SOQL / SOSL
Also written as SOQL, SOSL, Salesforce Object Query Language
Salesforce's query languages. SOQL looks like SQL and fetches records from Salesforce objects such as Accounts and Opportunities; SOSL searches text across several objects at once. Neither does everything SQL does, such as free-form joins between any tables.
Think of it like
Asking the franchise's own stock system for a report: you get what you need, but only in the formats the system offers.
Junior or senior?
Every Salesforce developer writes SOQL.
Senior sounds like
Knows why a query inside a loop breaks governor limits, and has tuned slow queries on objects with millions of records.
Ask them
“What's the slowest SOQL query you've had to fix, and what did you change?”
Sounds like real experience
Describes a slow or failing query on a large object and the fix, such as filtering on indexed fields, selective queries or moving the query out of a loop.
Probe further if
Treats SOQL as identical to SQL and has only written simple queries on small test data.
Reading SOQL / SOSL on a resume
- Table-stakes
- Most people in this field list SOQL / SOSL, so its presence tells you little, and opening a screen with it can make the call sound junior. Ask what they built with it instead.
Sourcing for SOQL / SOSL
Every way it's written
("SOQL" OR "SOSL" OR "Salesforce Object Query Language")Paste into LinkedIn Recruiter, Naukri or your ATS. Combine with a job title and location.