Every single person who needs to log in to your Salesforce organization—whether they are a salesperson closing deals, a service agent answering tickets, or the CEO looking at dashboards—must have a User record.
In this guide, we will break down what makes up a Salesforce User and walk through the steps to create one.
What is a "User" Record?
In Salesforce, everything is a record. A customer is a "Contact" record; a potential sale is an "Opportunity" record. Similarly, an employee who needs access to the system is a "User" record.
This record doesn't just hold their name and email password. It is the control center that defines exactly who they are, what they can see, and what they are allowed to do in the system.
The Three Key Ingredients of a User
When you create a user, you aren't just giving them a username. You have to define three crucial elements. Let's use a real-world example of a company that sells computers.
1. User License (The "Ticket")
Think of the User License as the admission ticket to a theme park. Some tickets let you ride everything (full access), while cheaper tickets might only let you enter the gift shop (limited access).
In Salesforce, the license determines the baseline features available to that user.
Real-World Example: A full-time Sales Manager needs a full "Salesforce" license to access everything. A contractor who only needs to log time might only need a cheaper, restricted "Platform" license.
2. Profile (The "Job Description")
If the license is the ticket into the park, the Profile is the set of rules they must follow once inside. Every user must have a Profile.
The Profile controls what they can do. Can they delete records? Can they export data? Can they see the setup menu?
Real-World Example:
Sales Profile: Can create new Opportunities and edit customer details, but cannot delete anything.
System Admin Profile: Can do absolutely everything—the "super user."
3. Role (The "Hierarchy")
Profiles control what you can do, while Roles control whose data you can see. Roles are optional but highly recommended for data security. They usually mimic your company's organizational chart.
Salesforce uses a hierarchy: people higher up in the role hierarchy can usually see the data owned by people below them.
Real-World Example: A sales rep in the "Western Region Role" can only see their own deals. The "VP of Sales Role" (who is above them in the hierarchy) can see their own deals plus all the deals belonging to the Western Region reps.
Tutorial: How to Create a New User in Salesforce
Creating a user is a straightforward process done by the System Administrator.
Step 1: Navigate to Setup Click the gear icon in the top right corner and select Setup.
Step 2: Find the Users Menu In the left-hand Quick Find box, type "Users" and click on the Users menu item below "Users and Roles."
Step 3: Start a New User Click the New User button in the center of the screen.
Step 4: Fill in the Required Details You will see a long form. Don't worry, you only have to fill in the fields marked with a red bar.
Here are the essential fields you must complete:
First Name / Last Name: The employee's actual name (e.g., John Smith).
Alias: A short code for the user, usually auto-filled (e.g., jsmith).
Email: Their work email address.
Username: This must be unique across all of Salesforce worldwide, and it must look like an email address. It is often the same as their email, but it doesn't have to be.
Example: john.smith@mycompany.com.qa (Adding something like '.qa' helps keep it unique if you are testing).
User License: Select the appropriate license first. This will filter the list of available Profiles.
Profile: Select their job function (e.g., "Standard User" or a custom profile like "Sales Rep").
Step 5: Save Ensure the "Generate new password and notify user immediately" checkbox is ticked (it usually is by default). Click Save.
The new user will immediately receive an email with a link to set their password and log in for the first time.
Crucial Best Practice: Deactivating vs. Deleting
Here is the golden rule of managing Salesforce users: You never delete a User record.
Why? Imagine John Smith closed a big sale five years ago. The history of that sale says "Closed by John Smith." If you deleted John's user record completely, Salesforce wouldn't know who closed that deal. Your historical data would break.
When an employee leaves the company, you Deactivate them.
How to do it: Go to their User record, click Edit, and uncheck the Active checkbox.
What it does: This immediately stops them from logging in, but keeps their name on all the old records they worked on. It also frees up their "License" so you can give it to a new employee.
Summary
- What is a User? Anyone who logs into Salesforce to perform work. Each user record consumes one license while active.
- The Big Three Settings:
- License: Determines the "Ticket" (Access to features).
- Profile: Determines the "Job Description" (What they can do).
- Role: Determines the "Visibility" (Whose data they can see).
- Username Rule: A username must be in an email format and must be globally unique. No two people in any Salesforce organization in the world can have the same username.
- Deactivate, Don’t Delete: Never delete a user. Uncheck the Active box to stop their access. This preserves your historical data and frees up the license for someone else.
- The "Welcome" Email: Always ensure the "Generate new password" box is checked when creating a new user so they receive their login link immediately.
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