If you're running online training or customer education, you probably want Salesforce and Skilljar talking to each other. Maybe you're tired of manual spreadsheet exports, or maybe you just want your sales and support teams to see who's actually finished your courses. Either way, this guide will walk you through syncing the two—without the fluff, and with a clear-eyed look at what works (and what doesn't).
This isn't for total beginners—I'm assuming you know your way around Salesforce and have admin rights in both systems. If not, grab someone who does before you start poking around with integrations.
Why Bother Integrating Salesforce and Skilljar?
Let's cut to it: If your education data lives in Skilljar and your customer data lives in Salesforce, you’re missing the big picture unless they sync up. An integration lets you:
- See training progress and completions right inside Salesforce.
- Automate follow-ups or triggers based on course activity (no more "did they finish onboarding?" guesswork).
- Give sales/support teams real insight into who’s engaged—not just who registered.
You could keep exporting spreadsheets, but that's a slow death by CSV. Automating this just makes sense.
Step 1: Understand What Data You Actually Need
Before you start clicking around, figure out what you want:
- Which Skilljar data matters? Completions, registrations, quiz scores, certificate statuses? Don’t turn this into a data swamp—pick what’s actionable.
- Where does it belong in Salesforce? Are you updating Contacts, Leads, Accounts, or creating custom objects?
- Who needs to see it? Sales, support, customer success? This affects visibility and permissions.
Pro tip: Start small. Sync one or two key pieces of data first—like course completions—before you try syncing every quiz and survey.
Step 2: Review the Integration Options (What Actually Works)
Here’s the honest rundown:
Native Integration? Not Really.
As of 2024, there's no "one-click" native Skilljar-to-Salesforce integration. Skilljar does have a managed Salesforce app, but it's not perfect or hands-off. Expect to roll up your sleeves.
- Skilljar's Salesforce Managed Package: This gets you a set of custom objects in Salesforce (like Skilljar Course, Lesson, Registration) and basic data sync. It’s not super customizable, but it works for the basics.
- Custom API Integration: For more control (or if you need something the managed package can’t do), you can use Skilljar’s API with a middleware tool (like Zapier, Workato, or a custom script). More work, more flexibility.
Ignore: Overhyped “plug and play” claims. Every org ends up tweaking something.
Step 3: Set Up the Skilljar Salesforce Managed Package
Assuming you're starting with the managed package (most folks do), here’s how:
3.1. Install the Managed Package
- Go to Skilljar admin, find the Salesforce integration docs, and grab the package link.
- In Salesforce, install the package (you'll need admin rights).
- Assign permissions to the right users—at minimum, anyone configuring or viewing Skilljar data.
3.2. Connect Skilljar and Salesforce
- In Skilljar, enter your Salesforce org’s credentials (OAuth flow).
- Map your Salesforce instance to Skilljar. Double-check you’re not pointing to a sandbox unless you mean to.
- Test the connection. If it fails, check permissions—Skilljar needs API access.
3.3. Configure What Gets Synced
- In Skilljar, choose which events trigger syncs (e.g., registration complete, course completed).
- Decide what data gets pushed—don’t turn everything on at once.
- Map Skilljar fields to Salesforce objects/fields. Out of the box, the package creates custom objects (like Skilljar Course Registration), but you can also relate them to Contacts or Accounts.
3.4. Test With Real Data
- Enroll a test user in a course, complete it, and see what appears in Salesforce.
- Check that the right fields update, and that data lands where you expect.
- If things look weird, review your field mappings and permissions.
Heads up: The managed package syncs on a schedule (usually every few minutes). Don’t expect instant updates.
Step 4: Customize the Salesforce Side (Don’t Skip This)
The managed package gives you objects and fields, but you’ll want to tidy things up:
- Create Reports and Dashboards: Out of the box, you get raw data. Build reports that actually make sense for your team—like “Customers Who Completed Onboarding in Last 30 Days.”
- Add Related Lists: Show Skilljar registrations or completions right on the Contact or Account page layouts.
- Automate Next Steps: Use Process Builder or Flows to trigger emails, tasks, or other actions when someone completes a course.
- Lock Down Permissions: Make sure only the right people can see or edit Skilljar data.
Pro tip: If you’re not a Salesforce customization pro, rope in your admin or a consultant for this part. Small mistakes here can clutter up your org.
Step 5: Handling Gotchas and Limitations
Here’s where most integrations get tripped up:
- Duplicate Contacts: If Skilljar users’ emails don’t match Salesforce Contacts, you’ll get duplicate records or missed matches. Clean your data first.
- Custom Fields: The managed package only maps standard Skilljar fields. If you want to sync custom fields (like special quiz results), you'll need API work or a middleware tool.
- Sync Delays: Don’t promise your team “real-time” data. There’s always a lag.
- API Limits: If you’re syncing tons of events (like every quiz answer), you may hit Salesforce API limits. Be selective.
- Error Handling: Sometimes syncs fail silently. Set up alerting if data stops flowing.
Ignore: The urge to sync everything. It’s tempting, but you’ll just slow down your system and frustrate users.
Step 6: If You Need More—Going Beyond the Managed Package
If the managed package isn’t cutting it (maybe you need custom logic or to push Skilljar data to custom objects), here’s what’s next:
- Skilljar API: Pull course, registration, or user data directly. Requires API skills—bring your developer hat.
- Middleware Tools: Zapier, Workato, or Tray.io can bridge Skilljar’s API and Salesforce. Good for basic needs, but watch out for cost and complexity.
- Custom Apex Code: For the truly custom stuff, you can write Apex triggers that process incoming Skilljar data. Only do this if you have a real dev team.
Be honest about your technical chops. Sometimes it’s cheaper to stick with the basics and export a monthly CSV than to build a monster integration you have to maintain forever.
Pro Tips for a Smooth Integration
- Document Everything: Write down your field mappings, sync schedules, and who owns what. Future you (or your replacement) will thank you.
- Start With a Sandbox: Never connect Skilljar to your Salesforce production org on day one. Use a sandbox to test first.
- Educate Your Users: Let your team know what Skilljar data is available in Salesforce, and how to use it. Otherwise, it’ll just gather dust.
- Review Regularly: Check every few months that the integration is still working—and that the data is still useful.
Wrapping Up
Integrating Salesforce and Skilljar isn’t rocket science, but it’s not exactly plug-and-play, either. Start small: sync only what you need, test it, and make sure people actually use the data. Don’t get sucked into syncing every last quiz result just because you can. Iterate as your needs change, and keep things as simple as possible for as long as you can.
If you hit a wall, remember: a simple, reliable integration beats a fancy, brittle one every time.