Salesforce Lightning is the future of the platform. A modern new user interface that looks beautiful, improves processes, and solves problems with clicks not code. Still, for many organizations, Salesforce Classic is their CRM back bone. At this point, it seems inevitable that Salesforce will retire Classic, but how soon will that transition to Lightning full time occur? Luckily, for all the Salesforce Classic fans out there, not quite yet, at least not in the foreseeable future. However, Salesforce recently announced in the spring ’19 release notes, that Salesforce will no longer be adding features to Classic. Also, moving forward this Fall, the Salesforce Winter ’20 release will turn on Lightning Experience for all orgs on a rolling basis. This transition will affect users with standard and custom profiles that the Lightning Experience User permission enabled. This change will automatically switch users to the Lightning Experience on a weekly basis. Users can still switch between Salesforce Classic and Lightning Experience from the user profile menu.
While Launched in 2014, the Lightning Experience has been slowly inching its way in to the Salesforce spotlight. At first launch, the Lightning Experience seemed to be slow and inefficient. Now, through many releases and continuous improvements, Salesforce is loaded with improved features for front end and back end users all in a beautifully designed interface. With this winter’s upcoming release, Salesforce is pushing users to get serious about the transition. Transitioning to the Lightning Experience is a large project and it takes time in order to have a smooth transition. Salesforce is slowly but surely nudging customers to make the leap into Lightning. This includes, some customers not even having access to use Salesforce classic, which came from the Summer ’18 release.
Salesforce Classic feels clunky and outdated compare to the Lightning Experience, so why are organizations unsure about the transitions? While every organization is different, many can relate in the amount invested into Classic. Time and resources have gone into many of these large Salesforce Classic improvements. Along with the transition, brings a large change into an organization. People are necessarily fans of change. As someone looking from the outside, it might be easy to see the added benefits, but a front-end user might not. This change will disrupt their routine and what they are comfortable with. For front end users to buy in, you must give them time to adjust and let them know well in advance. Giving users time, paired with training and practice, will sure to help ease the growing pains. It is also important to get your business leaders in the spotlight for the change. Many times, the leaders in the organization drive change, and it will help to have support from the top.
To prepare for the new release this winter, it might be time to step back and reevaluate the way your organization is utilizing Salesforce. In this situation, it might be more beneficial to be proactive instead of reactive when in comes to the big change. To get your organization thinking about change, try these tips:
- Run the Reediness Check, to see how prepared your Org is
- Test out the Lightning Experience in a Sandbox to see how your environment looks in Lightning
- See how new Lightning features can benefit your org
- Review the Compare Lightning Experience and Salesforce Classic chart
Salesforce Classic is not out the door just yet. Although, there are signs telling us Salesforce is interested in cutting the cord on Classic in the future. They are encouraging users to make the full transition into Lightning. Making the transition to Lightning, is another investment in your organization. Taking the time to evaluate your organization and prepare is an investment in the future.
If you want to start the transition into Lightning, please contact one of our Salesforce experts about it.
