Festivals are the heart of our culture, and at Perficient, we take pride in celebrating them with enthusiasm . On January 15th, 2025 our office came alive with the joy of  harvest season known with multiple names : Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Lohri, Bihu, and MakaraVilakku – festivals that mark the harvest season and symbolize gratitude, prosperity, and new beginnings.

A Glimpse into the Festivities

• Makar Sankranti is celebrated across India as a harvest festival and the transition of the sun into Capricorn, bringing longer days and warmer sunshine.

• Pongal, observed in Tamil Nadu, is a four-day festival dedicated to nature, symbolizing gratitude to the Sun God and the bountiful harvest.
• Lohri ,harvest fesival linked to the Punjab region celebrated by lighting bonfires, eating festive food, dancing and collecting gifts
• Bihu, the Assamese festival, celebrates the harvest with dance, music, and feasts, reflecting the spirit of community and joy.
• Makara Villakku, a part of the Sabarimala pilgrimage in Kerala, marks an auspicious day of devotion and light.

The most exciting activity of this season is flying kites, which symbolizes freedom, hope, and the joy of soaring high, reminding us to aim for greater heights.

Festive Day at Perficient

Our day began with employees arriving in traditional attire, adding a cultural touch to the office ambiance. Together we decorated the office and greeted each other with warmth and festive cheer.

The most exciting activity of the day was kite flying on the terrace. With the perfect windy weather on our side, employees teamed up to fly colorful kites, competing to bypass and “cut” each other’s strings, filling the air with laughter. It was a moment of nostalgia as we exchanged childhood memories of celebrating these festivals across different states. Having colleagues from diverse regions added richness to our conversations.

Back in the office premises, the energy continued with a game of tug-of-war. Employees formed separate teams of men and women, engaging in this competition. Togetherness and laughter turned this simple game into a fun-filled activity.

The celebrations concluded with delicious snacks: perfect way to wind down.

Conclusion

Beyond the decorations, games, and food, the day highlighted the beauty of our diversity and the bonds we build by embracing it. As we look forward to more such celebrations, we are reminded of the value of unity in diversity – a principle that enriches not just our workplace but also our lives. Here’s to many more moments of togetherness, joy, and success at Perficient!

Dear Atlanta Sitecore User Group, 

After such a long time apart, we finally got back together on August 24. We had pizza and wine, we shared stories, we laughed – it was exactly as I hoped it would be. 

ASUG, you are important to me for several reasons. First and foremost is community. We have a sizable, tenured, and accomplished Sitecore community here in the Atlanta area. Our group contains a healthy mix of clients, partners, and Sitecore employees, including several current and former Sitecore MVPs. ASUG, you bring together strong minds who are eager to collaborate and engineer new ideas in a relaxed environment. Can you think of anything better? 

Secondly, you provide opportunities for presentations. These grow the strength of Sitecore MVPs and allow the group to learn about concepts that they may not have heard about otherwise. Speaking at a SUG is a great chance for someone to add to their Sitecore MVP application, so your mere existence provides that for our Atlanta community. At the August SUG, we got to learn about the Component Builder in XM Cloud and get some technical tips and tricks for XM Cloud implementations. These sessions build momentum and excitement about future products and warn us about some “gotchas” from partners before others go through similar exercises. 

Learning about Components in XM Cloud and seeing it in a live demo was awesome. Brandon Bruno created a new headless hero component on the fly based on the Sitecore.com hero. This easy-to-use, drag-and-drop component builder is a truly innovative part of XM Cloud. There were a lot of great questions and discussion. It was difficult not to get too in the weeds; we could have talked about Components for the entire SUG. Having Sitecore employees attend and share insights is one of my favorite parts of ASUG. 

Also at our August meeting, I got the opportunity to present our newly refreshed values and mission statement. Our mission moving forward is “to foster an open, collaborative environment within the local Atlanta community whose chief goal is sharing knowledge of and experience with the Sitecore platform.” This was created based on values such as community, balance, fun, in-person, and partner-agnostic. Basing our group on these values should ensure that our relationship remains solid for a long time. 

ASUG, I am looking forward to this being a long-term relationship. I hope that we can continually get feedback from the community to make our relationship the best it can possibly be. Our next date is coming up in November at the same location, and I can’t wait.

Love,

Emily

With more than 7,500 colleagues and dozens of global locations, Perficient is making genuine and meaningful connections across the world. Through Perficient’s promise to challenge, champion, and celebrate all colleagues, our company remains a top workplace in the eyes of our people.

We take pride in creating a diverse work environment that celebrates and enables the career growth of our colleagues. In fully integrating our teams, and building strong relationships with our global colleagues, we can transform the world’s largest enterprises and biggest brands. Watch the video below to discover why our global footprint enables genuine connection and collaboration among our colleagues.

With teams spanning technologies and time zones, our expanding global business and inclusive culture promise to create opportunities to collaborate with the top talent in the world, while maintaining personal and collaborative relationships. We are uniquely positioned to deliver meaningful experiences and make a collective impact on our clients, communities, and one another. “Working with colleagues around the world is fantastic,” said Nicolas Pagliaro, general manager, Uruguay. “Every day, you have the chance to learn from different cultures and professionals. I think the most important thing about that is working with a single global team every day. For me, that’s amazing.”

Our colleagues come from different backgrounds and traditions, but we are each united under the same core values: Integrity, Innovation, Clients, Collaboration, People, and Pride. We’re proud to offer colleagues around the world the chance to make a difference and contribute ideas to help bring our unique culture to life.

