Follow Your Passion with Juan Marte, Jr.

Today on the Salesforce Admins Podcast, we’re talking to Juan Marte, Jr., Data and Donor Services Specialist at the One Love Foundation. He has some great wisdom to share about staying true to the things that you love and how he uses his passion to empower his users.

Join us as we talk about why he’s so passionate about data, how his love of technology has lead him to success, and how One Love Foundation is adapting moving forward.

You should subscribe for the full episode, but here are a few takeaways from our conversation with Juan Marte, Jr.

An organization that changes the world, relationship by relationship.

“The One Love Foundation fundraises and educates young people about healthy and unhealthy relationships,” Juan says. It was founded in honor of Yeardley Love, a young woman who tragically lost her life 10 years ago at the age of 22. Her death was preventable, and the foundation exists to make something like that never happens again. To help with that mission, Juan is in charge of the data that makes them be able to do what they do, coordinating and supporting volunteers across the country and internationally so they can run workshops and trainings.

Collaborating with teams across state and international borders is tricky, and Juan definitely has his work cut out for him. “I make sure that everything that comes in through either of our platforms that sync into Salesforce gets spread to the engagement coordinators and program team from One Love,” he says. In short, he makes sure all the information they need is organized, up to date, and as easy to use as possible. “It’s a team effort,” he says, “but being able to be that advocate for them and compile the information they need is an amazing feeling because I’m helping someone else progress—I thoroughly enjoy helping others excel.”

Why going with your passion is the key to longevity.

“I’ve always had a passion for technology,” Juan says, “it’s just a great feeling that I can take something I love, something I enjoy using and doing, and help others.” Along the way, that passion has helped overcome whatever obstacles are in his way. “I’ve always used what I’ve loved in order to better the next person,” he says, “something you love is something that will give you longevity.” He also owes a lot to PepUp Tech for helping him get the knowledge he needed to get started on this path.

Right now, the One Love Foundation is transitioning between platforms, but Juan wants to make sure the user experience is largely the same, especially when it comes to uploading opportunities. He really wants to shift formats to make things more reportable and, in general, to help people more easily help themselves. “They have so much on their plate doing so much for the community, I don’t want them to wrack their brain,” he says.

Most of the One Love Foundation’s education is usually done in person, so everyone in the organization has had to adjust and be innovative in response to the current situation. “The passion that the whole foundation has in order to get their message across and being able to adapt has been truly remarkable,” Juan says.

Links:

• The One Love Foundation

Trailhead:

• Data Management module
• Reports & Dashboards for Lightning Experience module

Social:

• Salesforce Admins: @SalesforceAdmns 
• Juan: @KirbySesquina
• Gillian: @GillianKBruce
• Mike: @MikeGerholdt

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Full Show Transcript

Gillian Bruce: Welcome to the Salesforce Admins Podcast, where we talk about product, community, and careers to help you be an awesome admin. I'm Gillian Bruce.

Mike Gerholdt: And I'm Mike Gerholdt.

Gillian Bruce: And today we are talking to Juan Marte, Jr., who is a Data and Donor Services Specialist at One Love Foundation in New York. Juan has some great messaging to all admins about how you should stay true to the things that you love, and I loved hearing about his passion about how he empowers his users. So without further ado, let's welcome Juan to the podcast. Juan, welcome to the podcast.

Juan Marte, Jr.: Thank you for having me, Gillian, and I appreciate it.

Gillian Bruce: Well, I am stoked to get you on the podcast, not only because I think you are fun to talk to, but because you are doing some really cool things with Salesforce. First, can you tell us a little bit about a very brief overview of what you do, and then the organization you work at?

Juan Marte, Jr.: Sure. So I am the Data and Donor Services Specialist with the One Love Foundation. The One Love Foundation is a foundation where they fundraise and educate young people about healthy and unhealthy relationships, and it's due to a passing of Yeardley Love, which is a person that passed away 10 years ago due to domestic abuse or domestic violence. And since then, the family of Yeardley Love has decided to start a foundation and educate not just the United States, but the world, of how to pick up on unhealthy and healthy relationship in order to have that facet of togetherness.
So they've prepared a nationwide campaign in order to get that message across. And in my part, what I do at One Love is I help with the data information in order for them to be able to do what they do. So we've had different people from different parts of the United States trying to compose these different campaigns to spread out. So I help them with that data, and help them would pick up trends or what information they would need in order to give to the audience when they do these trainings or workshops to detect these. So that's just a small aspect of what I do. In a donor's side, we also do receive donations from people that help us progress and get that message across the United States, if not the world.

