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Cert++

Resource Pack

Platform Strategy Designer

The Salesforce Certified Platform Strategy Designer credential is not a technical exam. There is no Apex, no configuration, no data modeling. It is a test of judgment: can you frame a problem well, align a room full of stakeholders, and hand a clear vision to the team that builds it? If you come from a UX, business analysis, or product strategy background, this cert formalizes skills you already practice. The exam has four topics that map loosely to the design thinking double diamond: Value Design covers the problem space, Tools and Artifacts covers the methods and artifacts you use, Intangible Deliverables covers facilitation and alignment, and Leveraging Adjacent Roles covers the handoff to execution. Pair this with the UX Designer cert if you want the full Salesforce designer credential track.

3-Step Path to Passing

  1. 1

    Complete the Strategy Designer Trailmix

    The official Salesforce trailmix covers all four exam topics and is a solid starting point. Work through it in order. The badges in the trailmix are the same ones tested on the exam, so completion is meaningful here.
  2. 2

    Attempt Practice Exams

    I recommend my own practice exams, but I have linked other options in the Study Resources section below. This exam is scenario-heavy, so practicing with scenario questions is essential. Two or three passes should put you in good shape.
  3. 3

    Schedule Your Exam

    Exams run every day at all hours. There is no need to schedule far in advance. Book when you feel confident in your scenario reasoning.

Core Resources

Exam Overview

Questions

65

60 scored + 5 unscored

Duration

105 min

1 hour 45 minutes

To Pass

68%

Minimum Score

Question Format

The exam tests design thinking methodology and strategic judgment through scenario-based questions. No Salesforce product or configuration knowledge is required.

Scored

92%

60questions

Unscored

8%

5questions

Exam Details

Pricing

$200 registration · $100 retake

Delivery

Online proctored or at a testing center

Experience

Recommended experience in design thinking and strategy

Prerequisites

No prerequisites required

Exam Topics

Each topic section shows the topic weight, learning objectives, and links to study resources.

Value Design32%

Challenge statements, problem framing, altitude and scope, success metrics and signals, organizational dynamics, external innovation context, strategic rationale, and ethics and advocacy for users.

  • Given a customer scenario, create an effective challenge statement that pairs a business objective with a user problem, to frame the altitude and scope of a design project.
  • Based on the challenge statement created, identify the metrics and signals that will define success.
  • Given a customer scenario, evaluate how the internal dynamics of the organization might impact your recommendation on the right approach to solving the challenge statement.
  • Given a scenario, explain how key external context for innovation might influence or impact the organization's strategy.
  • Defend the rationale for strategic directions, including how they satisfy business and user needs, and future implications.
  • Given a customer scenario, advocate for ethics and values on behalf of both users and the organization.

Resources

Tools and Artifacts23%

Personas, journey maps, UX artifacts, research methods, co-creation facilitation, How Might We reframes, feasibility and desirability and viability trade-offs, and connecting user needs to Salesforce capabilities.

  • Given a business need, connect user needs to high-level Salesforce capabilities.
  • Given a customer scenario, determine the criteria for feasibility, desirability, and viability within a user experience.
  • Given a customer scenario, identify the best methods of co-creation to employ with customers and stakeholders.

Resources

Intangible Deliverables26%

Alignment strategies, stakeholder relationships, champions and detractors, organizational dynamics, presentation and storytelling techniques, executive communication, and cross-discipline facilitation.

  • Given a scenario, craft a strategy to create alignment.
  • Given evolving internal dynamics, identify the key relationships needed to solve the challenge statement.
  • Given an audience description, identify the best presentation techniques for communicating a vision.
  • Given a scenario, utilize the tools for productive cross-discipline collaboration.

Resources

Leveraging Adjacent Roles/Skills19%

Implementation roadmaps, vision-to-solution handoffs, technical and business capabilities, design-to-build team collaboration, skill infusions, and bridging design intent through delivery iterations.

  • Given an aligned vision, create a roadmap for implementation that is feasible and holds true to the vision in every iteration.
  • Given a scenario, determine the technical and business capabilities that underpin the delivery of vision to solution.
  • Given a scenario of disparate business and technical deliverables within a design/build team, facilitate productive collaboration.
  • Given a scenario, determine the knowledge and skill infusions needed in the creation of a vision.

Resources

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