Author: Peggy Schael | Salesforce Trainer | WeLearnSalesforce
The Salesforce Certification Exams have just switched over to Winter ’22. That’s right! Even though all Salesforce Orgs are already well into the Winter ’22 release cycle, the Salesforce Certification Exam cycles follow a slightly shifted time frame to give you a chance to catch up.
Whether or not you are planning to get a Salesforce Certification, keeping up-to-date on the latest Salesforce features gives you a competitive advantage. Let’s get to know the TOP 10 Salesforce Release Highlights that we believe are most important to YOU:
#1 Flow Builder becomes less scary
For many Admins or Salesforce beginners, Flow Builder can feel very overwhelming. But, it really doesn’t have to be. As with everything, it just needs time and practice for you to become confident. Plus, Salesforce is adding more and more click-not-code features into Flow Builder with every release, truly making Flow Builder so much easier to work with.
Developing Flow Builder is one of Salesforce’s priority items. Please note that you still need to be familiar with Workflow Rules and Process Builder because many Salesforce Customers have many of those in place. Check out my article on Why You Should Still Learn Workflow Rules and Process Builder.
And because Flow Builder is a priority, there are so many exciting updates, here is a list of some of my favorites:
Subflow Element in Record-Triggered Flow
Rollback Pending Record Changes When A Flow Element Fails
Outbound Message Available for Record-Triggered Flow
Avoid Creating Incompatible Resources from Choice Components
Choose More Options When You Debug a Flow
#2 Manage Record Access with Restriction Rules
The Record Sharing Model consists of Org-Wide Defaults, Role Hierarchy, Sharing Rules, Team and Manual Sharing. You will now have another tool at your hands to manage any remaining exemptions with Restriction Rules. Restriction Rules were previously in Beta and have now become generally available which is awesome.
While your baseline Record Sharing Model pretty much opens up access to records, restriction rules take away access. It’s like setting a filter criteria to display only selected records of those that a User already had access to.
Tip: Restriction Rules are currently only available for custom objects, contracts, tasks and events.
#3 Use Session Activation for entire Permission Set Groups
This feature was only available for individual Permission Sets and can now be used for entire Permission Set Groups. Permission Set Groups are used to allow assigned Users to complete very specific tasks. Access to these permissions can be limited to pre-defined sessions like a certain time frame during a workday. This is typically applied when highly sensitive data is involved.
No Tip, just use it. 😉
#4 Permission Set Groups assignments with Expiration Dates
I can’t believe it’s finally here, even though it’s currently in Beta. So let’s hope it stays for good. Managing the many Profiles and Permission Sets plus Permission Set Groups is hard enough, but removing permissions when no longer needed just adds to the pile. You can now have permissions sort of remove themselves by setting an expiration date. It can be used for both individual Permission Sets or entire Permission Set Groups. Once enabled you’ll find another button at the top. Go check it out!
Tip: Must be enabled in Setup under User Management Settings.
#5 Einstein Search is now available by default
With each release, Salesforce’s own AI tool Einstein becomes even smarter. One of which is Einstein Search. It has been available for a while though but now it’s turned on by default, and most importantly, at no extra cost. Einstein Search supports three key features: Personalization, Natural Language Search and Recommended Results.
Tip: Einstein Search features can be enabled/disabled in the Setup under Einstein Search Settings. Note: Developer Orgs/Trailhead Playgrounds are not supported.
#6 Gauge Charts in Dashboards respond dynamically
Charts used in Dashboards reference the data of the underlying report. However, when you apply a Gauge Chart the KPIs you wish to track against the data in the report, need to be defined manually. Therefore, the targets stay static. With the new ‘Dynamic Gauge Chart’ feature, you can make the entire Gauge Chart respond dynamically based on the filter criteria specified in the underlying report.
Note: This feature is currently in Beta and may not become generally available.
Tip: In order to make use of the Dynamic Gauge Chart, you need to enable this feature in the Setup under Reports and Dashboards Settings.
#7 Even more Inline Editing in your Reports
Not sure why this is in Beta, Inline Editing in Reports is not new but is being improved. I guess Salesforce is still finetuning its capabilities. With this release, Users can even inline edit date, picklist or lookup type of fields (not all but most of them 😉).
Tip: Inline Editing must be enabled in Setup under Reports and Dashboards Settings.
#8 Expand Your Collaborative Forecasts
Forecasting becomes more flexible. Salesforce has added a new category called “Most Likely” which sits in-between Commit and Best Case.
Tip: In Object Manager, select Opportunities and open the field ‘Forecast Category’. Note: You can label the field with any name you like, however it won’t match the category and can confuse yourself and the Forecast Users. And don’t forget to match relevant Opportunity Stages to this new Forecast Category!
#9 Territory Assignments Rules run on selected Accounts only
Territory Assignment Rules typically run through all your Accounts which can take a fair amount of time. No more! You now have the option to choose a subset of Accounts only.
No tip, just enjoy the new pop-up when you click the Run Assignment Rules button.
#10 Change the Sort Order of Upcoming and Overdue Activities
This may not be as exciting for Admins as it may be for Users. This one is a great addition for any Sales or other User who relies on Task and Event management. Salesforce has added an option to sort the list of Upcoming and Overdue Activities by oldest or newest.
No tip, just use it. 😉
There are so many more features to explore. Go check them out and remember you can earn points for learning all about them: Winter ’22 Release Highlights
Let us know in the comments which feature you enjoy the most. We’d love to hear from you!
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