Gillian Bruce: That's awesome. I know that that's a tough community problem, and so I very much admire the work that you, and One Love do. Let's talk a little bit about how you and your team collaborate. So, you mentioned US and international. So I bet that means that there's a lot of remote teams, remote working, I guess everyone's really remote right now anyway. Tell us a little bit about how you and your team collaborate.

Juan Marte, Jr.: So in my aspect with data, I make sure that everything that comes in through either of our platforms that we have that sync over into Salesforce basically gets spread to the engagement coordinators or the program team that we have instore with One Love. So I made sure that everything is correct for them, and precise, up to date, so that when it comes to reporting back not only the trends, but also getting their education across, I make sure that they can have that up to the information. I'll get many requests on updating contact information within the Salesforce system, to coming up with a report for them to see a layout of who they should contact in order to get things rolling. In the international aspect, we have had certain donors that have seen the product that we had to offer over in One Love, so they like to contribute their services and help spread that word.
So what I've been doing, since I'm the back end, I observe who comes in internationally and let the rest of my team know that puts this word out of healthy relationships, and let them know what's happening so that they know how to proceed in continuing to give me this lovely information of healthy relationships to who needs to hear it. So I play more of the up-to-date to make sure that my team is up to date.

Mike Gerholdt: Part of our admin team, and Gillian does this too, will go to user groups, and we go to Salesforce classes that are being taught virtually now, and greet new admins, and greet people that are just getting started in their admin career. And a lot of times the questions are, "Well, what can I expect in my day-to-day?"
And I think to the time when I was admin, things are different based on your position. Based on your position, and you don't have to get into intense detail, but what is your day-to-day if somebody was coming to work or job shadow you as an admin, what are some of the things that you would expect them to do or, or that you do every day?

Juan Marte, Jr.: One thing I forgot to mention earlier that I've been with this company for about seven or eight months with One Love. So being one with Salesforce, this is my truest opportunity of owning that. That being able to have that day-to-day, what I have to do kind of situation, obviously Trailhead in with the company that assisted me in getting to this position. They've helped me a lot to be knowledgeable in that aspect.
So for me a day-to-day is first thing I do, I make sure all information that sinks into Salesforce is processed, whether it be donations, whether it be workshops that we host, I make sure that that information is precise. Because then if you were to put in on Salesforce faulty information, then I can't deliver accurate reports to the rest of the team, if not the entire foundation. I have a dashboard that gives me some, I would say, inefficiencies of what's not right. So that's the first thing I do every morning. I make sure that's up to date. Then from there, I can go into request on importing information into our Salesforce database, whether it be contacts, accounts, whether it be opportunities, donations, I've had, blessed by the team, the knowledge in order for me to do that as well as also joining with [Tep Up 00:07:19] Tech, which is a great organization that I love so much.
If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't be in this situation, but I make sure that those requests are processed. So if, in fact, my team gives me a whole bunch of contacts, I make sure that they're lined up to the appropriate affiliation, and just update that information for them so that they can have easy access to that information, especially remotely, and especially during this pandemic. But overall, that information could be handy to them within a blink of an eye, rather than just searching through a whole bunch of files and finding it. I provide that information for them.

Gillian Bruce: So you are basically the person who just makes it easier for people to do their jobs.

Mike Gerholdt: Pretty much, pretty much.

Gillian Bruce: ... easier for people to do their jobs [crosstalk].

Juan Marte, Jr.: Pretty much. Pretty much. But do we do have others in the team that do add that information, so it's not just solely just me, but it's a team effort. I must admit that this team... I think with this team is unique, especially with the work that they do, but being able to be that advocate for them to be able to get that information and compile it for them is just an amazing feeling because I'm helping someone progress at their own position, at their own message. It's not an overwhelming feeling, but it's a feeling that I own because of the fact that it's just I enjoy thoroughly helping others itself.

Gillian Bruce: I think that's awesome. I think that's one of the core traits that we find with all awesome admins is a passion for helping people. I think you got that several-fold, Juan, because not only do you kind of do that in your day job for the people you work with, but you work for an organization that does help people as its mission, which is very cool as well. Look at you. You got the double helping people-

Juan Marte, Jr.: Pretty much. The thing is, it's like, at first, it didn't sink in, but as time progressed, especially now, you're not distracted. You're focused, have that narrow mind of just seeing what's in front of you. You absorb so much and see so much from that aspect, and it's just like, I think I did a great job. Not saying I'm cocky, but the fact is... I know, [inaudible]. It sounded wrong at first, but just being able that within a millisecond of data uploading I can help someone get even more to learn about this foundation, and just having that opportunity is amazing.

