictable and users will see that you are making progress on their requests. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> <strong>Question 2:</strong> How do you determine what to work on?<br /> Ok, so you have a system in place to organize your backlog. But, what is important to your business? How do you determine what is high priority and what can be put on the back burner? It is important to understand what your business goals are and how Salesforce can be aligned directly to your needs. &nbsp;<br /> <br /> <em><strong>Strategy:&nbsp;</strong></em> Build out filters for smaller requests. Are these vision requests, business process requests, ROI requests? Then you can determine which bucket is the highest priority for your business. From there, you can begin to sort through each request. Choose based on your core competencies. Then build out your road-map and evaluate value vs. risk. Low complexity and high value projects should come first and high complexity and low projects should be marked at a low priority. &nbsp;</p> <p> Sifting through your initial and ongoing backlog may be one of the most daunting tasks that your organization faces once you implement Salesforce. As the requests begin to pile on, it is crucial that you determine how to prioritize and what your strategy will be to organize and tackle each project.&nbsp;<em>&nbsp;</em></p> <p> Learn more by watching the Dreamforce &#39;11 session <strong>Become a Leader: Maximize ROI Beyond Go-Live</strong>. Watch Bluewolf CTO&nbsp;<a href="/people/lou-fox">Lou Fox</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="/people/jesse-endo">Jesse Endo</a>, Director of Bluewolf Beyond, moderate an engaging panel of client guests - including Derald Sue of InsideTrack and Angela Stewart of Manhattan Associates - as they offer insight on their agile journey at Dreamforce &#39;11.</p> <p class="rtecenter"> <iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/uM9q_FcmyZ4?rel=0" width="420"></iframe></p>