- Salesforce is adamant about hiring based upon its four cultural tenets. And the major red-flag that an individual doesn't embody those values is arrogance, according to Ana Recio, the company's executive vice president of global recruiting.
- A clear indicator during the interview process is if the individual doesn't reference the team that helped him or her achieve a goal. Essentially, says Recio, those applicants who use the word "I" too much.
- But it's not just about the answers. Salesforce also wants to hear questions from candidates that seek to "understand the definition of success from the customer's lens versus from an engineering lens," says Recio.
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Salesforce prides itself on hiring based on the company's four main cultural tenets: trust, innovation, equality, and customer success.
The biggest red-flag in the recruitment process that indicates someone doesn't embody those traits is arrogance, according to Ana Recio, Salesforce's executive vice president of global recruiting.
"The whole Silicon Valley, the whole globe is full of really talented people. And it's individuals who think that they're a little bit more special than the rest. That's not gonna work," she told Business Insider. "If you walk into a room and you have this sense that you're the smartest one there, you're probably not going to have a good experience at Salesforce."
Instead, Salesforce looks for those smart individuals that "don't necessarily have to be the star in the room each and every time," she says. It's one reason why the company is able to foster a spirit of collaboration and transparency across the enterprise.
It's pretty easy to suss that out during an interview.
A key gauge is if the individual continually responds to questions about their own experiences without referencing the team or the collaboration that helped achieve certain goals or metrics. For potential recruits, that means watching how often you use the word "I" during the interview process.
"It really comes through if an individual is there to really elevate and to accelerate the goals of the team or to accelerate or elevate their own agenda," Recio said.
That's not to say Salesforce doesn't want to empower individuals to act independently. Instead, the company seeks to move quickly on decisions in "a respectful way, in a really clear, communicative way."
With Salesforce on pace to hire 10,000 people this year alone, these tips can helps recruits standout among the more than 80,000 individuals the company interviews.
Understanding the 'definition of success from the customer's lens'
Part of the reason Salesforce is one of the most desired places to work is because of its culture, according to Recio.
To ensure that it's hiring individuals that truly align with its values, recruiters ask questions during the interview process that probe into the four keys tenets. But it's also about the questions the candidates ask back.
Among the key ones Recio wants to hear from potential new tech hires are:
- Who is the end user for this product?
- What does success mean for the customer?
- Who is the team and what are the resources?
- Who are the other stakeholders involved?
Ultimately, it's about finding candidates that try to understand the "definition of success from the customer's lens versus from an engineering lens," said Recio. It's clear in the communication from top recruits that "they're trying to build a roadmap, a framework [for] how to go about solving for a particular technical challenge," she says.
Business Insider is putting together a guide to getting hired at Salesforce. If you are a current or former employee who would like to share your experience, contact the reporters at Jwilliams@BusinessInsider.com or Slebowitz@businessinsider.com.