This is the forty-third post in my blog series in which I feature people I know from the community: Salesforce employees, MVPs, User Group Leaders, Partners, and honestly, anyone who I’m connected with who is willing to share with me the answers to five simple questions. I hoping that this blog series will help everyone out in the community get better connected to others who are either like them, can help them, are nothing like them, can’t help them, or are simply people they haven’t met yet! After all, a stranger is simply a friend you don’t know yet.
For me, one of the greatest strengths of the Salesforce Ecosystem is its people and the connections that are shared.
So, if you are brave enough, even if you’ve never met me in person, fill out this form and I’ll feature you in an upcoming post. (In case I have confused anyone, the questions on the form about our relationship refers to you, the reader, and me, the author, Eric Dreshfield, and not the featured person in this post.) Just beware, by completing the form, you are giving me permission to use that information in a future post, as well as allowing me to interject some of my own thoughts into your responses!
And now I introduce graduate of the first-ever Salesforce Admin BootCamp, Rebecca Fontanilla.
What’s your job title? University Program Expansion Coordinator – Technical Development, on site at Google contracted by Zenith Corporation. (EFD – Wow…straight out of college to working at Google! That’s Awesome!)
What does that mean you do? As a Program Coordinator, I am responsible for engaging in technical outreach and creating developmental programs to promote Google’s presence on campus. In addition to scheduling and conducting training programs with advocates, I assist in virtual set-ups and prepare for interview sessions. As a recent graduate, I believe the people I’ve met (whether they be students, co-workers, or professors), have helped shaped me into the individual I have become. This is why I’ve chose to be in the role that I am in today. I serve as the person I wish I could have met while in college. (EFD – That’s a really cool role. You get to help others just like you, but give them a step up on the competition in what is most certainly a fierce job market. Congrats to you…and kudos to Google for recognizing the need!)
How long have you been involved with Salesforce.com (as a customer and/or an employee)? My relationship with Salesforce sparked in January 2016 when I attended the Salesforce Admin Bootcamp at the University of San Francisco. (EFD – That was a great program. I got to enjoy the closing festivities of the program as I happened to be in San Francisco at the time and Jennifer Wobser invited me to attend.)
Bacon or sausage? It’s Bacon or Nothing!
What’s more important: Who you know, or what you know? Neither. One of my college professors always told me that it doesn’t matter who you know, but who knows you. I gave his advice some thought and it speaks volumes. You could know x amount of people but if no one knows you then, do you really know them? (EFD – Hmmm….interesting. I never thought about it that way before, but it’s still about the people, and making connections, right?)
How did our relationship start, and when? I think we met through Cheryl Feldman, who I met through Jennifer Wobser. I remember I would have hour long phone conversations with these two ladies about career tips and I believe they e-introduced us. They advised me to follow you on Twitter, and being the social media lover that I am, of course I had to. (EFD – And then we met in person in January, 2016, at the closing reception of the Salesforce Admin BootCamp. It was great to see you at Dreamforce recently too!)
And now the bonus question – What’s one fact about you that few people know, that will surprise me and my blog readers? In January 2015, I went to Peru for a sports-based immersion and learned how sports has transformed some the youth in Peru. This trip was such an eye-opening experience. I used to play soccer when I was in kindergarten all the way up to my senior year of high school. I always thought of soccer as just a recreational activity, but the youth in Peru view soccer (sports in general) as an outlet from their day-to-day routine. Most spend their days perfecting their soccer skills in hopes of being recruited to play in the United States. I played soccer with a few of the children (ages 4-18) and I have never felt so out of shape in my life. These kids are truly an inspirational for self-betterment. They are so content with the little that they have but they make the best of what is offered to them, and that is true happiness. Also, side note: I am in the process of finishing my personal blog, but no surprise I’m creating a website for my personal brand. I guess it’s a little surprising that I haven’t had a site for my personal brand. I’ll probably post the link to my site next week after I clean it up a bit. Oh, I also don’t have a snapchat…is that weird? (EFD – Personal branding is SUPER important! Good for you in recognizing that so early, and doing something about it. I’ve never been to Peru, or played soccer! And I don’t have a snapchat account either. I need one of my kids to explain snpachat to me, I guess. I don’t get it!)
You can find Rebecca on Twitter.