Dustin McMorris

How did you get started with Salesforce?

My first experience with Salesforce was a conversion from Siebel to Salesforce where the company decided to transition our Call Center to the Salesforce platform. I was given three months to gather the requirements, select a telephony provider and implement a solution. Action packed would be a good description of those months, and despite the myriad of challenges, the implementation was successful and our call center went live with the rest of the organization.

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What’s your favorite thing about building solutions with Salesforce?

Not to be cliché, but anything is possible on the Salesforce platform. If you can imagine it, you can build it. Of course there are limitations, both technical and organizational, but those challenges are really drivers of innovation disguised as obstacles. Over the years I have collaborated on some really cool solutions that have helped organizations and individuals streamline processes and improve their day to day experiences, with Salesforce being the foundation.

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What energizes you at work?

The short answer is people - my team, my peers, my customers, my partners, and all the folks that turn solutions into successes. In the world of clicks, code, 1's and 0's, it is often too easy to lose sight of the people that drive the processes and produce the outcomes. Getting to know the doers, and helping improve their work lives means everything to me.

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Name a work achievement you’re proud of.

Many years ago, I was handed an inflight solution that promised more than it was really able to deliver. It just so happened that Salesforce was entering the beta phase for Briefcase, allowing just enough flexibility around offline caching to close the gap from what was promised to what needed to be delivered. Leveraging the new feature coupled with the existing design, the team was able to help a customer continue their mission of assisting people with storm cleanup in severe weather affected areas of the United States.

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Who or what inspires you?

One place my inspiration comes from is creative problem solving. I get very excited when I am told that something is too complex, too difficult or just can't be done. These challenges plant seeds in my brain that usually sprout into something cool. The lightbulb may illuminate over coffee in the morning, while mowing the lawn, or, all too often, at 2am when my mind just wanders. The answers that pop into my head may not be the right ones exactly, but they usually lead in the general direction of resolution.

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What’s one thing you’re learning now?

The more I learn about the inner workings and potential for Artificial Intelligence, the more enamored I become. Rosetree recently presented some internal training around Salesforce AI capabilities and I am hooked. From the technical aspects to the ethical considerations around its use, the depth and breadth of this topic seems endless. I would agree with most in thinking that AI is here to stay, and I want to experience its evolution and, more so, want to do my part to leverage it for good.

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What three words would your friends use to describe you?

Positive. Animated. Authentic.

What's something you love about the place you live?

North Carolina, in particular the Raleigh area, is perfectly situated between the mountains the shore. Within a 3 hour drive, you can lose yourself in the deep hollers of Appalachia or reset your perspective on the shores of the Atlantic ocean. If you want to stay local, we have all the advantages of a large city thanks to the 3 major universities within 30 miles of each other. You can also drive just a little bit and quickly find yourself on a country road cruising past old tobacco barns and little half forgotten small towns with true southern character. Choose your own adventure.

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What could we find you doing outside of work?

I have quite a collection of dogs and cats, so they take up a fair amount of my time. I do my best to maintain a small oasis in my backyard so that my family and I have a respite from the fast paced world in which we live. I enjoy taking things apart to see how they work, and can usually put them back together again, but not always.

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What trend do you hope makes a comeback?

While I do not contribute to a return of this, I hope that good ol' snail-mail letter writing makes a return. The evolution to a predominately digital world has taken some of the personality and intimacy out of the written word. Having historical artifacts, in the senders own hand-writing allows you to connect with that person, from however many miles (or years) away, at a depth that Times New Roman just can't.

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What’s your go-to karaoke song?

"Wish you were here" by Pink Floyd while the audience chants "wish you weren't"