READ MORE: Learn About the People Who Shape Our Culture

“I think what’s been really interesting for me is to get to know people that are in other locations,” said Henry Heisler, general manager, Southern California. “Whether it is Colombia, Argentina, or different places within India, the values and culture are consistent. By and large, everyone has the same core values around high integrity, doing good work for clients, and growing.”

How Is Perficient Accelerating Global Growth?

At Perficient, we know that global delivery is a powerful and compelling model for development, and we’re committed to building a world-class global delivery model that brings the best teams, capabilities, and processes together. We have thousands of skilled strategists in the U.S., Latin America, Eastern Europe, and India who partner with clients each day to deliver innovative digital experiences. Learn about our scaled delivery approaches to understand how our methodology allows us to maximize our clients’ digital investments and accelerate our time to market.

READ MORE: Discover How We Drive Results Through Our Global Teams

As an award-winning digital consultancy, our global footprint is enabling our colleagues to continue growing, learning, and collaborating with talented thought-leaders from around the world. Our Women in Technology Employee Resource Group (ERG), Perficient’s Giving ERG, and our newly created Innovation Groups, provide platforms for knowledge sharing, connection, and professional growth. Additionally, our new Cultural Connections ERG aims to educate, enable, and engage colleagues to celebrate multiculturalism. The group will host regular meetings and events to generate meaningful conversation around the cultural differences that shape our workforce.

“Our team structure supports our business a lot,” said Mary Jiang, director, LDC Consulting. “When we have a global team, we have the chance to learn different cultures. So, if we did not have a global team, I would never get the chance to come to the U.S. and learn a different culture. If we did not have a global team, we probably would not have a chance to learn Indian, Chinese, Latin American, or Europe’s culture. I think that is amazing thing. We live in one country, but we still have a chance to know a lot of people across the world.”

Discover Perficient’s Unique Global Culture

Our teams of skilled strategists and technologists around the globe bring an unmatched level of dedication, drive, and passion in everything we do – including a variety of fun events. Whether it’s our Nagpur colleagues dancing the night away during their annual party, our Bangalore colleagues celebrating India’s Independence Day, or our Mexico colleagues burning calories at personal defense classes as well as 5K and 10K races, we know how to work hard and have fun while doing it. Follow our global teams on LinkedIn to learn more about Perficient’s incredible office culture in Latin America, India, and the U.S.

The generosity of our people is inspiring, and through Perficient’s global footprint, we have the power to drive change and accelerate growth around the world. Perficient’s Community Impact Report showcases stories, activities, and results detailing the impact we’re making on a global scale. Read the report to discover the unique ways that Perficient colleagues are giving back to local communities, including how we’re improving our carbon footprint in Latin America, advancing STEM education through Perficient’s Colombia Robotics Team, and participating in volunteer events that make a difference.

“I think being able to help people across the world makes us stronger because we have so many different cultures and we can learn from each other,” said Lorena Fernandez, project manager, Argentina. “We’re improving ourselves each time that we interact with people and have the opportunity to meet them in person or in different events that we have. I think that’s awesome.”

READ MORE: Perficient Colleagues Give Back to The Global Community

Through collaboration across our global teams, we take an end-to-end approach to digital transformation and bring innovative ideas to the market. The possibilities for global delivery are endless. Stay tuned for the final blog in our series celebrating Perficient’s 2023 Top Workplace USA award where we will discuss how Perficient is working with some of the world’s largest enterprises and biggest brands to make a difference for our clients, partners, and business.

READY TO GROW YOUR CAREER?

It’s no secret our success is because of our people. No matter the technology or time zone, our colleagues are committed to delivering innovative, end-to-end digital solutions for the world’s biggest brands, and we bring a collaborative spirit to every interaction. We’re always seeking the best and brightest to work with us. Join our team and experience a culture that challenges, champions, and celebrates our people.

Visit our Careers page to see career opportunities and more!

Go inside Life at Perficient and connect with us on LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.

This year families will spend an average of $864 on back to school supplies, according to the National Retail Foundation. With inflation rising, one-third of consumers are having to cut back spending in other areas in order to afford these supplies. Teachers are often forced to buy their own supplies even though they make 21.4% less than their similarly educated peers.

Minneapolis Colleagues Give Back

Recently, our Minneapolis colleagues rallied the office to give back to their community schools. During the month of August they raised $1,100 to purchase school supplies. The team bought backpacks, notebooks, pencils, and items needed for classrooms. Our colleagues then donated the items to the Minneapolis Public Schools.

“I think of the Back to School event similarly to how we as consultants need certain tools up front to be to be successful on projects. It is the same for students in Minneapolis Public Schools. They need to have the supplies needed to start the year off towards success. All students need their own pencils, folders, paper, crayons, and calculators to be able to participate fully in their education and build their knowledge. Knowing that I can contribute to classrooms in this small way fills my cup.”

– Lyndsey Ruhland, lead business consultant

An Award Winning Culture

Our team in Minneapolis truly has an outstanding culture. They have been named a Top Workplace by the Minneapolis Start Tribune 9 times. And a lot of what drives that culture to be so great is their spirit of giving back. This year, we announced a new Bright Paths Program cohort in Minneapolis. The Bright Paths Program is advancing STEM education and career opportunities while helping to close the employment gaps that exist in the tech industry, especially among women and minorities.