Mike Gerholdt: Wow. You mentioned you joined seven months ago. Were you already in that space, or was there also a learning curve for you in terms of understanding that... I don't want to call it vertical, but that area that you're in of what the company does and how it uses Salesforce.

Juan Marte, Jr.: It wasn't a parallel transition. It was a vertical for me. At the time, I was very knowledgeable of Salesforce. I had training in Salesforce. I know I spoke to Gillian about this before about being able to take what you've learned and taking it to a whole nother level. That was my surprise because of the fact that I had the knowledge, but then the fact that I was in a position that not only was I was able to take what I've learned, but definitely evolve that to a whole new level, that was the great feeling.
I wasn't dealing with Salesforce before I was knowledgeable of Salesforce, but before I transitioned into this position, the fact that I was doing something somewhat totally different than what I was doing before, it was just like this is the change that I needed in order to be me. That's how I took it when I switched positions from my last employer. But this was more my alley because I've always had a passion for technology. It's been in me for I would say my entire existence if I had to really think about it because I've always had a sense of technology from a young age, and it evolved each and every year of manipulation of information to be able to do use technology to my advantage, not only work life, but also personal life. It's just a great feeling that I can take something I love and something I enjoy doing, I enjoy using and helping others. It wasn't an easy transition, but I would say it's like a career change, but it was the smoothest career change I can ever make.

Gillian Bruce: I love how you mentioned this as kind of... Basically, you say you found your jam. This is what you feel like you were meant to do, and I think that's really amazing, Juan. I would be curious, so in how you are using Salesforce at One Love, what are some of the things that were maybe steeper learning curves for you in the last seven months, and what are some of the ways that you've been able to overcome some challenges or some problems in your journey?

Juan Marte, Jr.: Well, I would say when taking on this position, I wasn't hesitant, but I always had questions to the fact where I knew the information, but just as a refresher, I've always asked because of the fact that maybe between that time I trained to use Salesforce to going into my position, things might've changed.

Gillian Bruce: No. Salesforce doesn't change. What are you talking-

Juan Marte, Jr.: You know-

Gillian Bruce: ... about?

Juan Marte, Jr.: Even for example, I was accustomed to using Classic, and Lightning started to arise from the ashes kind of situation, so the differences of Classic and Lightning was a slight obstacle, but I still knew the tricks of the trade using Classic while using Lightning. One of the challenges I must say was adapting to making the changes on Lightning in regards to the fields and relationships and the page layouts.
That was a transition all in all, but the one true thing I must say that I take ownership and success that it was a challenge but I was able to overcome was developing the mass uploads from my team in order to get that into Salesforce because inputting information, we all know, into Salesforce, any information whatsoever, whether it be an Excel, whether it be Salesforce, it's tedious, but Salesforce, and this is what got me over the edge, is that Salesforce is Excel on steroids. What you would do would take you 30 to 40 minutes could be instantaneous in Salesforce and just one fell swoop. All that information could be uploaded into the system. That was the smoothest challenge, and the reason why I called it the smoothest because I was able to pick up on it fairly quickly.
Reporting for me also was a challenge as well because it's just getting the right information to the team and putting the pieces to the puzzle [inaudible] wanted to get that report established for my teammates or for my colleagues was a also tackle for me as well, but I was able to get that groove together and being able to get the appropriate fields that I would need in order to give them that information. Even though it's very lower admin, but it's still an obstacle that I know I struggled while commencing my or starting my tenure with this foundation.

Gillian Bruce: Oh, well, you don't need to talk to me about reporting struggles. I still struggle with formulas, so I got it.

Juan Marte, Jr.: Well, the thing is that, with my experience, I have not had to dealt with formula so much yet. I know that's coming in, but I've been able to do what I can as the data guy in order to get whatever information that the team-

Juan Marte, Jr.: The data guy in order to get whatever information that the team needed as quickly as possible.

Mike Gerholdt: Oh, just wait. The more data you give them, the more complex it will become in terms of requests.

Juan Marte, Jr.: I'm hoping for that challenge, I just don't know when it's going to come.

Mike Gerholdt: Just keep feeding them data. Trust me, it's exponential.

Juan Marte, Jr.: And then what's also cool is that, each of our regions within the foundation have their own dashboard. So they have an overview of what's coming in, what's happening, any updates, it's all real time. So, being able to edit that and being able to give that to the different regions within the foundation is awesome.

Mike Gerholdt: So looking back at kind of your journey, if present day self were to give, I don't know, nine, ten, one year ago self some advice, what would it be?

