Applying The Wheel of Life to Salesforce Implementations

What is the Wheel of Life?

It is a popular coaching tool used for self-assessment and personal development. It allows you to evaluate and reflect upon various aspects of your life. The goal is to identify areas that are well-balanced and those that may need more attention.

Components of the Wheel of Life

The Wheel of Life is typically divided into different segments or sectors, each representing a specific aspect of life. But to make this model effective for Salesforce, we will change the areas of the project wheel.

Here's how you can apply it:

1. Define the "Areas" of Your Project Wheel

First, identify key areas of your Salesforce project that are critical for its success.

These might include:

• Stakeholder Engagement: Involvement and buy-in from key stakeholders.
• User Adoption: Strategies to ensure users are comfortable and efficient in using Salesforce.
• Data Quality: Ensuring the data migrated into Salesforce is clean, accurate, and useful.
• Customization and Configuration: Tailoring Salesforce to fit the business processes and needs.
• Training and Support: Preparing users for the transition with adequate training and ongoing support.
• Budget and Resources: Managing financial and human resources effectively.
• Timeline and Milestones: Keeping the project on schedule and marking important milestones.
• Risk Management: Identifying and mitigating potential risks.

2. Assess and Rate Each Area

Like the traditional Wheel of Life, rate each area on a scale (e.g., 1-10) based on its current state or performance in your project. This helps identify areas that are doing well and need more attention.

3. Set Specific Goals for Each Area

Based on the ratings, set specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for each area.

For example, if User Adoption is rated low, a goal could be to increase user engagement by conducting regular training sessions and collecting feedback.

4. Develop Action Plans

For each goal, develop an action plan detailing the steps needed to achieve it. Assign responsibilities and deadlines to ensure accountability.

5. Implement and Monitor

Start implementing the action plans and continuously monitor the progress in each area. Use regular check-ins, surveys, and project metrics to gauge effectiveness.

6. Review and Adjust

Periodically review the entire Wheel.

This should be a dynamic process where you adjust goals and strategies based on ongoing feedback and changes in project dynamics.

7. Celebrate Successes

Recognize and celebrate when goals are achieved. This boosts morale and encourages continued effort toward the project goals.

Example Application

Imagine your Salesforce project is lagging in 'Data Quality.' Your goal might be to achieve a 95% accuracy rate in data migration. The action plan could include auditing current data, training staff on data entry standards, and implementing data validation rules in Salesforce.

Need help prioritizing your goals?

Applying the Wheel of Life concept to Salesforce implementation creates a balanced, holistic approach to project management that covers all critical aspects, ensuring a more successful and well-rounded implementation.

Let's discuss your goals and how to use Salesforce to achieve them.