The team has also been huge supporters of Technovation, a program that teaches girls the skills they need to change the world with technology. They’ve supported Toys for Tots and participated in Paint-A-Thons. But they also take pride in having a great working relationship with their colleagues.  Over the years they’ve done boat cruises, picnics, apple picking, and holiday parties to garner team spirit. And they’re not stopping anytime soon yet!

JOIN AN AWARD-WINNING WORKPLACE

When the modern Olympics started in 1896, and up till the 1970s, only amateur athletes were allowed to compete in the Olympics. True or False?

This was the deciding question of the first event of the Lafayette Delivery Center’s 2nd Office Olympics.

On Wednesday June 15^th, the Lafayette Delivery center hosted a joint in-person and virtual trivia night.

The Olympics-themed night was the official kick-off to the larger “Office Olympics” event. Office Olympics will officially begin this week with team walk outs. It will last three days and culminate with an awards ceremony, a raffle drawing, and the end of quarter Town Hall event.

About a dozen colleagues gathered in office and more joined via Teams to participate in the first “Olympic” event, but there was plenty of Olympic spirit throughout the day.

Door prizes were handed out at random for those attending in office. In addition, everyone who attended received a raffle entry.

James Proctor, member of the WE ARE MACHAMPIONS team, secured the first victory for his team by winning the 15-question trivia game.

How did you feel about the questions?

James Proctor
Associate Business Consultant

“Well, pretty good. I did my research. I googled ‘Olympics Trivia’ and figured he’d [the trivia master] would pick the second result. And almost all of the questions came from there.”

How does it feel to be the first winner from your team?

“I am the first, but not the last. MACHAMPIONS will crush the competition.”

Around thirty colleagues total from the LDC participated in the Olympics-themed trivia night. The night saw its share of ups and downs and comebacks.

There are even more spirited games planned for the LDC Office “Olympics” this week so stay tuned to meet the teams and see who comes out on top.

Didn’t know the answer to the trivia question at the beginning of this post? Well the answer is: True! 57% of participants answered correctly.

READY TO GROW YOUR CAREER?

At Perficient, we continually look for ways to champion and challenge our talented workforce with interesting projects for high-profile clients, encourage personal and professional growth through training and mentoring, and celebrate our people-oriented culture and the innovative ways they serve Perficient and the community.

Learn more about what it’s like to work at Perficient at our Careers page. See open jobs or join our talent community for career tips, job openings, company updates, and more!

Go inside Life at Perficient and connect with us on LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram.

My family experienced a terrible tragedy on the morning of Friday, April 8. The incredible outpouring of support from my Perficient colleagues helped to lift us back up, so much so, that I felt compelled to share our story.

The following excerpt is my first-hand account of the tragic events that we shared via a GoFundMe started with the support of my Perficient team.

The Morning Tragedy Struck

I don’t really know how to write this. It’s the kind of thing, I guess, that you hope to never have to write. My family is in need. On Friday, April 8, at around 5 a.m., my nine-year-old son Ulfric woke up. He woke up his older brother, Marcus, and asked him why there was so much smoke in the house. Marcus got up, looked around, and said he heard “burning sounds.” He opened the front door and saw the garage was on fire. He came to our bedroom and woke me up, “Dad, there’s fire on the house.” I got up and walked into the kitchen to see smoke everywhere.

I went to the front door and looked out, and immediately ran back into the house, hollering “GET UP! GET UP! GET OUT!” to the kids. I got them all through the front door and out into the yard, then sprinted back inside for my wife. She was still asleep. I woke her up, screaming that the house was on fire and we had to go NOW. She was groggy and didn’t quite connect what I said, so I grabbed her by her arm and hauled her out of the bed, screaming again that the house was on fire and we had to go. She finally understood me, and as we came around into the kitchen to head out, she said she saw a wall of fire… the roof had apparently come down between us in the kitchen.

I was screaming through the fire for her to go out of the back door. I could feel myself starting to cook, and I ran to the front door, feeling at that moment I had to either run or die. I made it out to the yard, still screaming behind me for her to go out the back, and as I made it into the yard where the kids were waiting, they started screaming it too. I was hysterical with relief when I saw her come around the side of the house. We managed to grab her phone, so we called 911.

We were still standing there in the front yard when I heard loud electrical noises. We looked up to see the power line to the house starting to snap and come down. As we started to back up, that was when we realized the car was on fire. We grabbed the kids and ran to the lot next door, and that’s where we watched the car explode, all the windows blow out, and everything we own go up in flames.

The paramedics arrived. The police arrived. The firefighters arrived… everything was noise and fire. The kids were standing in the lot in their underwear, the only thing they escaped with, and were shivering. Police officers sat them in a cruiser to warm up. The paramedics checked us all out and everybody was fine. I was the only one that was burned, and for that, I am grateful. We were transported to the hospital in a daze, thinking “Surely that didn’t just happen to us.” This is the kind of thing you read about happening to other people, you never think of yourself being in that situation. 

Reality Beginning to Set In

There is a lot to process. From realizing we had no shoes, to realizing we had no toothbrushes, little by little, it’s sinking in that everything is gone. We are asking for help in getting a new place, in getting a new car, in just getting the day-to-day things that are needed for life. Anything you can contribute will help, and if you can’t contribute, that’s fine too. I know that these are difficult times for everyone.

The time between when we woke up and when the roof collapsed was about two minutes. We were a hair’s breadth away from never waking up. Take care, and cherish the things you have and the people in your life.