Juan Marte, Jr.: I mean, everybody says do what you love, because not only will it show work-wise, but after work, you don't feel that sense of, not disappointment, but you're not upset of what you've done. Going back to my younger years of using technology to my advantage and even to my past employers, I've always used what I'd loved to use in order to better the next person, or better the process of what I'm working with now.
So my young self will tell my self one year ago, you should have stuck with what you love, because eventually you're going to fall into a place where you're at peace. And that hits hard for me, because even though I don't like to brag about it, but I'm somewhat of a techie. And I love using technology for life purposes. Even if it's off the 9:00 to 5:00 or sometimes 9:00 to 10:00, whatever the case may be, I leave and go back to technology. I go into gaming. I go into podcasting. I go into just using my technology to my advantage. So I would have told my younger self, stick to that because you would have been at a place at peace way before you are now.

Gillian Bruce: That's good advice, pay attention to your gut, right? Pay attention to what feels good.

Juan Marte, Jr.: Pretty much, that's the simple way of putting it. Go with your gut feeling, because you never know where you're going to end up. You know yourself, that this something you love, is something that will get you longevity. And even though I've had a lot of obstacles that led me to this, I can honestly say for the first time in my professional career that I feel at peace. Even though there's obstacles within the position, because there's going to be obstacles all over the place. But the fact is, you know where you feel at peace when you're not comfortable [inaudible] when you're happy, and that's where I am now, I feel that.

Gillian Bruce: That's such a great message. I love that. This is the spiritual Salesforce Admin Podcast now.

Juan Marte, Jr.: I didn't bring the incense, so I do apologize.

Gillian Bruce: Bring your own incense episode. That's great. That's great. So Juan, I think some of your messaging about stay true to yourself, follow what you're passionate about, understanding how you can make an impact and finding ways to do that, is all very, very powerful. I would love to maybe hear about a specific problem that maybe [inaudible] was having that you've helped solve, using your Salesforce skills.

Juan Marte, Jr.: Trying to think of something recently. So, all right. I do have one recent one that actually currently, well, not dealing with, but it is an issue that will help us in the long run. So, one thing about platforms is that they could come and go, different platforms that syncs over, or we use to better when the foundation ... Things could come and go. So one thing that I'm currently dealing with now, is how to adapt switching platforms, but making it better for our opportunities that we have in our system.
So currently right now, we have a situation where we no longer use one platform, but we're using a new one, but want to make sure that we're still able to continue to have a similar layout where we upload different opportunities. So what I've done is, after talking to several people, what I would want to make sure that reporting wise, I would want to make sure that all this information could come up in a report without having to go crazy and looking for them.
So what I've done, I suggested that we shift some fields that we had in our opportunities, in order for make it reportable. So if I'm not looking for a report for a colleague, they can easily find it on their own, or it would be easy to detect without looking to see what field it would work.
So one thing that I'm currently doing is switching those opportunity to make it easier for people to find what they're looking for. Or the fact is, they can view what they're looking for, without pulling their hair. And being able to be that person to make that switch in order to make their jobs easier, that's the biggest challenge for me, because I don't want them to rack their brain.
They have so much on their plate, doing so much for the community. I want to make that transition smoother so that they don't have to figure out, "Oh, something different came in. Let me try to figure out how I'm going to do this." Let me try to take that and make it easier for you, so you don't have to worry about that. And that's one challenge of many that I'm dealing with now, that I'm helping my foundation in the long run.

Gillian Bruce: That's great. So field management, layouts?

Juan Marte, Jr.: Mm-hmm (affirmative).

Gillian Bruce: Okay. Got it.

Juan Marte, Jr.: Pretty much. And then changing some title so that it's identifiable and reportable for when they do that research or when that research is brought to them, that it's just under that umbrella, under that field. And being able to just differentiate which is which. So coming up with that process on the back end and being able to have that available for the team, that's one thing, especially that's one project I'm doing right now, that's helping on the long run.

Gillian Bruce: That's awesome.

Juan Marte, Jr.: They're pretty much on the back end, we all know that try to make it comfortable in a viewable for non detailed Salesforce users. That's another thing too, because want to make sure that even though they might not dive in into Salesforce as much as I do, but they can see it without even ... Just clicking a button and it's there for them. That's one thing I thoroughly enjoy about helping my team, is just having it visually set for them and yeah.

Gillian Bruce: That's awesome. That's great. Well, you're doing a lot of amazing things, Juan. And I want to make a shout out to your amazing organization, who's doing incredible work in the community that I bet, especially times like now, is especially challenging, right?

Juan Marte, Jr.: It is. It is.

Gillian Bruce: Actually challenging, right?

