The Superbadge Case Interview Guide for Recruiting Candidates with Salesforce Skills

Case interviews are helpful in testing for critical thinking, problem-solving and communication skills, and creativity. Check out these five steps to using Trailhead Superbadges for your next case interview.

Many employers use case interviews as a way to determine whether or not a candidate is a good fit for a role. They help you assess how a candidate frames a problem, approaches a solution, and articulates their thought process.

Luckily for those who recruit Salesforce talent, your team already has access to numerous case studies based on Salesforce scenarios and solutions. They’re called superbadges, and they live directly in Trailhead. And best of all, many candidates will have already earned multiple superbadges, which can save you time in the interview process.

Superbadges are skill-based, domain-level credentials that demonstrate Salesforce expertise through solving complex, real-world-inspired challenges that businesses face every day.

Super Sets are role-specific collections of superbadges that further test foundational knowledge of a specific role in the Salesforce ecosystem.

Here are five ways you can use a candidate’s superbadge experience for your next case interview.

1. Select the right case

Evaluate what skills are required for the role and pick a superbadge based on what it tests. Check out the Superbadge Interview Guides to understand which superbadges test which topics and key skills.

The skills are highlighted in dark blue bars, and each superbadge lists out what it assesses as well as sample interview questions. You can download or print a version to have handy for your next case interview.

2. Assign the superbadge

As part of the interview process, have all candidates complete your chosen superbadge prior to their interview.

Earning superbadges is a serious commitment. Be mindful, as each one can take 4 to 12 hours to complete — and there are pre-requisite modules needed to unlock each superbadge, too.

Inform candidates that they will need to be prepared to show their screen and walk you through their superbadge work during their interview.

3. Question their superbadge work

To start, you can ask the candidate high-level questions about how they approached their solution or what alternatives they considered.

Here are examples of general questions you can ask or to help the candidate warm-up:

• How did you approach your solution?
• What other solutions did you consider and why?
• How did you test your logic?
• Did you add anything to the solution that wasn’t in the requirements?
• How did the problem impact each major stakeholder?

It’s also valuable to ask questions specific to each case. Check out the Superbadge Interview Guide in which we suggest sample interview questions for each one.

4. Evaluate responses

Listen to the candidate’s responses to determine whether or not they thoroughly understand the problem, know the Salesforce technology, and can apply it to solve the business issue.

Ask the candidate to show their work for a specific question by sharing their screen and their developer org sandbox. You know that their work is correct, as it has already been validated through Trailhead, but getting them to talk about their solution and how they approached it is critical.

Here are some things to look for in the candidate’s response:

• Do they understand the question or business problem?
• Can they explain their framework for how they arrived at the solution?
• Can they articulate why they approached a step or solution a certain way?
• Can they answer case questions using proper Salesforce language?
• If you dive deeper into the work, is the candidate comfortable explaining in further detail to show they really know their work?

🌟 Pro tip: To stay connected and get further insight on what to look for, join the Trailblazer Community for Employers to engage with other recruiters, ask questions, and share ideas.

5. Provide feedback

Once you’ve completed the case, be sure to give the candidate some initial feedback. Candidates are always looking to know what they did well and how they can improve.

Here are some areas of feedback to provide:

• What areas did they do well on?
• How well did they explain their thought process?
• How comfortable were they with Salesforce terminology?
• What could they improve on?
• What other Trailhead Superbadges do you recommend they work on?

As you wrap up the interview, don’t forget to thank them for the time they invested in the superbadge and interview preparation.

A valuable recruitment tool

Trailblazers invest a lot of time learning and earning on Trailhead and are excited to showcase their work to employers. This Superbadge Case Interview Guide is a valuable tool that you can bring to your team as a resource for your interview process.

Be sure to check out Trailhead: A New Way to Assess Candidate Skills in Recruiting for more candidate evaluation tips.

For more best practices and resources, check out the Trailblazer Connect for Employers page. To stay connected, join the Trailblazer Community for Employers to engage with other recruiters, share ideas, and network.