Perficient Colleagues Rallied to Support Our Family

At the time, I was dazed. The enormity of what happened was still crashing down on me in waves. I borrowed my wife’s phone, the only thing we were able to rescue from the fire, and began firing off emails to let my director know and a few of my colleagues. 

I couldn’t work, my laptop was destroyed. Even if I had my laptop, I wouldn’t have been able to work because I used my phone for MFA, but my phone was destroyed in the fire. At that point, I was prepared to figure it out – just grind forward and, paycheck by paycheck, rebuild our life. Perficient, it seemed, had other ideas.

Our Lafayette office, where I report for work, pushed me to make an Amazon list of everything we needed and to make a GoFundMe. They were more than eager to help. Initially, I was unwilling, but I went along with it, more to appease them than anything else because, at the time, all I really wanted to do was curl up into a corner and hide.

In only forty minutes, everything we owned was destroyed. In a world where these things happen all the time, I wondered “Why would anyone care?” Most people, especially most corporations, have their own problems. Though they can spare sympathy, they’re not usually able to spare anything more than that. Looking at this situation as we slept in a family member’s borrowed bed, these were my thoughts as I tried to figure out how to begin putting our lives back together. I soon learned how wrong I was to think these things. 

I tried to arrange using my paid time off while I waited for a new work laptop to arrive, but I was instead told I was ridiculous and to file my time under “Catastrophic Event.” I apologized to my team for not being present and they all thought I was being absurd. “Take the time you need with your family, and come back when you’re ready,” they said. I was grateful, yet dazed even further – I’ve never seen such a response from a corporation – but still, very grateful. 

Soon after, the Easter baskets arrived with candy, toys, colors for the children, and even some for my wife and I. Then the amazon packages started arriving: towels, cups, plates, cutlery, and toys for the kids, and it continued on and on. Before I knew it, we had a great little start to what would be a new home, all wrapped in boxes and bags, and even this, wasn’t the end of their generosity. 

The GoFundMe was shared with Perficient teams in numerous ways, and the response from colleagues around the world was so strong. So strong, that despite the numbness we encountered from our loss, we were brought to tears multiple times by the outpouring of support we experienced. Every corner of the company truly became involved. Names I’ve only seen in emails showed up as donors, all while my colleagues in Lafayette were encouraging us to raise our end goal. It would be met in a sheer matter of hours, and we were to raise it again.

In the end, we were astonished by the number of colleagues, both from current and previous engagements and simply from the company itself, that came to lift us back up. I wish I could think of anything better than “thank you” to say as a response, but words cannot suffice. We were destitute, and Perficient lifted us back up. 

Home Within Perficient

I’ve never felt at home in a company. In my professional life, I’ve worked for many, and I’ve seen people and organizations rise and fall. I knew that a job was a job, and would simply only be that. 

That is no longer the case. Perficient, not the name, but the people who make up that name, saw our struggle. They reached out. They wanted to help. They helped in every possible way I could’ve ever imagined. With that, they lifted us back onto our feet. 

I feel at home in Perficient. 

This is my home. 

Around the holiday season, the Perficient Lafayette Delivery Center (LDC) looks for ways to bring some well wishes and holiday cheer to our local Lafayette community.

Though south Louisiana has a reputation for being hot and muggy, the winters can be surprisingly chilly, and this means some of our local friends and families need a little extra help staying warm.  The LDC’s Culture and Philanthropy Pillar partnered up with the Extra Mile this year to host its Winter Clothing Drive.

The Extra Mile Clothes Closet is run by Lafayette volunteers.  They support a large number of local non-profit organizations including the Acadiana Area Human Services District, The Department of Children and Family Services, The Office for Citizens with Developmental Disabilities, and many others.  To learn about The Extra Mile and how they give back, read more here.

Our consultants were invited to go through their closets and pick out any gently used clothing items they wished to donate to a good cause.  Donations were accepted in the breakroom at the LDC and items were transported to the drop off location by one of our own Culture and Philanthropy team members.  Pants, shirts, dresses, and more for people of all ages were welcomed and appreciated.

Whether clearing out their closet to make room for a fresh new wardrobe, or simply wanting to do a good deed for others in need, everyone’s donations made a big difference for the community.  In total, 11 large bags and 5 smaller bags of clothing were collected and delivered to the Extra Mile this January.

Now that the holidays are behind us, it’s important to keep looking for ways to continue making a difference in the lives of those around us all year long.  This is the LDC’s second year partnering with the Extra Mile, and we’re looking forward to helping out again in the future!

Lance Bruner, director

In 2021, Perficient continued launching new resource groups for colleagues to find connections and community while building their skills. In addition to the Giving ERG and Agile Community, Lance Bruner, director, took the reigns to formalize a group that had been providing information on consulting best practices to our localized GEO teams so that more people could participate and enjoy learning and sharing content.

This initiative directly supports our People Promise by providing a safe platform for our people to present and share their knowledge. Additionally, it also provides a continuous learning opportunity that can help us challenge and champion each other and aligns with a number of our values, especially around people and collaboration.

We sat down with him to learn a little more about how the Knowledge Sharing Community supports Perficient colleagues.

Describe the Knowledge Sharing Community.

The Knowledge Sharing Community of Practice is an initiative across all Perficient that is oriented on knowledge-sharing of functional skills and technical skills to provide a community for collaboration and skill growth. Initially, this is taking the form of monthly knowledge share sessions that will typically be held on the last Thursday of every month. We will be recording these sessions and they are housed on Perficient Academy for future reuse.

