We're delighted to introduce Eleanor Dearing, who has joined Sopra Steria as Operational and Alliance Lead within our Salesforce practice.
A Salesforce journey that started at a wedding
Eleanor's path into Salesforce is anything but conventional. While working in telecoms, she became intrigued with CRM systems and their potential to automate processes. But it was a chance encounter at a wedding that changed everything.
A bold fashion choice led to a conversation, which led to a follow-up, and eventually to Eleanor joining a Salesforce start-up. In 2010, she found herself working on one of the largest Salesforce implementations in the UK at the time. “It's been an incredible journey across the ecosystem”, Eleanor says.
Building something special
Over the years, Eleanor has worked in various roles within the Salesforce industry, building a managed services practice from four customers to 40, earning the UK’s inaugural Managed Service Expert status in the process. Her leadership in the sector was recognised in 2020 when she was shortlisted for a Women in Tech award in the Business Leader category.
When Practice Director Priyanka reached out about joining Sopra Steria's growing Salesforce practice, the timing couldn't have been better. “It's a really cool opportunity,” Eleanor says. “Building a Salesforce partner that brings something different to the table, working with some of the best of the best in the space.”
What does Delivery and Alliance Lead actually mean?
Eleanor's role focuses on two key areas. As Delivery Lead, she ensures consistency and high delivery standards across all Salesforce engagements.
The Alliance side is equally important. Eleanor's vision is to build strategic partnerships with gold-standard tools in the Salesforce ecosystem - independent software vendors who specialise in solving specific business problems. “Salesforce is amazing, as is the eco-system: there are thousands of independent software vendors out there,” she explains. “Expecting a customer to identify the precise one they need is a real challenge.”
The challenges businesses face today
When asked what brings clients to Sopra Steria's door, Eleanor identifies clear themes. AI adoption, automation, getting more value from Salesforce license spend, and cleaning up legacy environments that need some TLC.
“Most people want to get on the AI journey and embrace new technologies, but everybody wants to do that in a safe and responsible way,” she notes.
Why work with Salesforce consultants?
As a Salesforce Summit partner, Sopra Steria maintains the highest level of expertise across the platform. Eleanor's approach is about bringing cross-industry insights to solve business problems. “I might be talking to a retail bank and drawing on experience from an animal welfare charity, addressing the same issue but looking at it from a slightly different lens.”
The digital workforce revolution
One concept Eleanor is particularly passionate about is the digital workforce - using Salesforce's Agentforce to handle repetitive tasks 24/7, freeing up employees to focus on work that requires human judgement.
She gives a practical example: “I heard of somebody who spends a whole working day each month on an Excel spreadsheet for senior leadership reports. We can use an agent to do that, freeing up seven hours while they spend just one hour checking it.”
What really excites Eleanor is the potential for AI agents to work together seamlessly. “In one of my projects we're building agents that hand over to each other throughout a process”, she explains. “The ability to create agents that work together is really exciting - imagine the increase in productivity!”
Her vision? Starting your workday with a to-do list compiled by agents, with all the admin handled for you, and only the interesting work requires your attention. “I really want to get involved in an Agentforce for CyberSec project,” Eleanor adds. “I think that would be really challenging and rewarding.”
Advice for teams struggling with Salesforce
For organisations feeling like their Salesforce setup isn't quite working for them, Eleanor's advice is simple. “Come and talk to us.”
“With the team Priyanka’s built at the Sopra Steria UK Salesforce practice, the breadth and depth of experience is amazing. I have no doubt that we have something to offer every Salesforce customer, it’s really exciting!”
Ready to get more from your Salesforce investment?
Reach out and email Eleanor and the team for a no-obligation conversation about your Salesforce challenges and opportunities.