Juan Marte, Jr.: It is. Especially being able to be innovative to continue spreading the word in a time like this, which most of our education is usually typically done personally, but just being able to create an innovative way to get the message across, especially during this. And especially with that team, it's been an amazing journey and we continue to prepare for what's to come, even if mentioning the second wave, how to evolve with what people are calling the new norm. That's one thing part of this journey, working with this foundation that's been a great thing to see.

Gillian Bruce: Well, yeah, I mean, you're undergoing digital transformation as an org. Right?

Juan Marte, Jr.: Exactly, pretty much. It's just the passion that the whole foundation has in order to get that message across and being able to adapt. It's been truly remarkable.

Mike Gerholdt: Fabulous. Well, thanks for taking time out of your day to share your story with us and inspire other admins and be super productive and helpful to your users at the organization. I think that's fantastic.

Juan Marte, Jr.: It's been an incredible journey thus far, and I look forward to see what's to come, especially with all these different innovations, not just within the foundation, but just with Salesforce itself. It's been an amazing trip to absorb that information and being able to spread that as well.

Gillian Bruce: Well, you'll never be bored being part of the Salesforce community.

Juan Marte, Jr.: That I agree. That I definitely agree. When there's an obstacle, I research it and I know one thing I want to do is being able with my research to try to create an environment within Salesforce, for my team or for the foundation to make it like it's always easy, but to do it the easiest way possible. That's just what I want to be able to contribute is because they do so much and I commend the entire foundation for what they do. Coming in, I didn't know what to expect. I knew about the mission, but I didn't know what to expect about the speed of things when it came to working for a foundation like this, but it's been eyeopening and it's been remarkable. It's one of those things I will never forget and regret taking on, especially with this career move.

Mike Gerholdt: Fabulous. Well, Juan, I hope you keep us updated as you continue to progress along.

Juan Marte, Jr.: I will. And thank you guys for having me. Before ending, I'd like to give a couple of shout outs if that's okay.

Mike Gerholdt: Yeah.

Juan Marte, Jr.: Because I know I didn't mention these groups, PepUp Tech big shout out, goes out to them because without them I would not be knowledgeable to be the advocate that I am for my foundation so shout out to them. I encourage everybody. Look, this is an opportunity worthwhile, especially not just because of the pandemic, but it's a great stepping stone because if you're not working, you get to be able to learn so much attributes by just diving in. Trailhead, Obviously, of course, but I also want to give a shout out to my family and my sister, Evelyn, because without them, I would not have the love of technology that I have now in such an early age. Shout out to them. Just keep an open mind because without it, you won't be able to learn what's going on out there.

Gillian Bruce: That's awesome. That's awesome. Great note to end on, Juan. Thank you so much for joining us today and we also look forward to seeing what's next for you and One Love and keep up the great work.

Juan Marte, Jr.: Thank you guys. Thank you, Gillian. Thank you Mike, for having me and I look forward to it.

Speaker 1: It was great to meet with Juan and I am so thankful for all of the work that the nonprofits and NGOs do, that you Salesforce, a big shout out to all of you right now. I'm especially appreciative for the work, like what Juan does the Salesforce admins at those nonprofits and NGOs that are helping to drive their mission forward. Today, these three things I learned from Juan; so first ensuring user productivity. Wow. I was leveled when Juan talked about how passionate he was about going around and making sure his users had the right data in. Thank you Juan, for doing that. The second thing I learned was he kind of had a predisposition to being in the industry and the company he's working for, and that I believe is really leading to his success. Thank you for doing that. And also, as a good guiding light for any admins that are thinking about what industry to look for a career in. And then the third thing, and this resonates through I would say almost every podcast that we have done this year, is stick with what you love.
Juan gave a shout out you heard to his parents and family and friends for getting him exposed to tech and really helping him thrive and be interested in technology. And that's helped him stick with what he loves, which has contributed to his success. I would say it's been the same for me as well. If you want to learn more about, Hey, all things tech or like Salesforce admins go to admin.salesforce.com to find more resources. Just as a reminder, if you love what you hear, be sure to pop on over to iTunes and give us a review. That helps other admins find this podcast and it helps iTunes surface that podcast towards the top, really appreciate it.
On top of that, Gillian and I love reading the reviews and hearing what you have to say. You can say on top of everything else going on with Salesforce admins on social. We are @Salesforceadmns, no i on Twitter. I am on Twitter as well. I am @MikeGerholdt and of course Gillian, the host of today's episode, is on Twitter as well. She is @GillianKbruce. With that, stay safe, stay awesome and stay tuned for the next episode. We'll see you in the cloud.