What events can people expect in this community?

Most recently, we hosted a panel discussion on “Scoping & Estimation” hosted by Joseph Willet, key account director leading all Perficient’s engagements for GM Financial and previously a director of experience design. He facilitated a panel discussion followed by an audience Q&A with Perficient subject matter experts to explore the topic of scoping and estimation across business units. The panel explored best practices, common challenges, and potential solutions for improving individual and cross-business unit estimation and scoping. It was really interesting because Joseph has a proven track record for combining client vision with delivery strategy to turn ideas into action across multiple Perficient capabilities including strategy, product management, experience design, development, and marketing.

Who is this community for?

Anyone who is interested in understanding best practices and ways to work with other business units on how projects are scoped and estimated. It’s especially helpful for team members who are involved or interested in scoping new engagements.

What excites you about being a part of this volunteer community?

It’s been exciting to get to know so many people outside of my project and BU that are passionate about helping each other build up our collective skills. I’ve also learned a lot on topics that I didn’t know much about before attending the sessions, such as web exploitation.

What do you think people will get out of the Knowledge Sharing experience? 

There are multiple ways we want our colleagues to get value out of this initiative.

Although a big part of the initiative is focused on the monthly knowledge sharing sessions via a presenter, an equally important focus is on the group discussion and community building aspect of those sessions, so that we can all get to know our colleagues outside of our BU’s and outside of our projects.

As a presenter, it’s an opportunity to refine your presentation skills in a safe environment, share and disseminate knowledge on a topic you’re passionate about, and increase your brand recognition within the Perficient community as a Subject Matter Expert on the topic.

As a participant, colleagues get the opportunity to learn about functional and technical topics that can expand their skillset. They get to meet and collaborate with Perficient colleagues across a variety of business units and really understand who in Perficient has subject matter expertise on certain topics, so they can follow up with those colleagues if further training or help in those areas is needed.

What have you personally gotten out of it?

For me, personally, it’s been a wonderful opportunity to get to know colleagues from across Perficient on the steering committee that are passionate about the idea of knowledge-sharing. Also, it’s been amazing to see the depth of knowledge and curiosity our colleagues have. It’s humbling to see how incredibly talented and willing to contribute our team has been.

Across our 6,000 + colleagues, we have so much great experience and knowledge that we’ve gained throughout our careers, it’s important that we have a platform to leverage and spread that knowledge to our colleagues so that we all collectively build each other up and expand our skills together.

KEEP READING: Learn more about Perficient’s knowledge management expertise

Perficient Provides Tools and Support for All Colleagues

It’s easy to see Lance has brought together top thought leaders across the company to find new ways to support other colleagues, something important to a global and growing organization like Perficient. When you come to work at Perficient, there are always tools to support your journey and people willing to help.

SEE MORE: About Perficient supporting colleagues at all stages of their career journey

READY TO GROW YOUR CAREER?

Our People Promise states: “Perficient promises to challenge, champion, and celebrate our people.”

That promise is something we take seriously; we believe in championing each other through both challenges and celebrations. That support is baked into our culture, which is especially important at the beginning of your career.

READ MORE: Unveiling the New Perficient People Promise

About Perficient’s Campus Program

The Perficient Campus Program provides intelligent and talented individuals who are just starting to build their careers the chance to grow while making a collective impact with other Perficient colleagues around the globe.

This program is for people who are:

• Students with a technology-related major
• About to graduate with your Bachelor’s degree
• Passionate about technology
• Looking to excel in their career

By providing an overview of Perficient’s business, culture, and tools, our enhanced training program for associates is specialized to provide an experience unique to the needs of recent grads.

Read More: About Perficient’s Campus Program

Why Join Perficient’s Campus Program

Taking your first job is a big decision and the company you choose can have a powerful impact on your career. Perficient’s success is built upon the success of our people, one fact that is never forgotten.

Here, a few of our colleagues share about their recent experience in the Campus Program and how it helped them find success.

Overcome First-Day on the Job Nerves

Campus Program attendees collaborate on a wide variety of projects and dive deeper into technology solutions before deploying to a client.

Micheal G., associate technical consultant at Perficient

“Everyone was very informative in what Perficient expects and how to improve ourselves as employees. Programs like this help, mainly because most new employees are nervous, and it helps to break the ice and make them feel more comfortable.” Michael G., associate technical consultant

“I enjoyed being surrounded (virtually of course) by people who are in the same shoes. It makes the whole thing a little less overwhelming.” JeanPaul A., associate technical consultant

Launch Your Career with a Built-in Support System

“I think it’s important to show up for your new employees by setting up the support system from the start. On the first day, I was overwhelmed by all the resources and support from everyone we talked to. Everyone always encouraged us to reach out and ask questions which demonstrated what makes Perficient’s company culture so great.” Gabby T., associate business consultant

READ MORE: How & Why to Ask Questions

Learn about Perficient and the Role You Play in How the Business Operates

“Programs like this are helpful for new hires joining a company of this scale. A lot of information was needed, and thankfully, a lot was given.” JeanPaul A., associate technical consultant

Enjoy our Continuous Learning Environment

Between Perficient Academy, bimonthly Career Growth panels, and several knowledge-sharing communities, there is no shortage in educational content to keep our colleagues developing as professionals, and as people.

