Want your HR or employee data to flow smoothly between systems—without endless spreadsheets or surprise sync errors? This guide is for you. We’ll walk through how to hook up People (the HR and people management platform, not generic humans) to Salesforce so your records stay up to date, your team saves time, and you don’t need to babysit the integration. If you want a straight answer and practical steps—read on.
Why bother syncing People and Salesforce?
Let’s be honest: Most integrations promise the moon but deliver a pile of half-synced, duplicate data. But if you do this right, syncing People and Salesforce means:
- No more manual updates for employee info, contacts, or org charts.
- Sales and HR stay on the same page about who’s who.
- Less risk of “Whoops, I emailed the wrong Sarah” moments.
If your HR and CRM data are out of sync, you’re probably wasting your team’s time and risking mistakes. If that sounds familiar, integrating these two makes sense.
Step 1: Decide what data actually matters
Before you start clicking buttons or buying connectors, get specific about what you want to sync. Not everything in People needs to live in Salesforce, and vice versa.
Common scenarios: - Syncing employee names, emails, roles, and departments to Salesforce Contacts or Users. - Updating Salesforce when someone joins, leaves, or changes teams in People. - Keeping reporting lines (who reports to whom) up to date for sales territory planning.
What not to sync: - Sensitive HR data (salary, medical info) rarely belongs in Salesforce. - System fields or audit logs—this just clutters your CRM.
Pro tip: Make a quick spreadsheet or doc listing the fields you want to sync. If you can’t explain why a field needs to move between systems, skip it. Less is more.
Step 2: Pick your integration approach
Here’s where a lot of folks get stuck: There’s no “one-click” integration that fits every use case. You’ve got a few real options:
1. Native integrations (if they exist)
Check if People offers a pre-built Salesforce connector. Some platforms have this, most don’t—or it’s only available on expensive plans. If you’re lucky and it does exist, use it. Read the docs carefully; these tools often have limits or only sync certain fields.
2. Third-party integration tools
If there’s no built-in connector, consider tools like:
- Zapier: Good for simple “when X happens, do Y” workflows. Not great for complex data mapping or large-scale syncs.
- Workato, Tray.io, or Make: More powerful, lets you map fields and handle more complex logic. Comes with a learning curve and higher price tag.
What to watch for: - Some tools cap the number of records or syncs per month. - Error handling can be weak—if a sync fails, you might not know until someone complains.
3. Custom API integration
If you’ve got a developer handy (or you’re handy yourself), both People and Salesforce have APIs. This gives you total control and reliability—if you’re willing to invest the time.
- Best for: Larger orgs, custom requirements, or when off-the-shelf tools don’t cut it.
- Downsides: More upfront work, you’ll need to maintain it.
Don’t bother with brittle CSV export/import routines. They break easily and eat up time.
Step 3: Get access and prep your environments
You’ll need admin rights in both People and Salesforce. If you don’t have them, now’s the time to ask nicely (or bribe IT with coffee).
- Set up a test environment in Salesforce if possible. Don’t risk your production data until you’re sure things work.
- In People, see if you can create a sandbox user or test data.
Why this matters: You don’t want to mass-update real CRM contacts with “Test User” or accidentally delete records. Trust me.
Step 4: Connect the systems
This part depends on your integration approach. Here’s how it usually goes:
A. Using a native or third-party connector
- Install the connector (from People, Salesforce AppExchange, or your integration tool).
- Authenticate both sides: Usually means logging into People and Salesforce as an admin and authorizing the connection.
- Map your fields: Remember that spreadsheet from Step 1? Here’s where you tell the tool which fields in People map to which Salesforce fields.
- Watch out for mismatched data types (e.g., People’s “Department” vs. Salesforce’s “Division”).
- Set your sync direction: One-way (People → Salesforce), or bi-directional (changes in either system update the other). Be careful—bi-directional sync gets messy fast.
- Test with a handful of records: Don’t sync everything at once. Start small, check the results, and fix mapping issues.
- Schedule syncs: Real-time is best, but even hourly or daily is fine for most orgs.
Pro tip: Always set up error notifications. If a sync fails, you’ll want to know before it snowballs.
B. Building a custom API integration
- Review both APIs: Check the People API docs and Salesforce API docs. Make sure you can access the endpoints and data you need.
- Set up authentication: Usually OAuth 2.0 or API keys. Don’t hard-code credentials.
- Write your sync script/app:
- Pull data from People.
- Transform it as needed (rename fields, convert formats).
- Push to Salesforce using their REST API (probably upsert, so you don’t create duplicates).
- Handle errors and log everything.
- Test, test, test: Use dummy data first. Make sure you’re not overwriting or duplicating records.
- Automate: Schedule the script via cron, or trigger via webhook when data changes.
Reality check: Custom integrations are powerful but require ongoing care. APIs change, systems update, stuff breaks. Budget for maintenance.
Step 5: Set up monitoring and error handling
A sync that “just works” forever is a myth. Even the best integration will hiccup now and then.
- Enable logging: Whether it’s error emails or a dashboard, set up something you’ll actually check.
- Spot-check data weekly: Randomly pick a few records and verify they match across both systems.
- Have a rollback plan: Know how to undo a bad sync. Keeping regular backups helps.
Red flags to watch for: - Duplicate records cropping up in Salesforce. - Key fields (like email or role) not syncing as expected. - Sync jobs silently failing—this is more common than you’d think.
Step 6: Train your team (just enough)
Don’t skip this. Tell your users what’s changing and what to expect.
- Let them know which fields are now synced—so they don’t manually update things in both systems.
- Point them to who to contact if something looks off (ideally not you forever).
- Keep documentation short and to the point—nobody reads 20-page manuals.
Step 7: Iterate and improve
You’ll spot things you missed. Maybe a field that should sync, or one nobody uses. Don’t be afraid to adjust.
- Review your sync every quarter or so.
- Prune unused mappings.
- Ask your team for feedback—are they seeing data issues or gaps?
What works, what doesn’t, and what to ignore
What works: - Keeping the integration lean—only sync what’s essential. - Using built-in or reputable third-party tools if your needs are simple. - Clear field mapping and documentation.
What doesn’t: - Trying to sync everything (you’ll create chaos). - Ignoring error notifications or logs. - Relying on manual exports/imports as your “integration.”
Ignore the hype: There’s no such thing as a “set it and forget it” data sync for business-critical systems. Even the slickest integrations break sometimes.
Wrapping up: keep it simple, check often
Integrating People with Salesforce can save you a ton of manual work, but only if you keep things simple. Start with the basics, get your sync running, and keep an eye on it. Don’t let perfection stall you—iterate as you go. Most data headaches come from overcomplicating things. Remember: clean, current data beats fancy features every time.