Episode #8 – How to Test As an Architect with Paul McCollumPaul McCollum is a Salesforce MVP, enterprise architect, community leader (We Dreamin’, Architect Dreamin’) and author of Practical Salesforce Architecture. Together, we talked about how to move from roles like tester, admin or dev into architecture.Here are 5 key lessons for aspiring architects:1️⃣ Architecture ≠ “Senior Salesforce”→ A solution architect works inside Salesforce. An “Architect Architect” designs how multiple systems (Salesforce, Workday, IdP, data platforms, etc.) work together.2️⃣ Know what happens under the hood→ Great Salesforce architects understand databases, integration patterns and scale limits, and know when Salesforce is perfect—and when it’s not the right tool alone.3️⃣ Curiosity beats titles→ You can move from tester/admin/dev to architect if you relentlessly ask why things break, follow issues down to root causes, and learn the concepts behind limits and failures.4️⃣ Stop trying to “make Salesforce win”→ A real architect optimizes for business outcomes, not for their favorite stack. That means accepting constraints (budget, skills, timelines) and being okay when your preferred option isn’t chosen.5️⃣ Design your own apprenticeship→ Find architect mentors, study multiple paradigms (data, integrations, security), use Trailhead for solution skills, certifications like Data Architecture for foundations, and learn from real-world problems in the community.Hope you’ll enjoy this episode. Link to today's episode and extra resources:

• Connect with Paul on LinkedIn - / realpaulmccollum

• Book Practical Salesforce Architecture: Understanding and Deploying the Salesforce Ecosystem for the Enterprise - https://www.amazon.com/dp/1098138287?...

• Paul Trailhead Account - https://www.salesforce.com/trailblaze...

• Connect with the LinkedIn Group Architect Dreamin’ - / architectdreamin

• https://developer.salesforce.com/podc...