“The Campus Program was great! My favorite part of the program had to be the variety of speakers. Every step was carefully talked through, and everyone was willing to stop and help whenever we needed.” Michael G., associate technical consultant

Learn Key Business Skills

Gabby T., associate business consultant at Perficient

“By interacting with my peers, I also learned from their questions that I didn’t think to ask. I felt supported from the start because people from different areas of the company were showing effort to be part of my career development in any way that they can.” Gabby T., associate business consultant

READ MORE: New-Hires Gain Real-World Experience in the Corporate Onboarding Boot Camp

Enjoy Community with Other Campus Program Attendees

“My favorite part of the Campus Programs is that we were constantly connecting with our peers. It was comforting to know that we’re all starting out on the same page even though we’re all coming from different backgrounds, cities, levels of education, and skillsets. All of us coming together and interacting was fun because I didn’t feel misguided or alone.” Gabby T., associate business consultant

Experience the Joy of Collaborative Colleagues That Wants You to Succeed

“I’ve learned that it’s not realistic to think you’ll know everything about everything in your career. Adaptability is key.” JeanPaul A., associate technical consultant

Contribute to Perficient’s Knowledge-Sharing Culture

When you move at the pace Perficient does, it becomes quickly apparent you cannot do it all. The more collaborative you are, the more resources you have when you need them.

“I learned the importance of continuing to pass the knowledge I’ve gained through the Campus Program to other employees to also help them develop their careers and better the company as a whole.” Gabby T., associate business consultant

Perficient provides a space to be helped, and also help others. We believe that mentoring up is just as important as mentoring down.

By providing an overview of Perficient’s business, culture, and tools, our enhanced training program is specialized to provide an experience unique to the needs of recent grads.

Our Campus Program is typically hosted in our global headquarters, however, it has been virtual since Spring of 2020. We look forward to continuing to build our Campus Program to facilitate the best, safest, and more successful training experience available.

READY TO GROW YOUR CAREER?

We are excited to welcome Sarah Khalid to Perficient as a Salesforce and MuleSoft Technical Architect, and as a partner community leader and mentor!

Sarah Khalid, Salesforce and MuleSoft Technical Architect

A Salesforce and MuleSoft Technical Architect role at Perficient plays a crucial part in our Salesforce and MuleSoft strategies. It requires not only a high degree of skill in our technological solutions, but also requires a high degree of consulting, relationship building and management, and the ability to see the big picture that our solutions can bring to a client.

This role owns the overall technology roadmap and vision for a client and is responsible for maintaining and growing relationships with our clients to ensure a strong long-term partnership. Sarah will work closely with client consultants, engagement managers, project managers, as well as the technology teams to ensure projects are on-time, on-budget, and of the highest quality, as well as adhere to the technology roadmap that she will have laid out.

Sarah Khalid has over 12 years of experience on the Salesforce platform. As a Salesforce and MuleSoft Technical Architect, she holds 15 Salesforce certifications, including the Application and System Architect certifications, and has recently become MuleSoft certified. She looks forward to sharing her insights and best practices for both Salesforce and MuleSoft technologies.

Sarah Khalid, a Salesforce Golden Hoodie Trailblazer

Sarah is also an active Salesforce Community Group Leader for Women in Tech and one of the first sixteen individuals to take part in the brand new MuleSoft Community Program — The MuleSoft Mentors!

Recently, Sarah was awarded a Golden Hoodie from Salesforce! Becoming a Golden Hoodie Trailblazer is a way for Salesforce to recognize people for their contributions to the Salesforce and local communities. It’s an elite group of Trailblazers for going above and beyond, and Sarah is a great resource for both Salesforce and MuleSoft Architects and communities.

5 Questions for Sarah

Question 1: As a Salesforce and MuleSoft Technical Architect at Perficient, what is your main responsibility? Can you explain your role in the consulting world?

Sarah: I am responsible for successfully designing and managing the delivery of Salesforce cloud-based solutions and MuleSoft technologies. I will work with application developers, users, operational leadership, and subject matter experts to understand current and future operational data analysis goals. It is then my responsibility to recommend modern technology stacks to meet our clients’ goals and help engineering teams migrate towards their use.

In the consulting world, I leverage a consultative approach to explain solutions that I have designed with an engineering mindset. It is important for me to be able to speak to a wide range of audiences from highly technical to strictly business focused. As a Technical Architect, I work in parallel with the Client Consultant on an account. The Client Consultant will represent the business process and vision, while the Technical Architect delivers the technical solutions and roadmap to fulfill the business needs and visions.

Question 2: Can you describe your technical background and your journey growing within the Salesforce platform?

Sarah: Towards the beginning of my career, I was a general developer and soon progressed into a Salesforce specialist. At the time, Salesforce gave me the unique opportunity to work from home while raising young kids, but I recognized Salesforce provided much more than that. I eventually became accustomed to Salesforce as I truly enjoyed designing systems and solving problems using the platform. Ultimately, I then decided to holistically focus my career on Salesforce and subsequently pursued the Salesforce Architect track. As my kids got older, I learnt about the Salesforce Community and started attending Community events where I was able to meet a lot of amazing people and share my technical knowledge. By creating connections within the community, I was compelled to take on a leadership role as a Salesforce WIT User Group co-leader.

Question 3: Can you talk about how you expanded your skillset from a Salesforce Technical Architect to MuleSoft?

Sarah: Learning about MuleSoft, an integration and API platform, was a result of sheer curiosity and thirst for knowledge. Since Salesforce had announced their acquisition of MuleSoft I was interested to learn how the two platforms would work together as one. Due to the lack of information available on how Salesforce and MuleSoft connect, I decided to learn the MuleSoft platform myself to comprehend the connection of the technologies.

First, I started with MuleSoft’s free self-paced learning path (training available on MuleSoft.com) and later fulfilled the instructor-led training course for Mule 4 Developer which helped advance my skills by providing hands-on experience. Afterwards, I worked towards my goal of becoming MuleSoft certified and in roughly a year, I was able to achieve that goal.

Following my certifications, I felt it was my obligation to leverage my subject matter expertise and give back to both Salesforce and MuleSoft by contributing content focused on the two technologies working together. This led to the start of my personal and professional blog, sarahinthecloud, which features technical content for implementing Salesforce and MuleSoft together.

Question 4: What are your contributions to the Salesforce and MuleSoft communities?

Sarah: For the Salesforce Community, I am a user group co-leader for the Salesforce Women in Tech (WIT) Group, Princeton, United States. I have also contributed presentations and speaker sessions to other Salesforce user group events, including Salesforce’s World Tour. In addition to Salesforce user groups, I assisted a local non-profit PTO with obtaining free Salesforce licensing and configured the platform to distinctively operate for their organization – ultimately replacing manual paperwork by automating their business processes.

For the MuleSoft Community, I was recently selected as one of the sixteen first MuleSoft Mentors for the launch of the brand new MuleSoft Mentors Program. As a MuleSoft Mentor, I will help MuleSoft Community users to expand their technical skill set, share technical content of their own, and eventually prepare them to become Mentors as well! In addition, I have participated in various speaker sessions for MuleSoft user group events to highlight both the Salesforce and MuleSoft platforms.

For both communities, I contribute technical content with my blog, sarahinthecloud, which is focused on the Salesforce and MuleSoft platforms. Throughout this first year of blogging, sarahinthecloud has won multiple awards from the MuleSoft Community. Moving forward, I will continue to be an active contributor for both communities. Check out the upcoming events for which I will be featured as a MuleSoft Trailblazer with background for both Salesforce and MuleSoft platforms.

 | Thursday, June 17, 11 AM CDT | Register Here

 | Wednesday, June 23, 12:00 PM – 12:30 PM CDT | Register Here

If you are interested, please register with the links above for the events and learn more about my journey expanding into the MuleSoft platform from Salesforce.

Question 5: Do you have any advice for our team?

Sarah: My advice would be to always work on your personal professional development. I expanded into MuleSoft from Salesforce by development of my professional skills. It was important for me to develop my skillset and grow my certifications. After 8 years of working within the Salesforce platform, I decided to start growing my certifications and was able to achieve 15 of my certifications within 2-3 years.

Connect with Sarah on LinkedIn!

About Our Salesforce and MuleSoft Practices:

Perficient is both a proud Salesforce Consulting Partner and a MuleSoft Premier Partner. As one of few implementation partners with dedicated practices supporting both platforms, we can solve your toughest business challenges with innovative approaches.

As an awarded industry leader, Perficient thrills clients with innovation. We help the world’s leading brands use Salesforce and MuleSoft to accelerate digital transformation, drive innovation, grow their business, and create connected customer experiences. By leveraging consulting services, organizational change management, and customized solutions specific to each industry, Perficient’s clients are also able to accelerate time-to-market. With Perficient, you get the experience and expertise needed to deliver impactful solutions that drive your business forward.

LEARN MORE: About our Promise to Challenge, Champion, and Celebrate our People

SEE MORE PEOPLE OF PERFICIENT

Perficient believes that the best companies are the ones that invest in the professional growth of every colleague while embracing each person’s individual backgrounds, voices, and perspectives. We also believe that diversity and inclusion are constant pursuits and that more can be done to create equitable opportunities throughout the technology industry.

Research shows that the number of women serving as computing professionals has experienced a long period of decline. Perficient is committed to focusing on advancing women in technology to facilitate STEM career growth, and building a technology community dedicated to supporting diversity.

To help achieve this, we recently launched a new community program called Perficient Bright Paths, a virtual education experience designed to advance STEM education and career opportunities for underrepresented constituencies and communities while helping to close the gap that exists in the technology industry, especially among women and minorities.

“There’s extensive documentation addressing the challenges faced by women and minority communities within the technology industry,” said Andrea Lampert, vice president of people and executive sponsor of Perficient’s Women in Tech ERG. “Yet, despite increased focus, employment figures remain stubbornly low. We wanted our first Bright Paths program to focus on women in technology to begin addressing our industry’s shortcomings in our own communities.”

READ MORE: About Perficient’s Women in Technology

Our People-First Approach to Career Growth

Our People Promise, and its supporting attributes – Growth for Everyone; Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging; Global Footprint with Genuine Connections; and Biggest Brands – express the commitment we make to our people and communities with hopes to foster an environment and culture that not only attracts but retains the most talented in our industry to build long and prosperous careers with us.

The first Bright Paths cohort launched in March in partnership with Strategic Education, Inc.‘s Hackbright Academy, an all-women’s coding bootcamp and software engineering program. The cohort consists of 22 women who are learning Python over a 14-week virtual course. Perficient’s goal is to extend a number of qualified cohort graduates a full-time job in the software engineering and development field, where they will partner with one of the world’s biggest brands in the Detroit metro region. Perficient is fully funding the Bright Paths training programs to provide opportunities to ambitious, deserving, and committed candidates who otherwise might be unable to pursue them.

BONUS: Learn about Perficient’s AI Bootcamp in Dallas, TX

Further Personalizing the Experience for Bright Paths Students

In addition to providing the customized coding bootcamp, the inaugural program also features “Perficient Thursdays,” offering the women a chance to learn about the consulting business and Perficient at large. Guest presenters have included many Perficient colleagues, even hosting the executive leadership team for an AMA.

“It’s important for the students to know the support we provide doesn’t end with just technical skills,” said Joel Stanesa, general manager, Detroit operations. “We want to get to know each student in the class, support them throughout their journey, and ensure they are ready to hit the ground running upon graduation.”

Joel Stanesa, general manager, (far left) celebrated winning Top Workplace in Detroit with fellow colleagues including a key figure in Bright Paths Program, Gugu Mabuza, director (far right)

“I’m so proud to be part of an organization that is prioritizing efforts to resolve inequalities too often found in our industry,” Andrea shared. “At Perficient, we often say we are champions of our people in their career growth. Now with Bright Paths, we can confidently and proudly say we are doing the same in our communities.”

BONUS: LPGA Golf Pro Morgan Pressel Meets with Perficient’s Women in Technology Group

READY TO GROW YOUR CAREER?

Nonprofits that revolve around health and wellness are always popular and widely supported around the holidays. Almost every person in the United States knows someone who has been affected by illnesses similar to cancer, ALS, MS, or heart disease. According to cancer.gov, in 2018 there were 18.1 million new cases of cancer and over 9 million deaths across the world. Most people can think of a health or wellness organization they support when asked. 

Helping Make Communities a Healthier Place

Sumi Mohan, associate technical consultant in Chennai

During 2020, health was at the forefront of everyone’s minds. The COVID-19 pandemic had individuals worldwide even more focused on health and hygiene than before. In the 2020 holiday season, Perficient’s colleagues were all given $100 dollars to pay it forward in their communities and spread some much-needed kindness. Almost 100 colleagues chose to give back to health and wellness organizations, some of which are linked below. This is in addition to the many colleagues who donated and paid directly for medical care and supplies for people around the globe.

BONUS: Perficient Colleagues Purchase Dialysis Machine in India Through Kindness Campaign in 2020

Jorge Andres Montes Alvarado, software developer in Colombia

Giving Back to Health & Wellness Organizations

Our colleagues gave back to health non-profits, representing a variety of different health causes, national and local charities, and research centers, hospitals, and resource centers alike.

Colleague Helps Fund Free Dance Lessons for People with Parkinson’s Disease

Matthew Fleishman, senior solutions architect, chose to donate to a cause that is near to his heart: dancing for health. Dance 4 Your Health is dedicated to bringing the joy and healing power of music and dance to people with Parkinson’s Disease and other degenerative neurological diseases via the power of the Internet at no cost to the participants.

“Dancing helps people bring control over their bodies they might not otherwise have had,” explains Lorena Bravo, the dance instructor who now teaches in front of a screen instead of in the dance studio. Lisa Sandoval, who helps run Dance 4 Your Health, informed us that the virtual environment has allowed visitors from Boston, Los Angeles, and even Chile to join the free class. “We need fun,” Lorena continues. “We need something to look forward to, and Perficient’s donation will help many people continue to dance for their health.”

You can sign up for free classes and offer donations on their website.

Click to view slideshow.

Check out some of the organizations our colleagues gave back to below and consider paying it forward and donating time or money to a cause you care about! 

• 

  Andrea Lampert, vice president of People in St. Louis, MO

  St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital

• Boston Children’s Hospital
• Doctors Without Borders
• Red Cross
• National MS Society
• ALS.org
• Bennet Project
• Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research
• Alzheimer’s Foundation
• National Alliance on Mental Illness
• Relay for Life
• Special Olympics
• Gennesaret Free Clinics
• Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

• 

  Mitesh Shah, lead technical consultant in Atlanta, GA

  Shriners Hospitals for Children

• Smile Train
• Leukemia and Lymphoma Society
• Lighthouse Pregnancy Resource Center
• Pink Ribbon Girls for Cancer
• American Lung Association
• Tree of Hope SSM Health Cardinal Glennon
• Fundacion San Vincente de Paul
• American Stroke Association
• Equine Assisted Therapy Center
• Cancer Research Institute
• MD Anderson Cancer Center
• Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals
• project CURE
• Children’s Orthopedic Institute
• Family Matters Home Services LLC

• 

  Chris Restle, senior solutions architect in Milwaukee, WI

  Sandnya Sanwardhan Sanstha School for Mentally Challenged

• Chicago Lighthouse for the Blind
• Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation
• North Central Medical Center
• Pancreatic Cancer Research Fund
• Sankara Eye Foundation
• Snehanchal Palliative Care Center
• Texas Children’s Cancer Center
• The Glioblastoma Foundation
• Mario Lemieux Foundation

BONUS: Making a Global Impact at the Local Level With Our “Make a December Difference” Campaign 

MAKE A DECEMBER DIFFERENCE

Perficient are big believers in giving back to the communities in which we live and work, and we have the opportunity to empower our colleagues to pay it forward and spread some much-needed joy. It’s our hope that these single acts of giving and gratitude leave individual marks on the communities in which we live and work. Together, we have an opportunity to make a global impact.

Learn more about the “Make a December Difference” campaign of kindness

Follow our “Make a December Difference” story at Life at Perficient and connect with us on LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram. Visit our Careers page to see career opportunities and more!