One New Joiner’s Take on Life at Pracedo
When Tim Crumpler joined Pracedo in May 2025, he didn’t expect his first day to include a fire alarm, pub-based bonding, and a shiny new MacBook—but that’s exactly what happened.
In this refreshingly honest and funny article, Tim shares his candid thoughts on the ups (and the occasional missed train) of joining a new company, the nerves that come with any career change, and how Pracedo turned those first-day jitters into excitement and belonging.
Whether you’re considering applying to Pracedo or simply curious about what it’s like to start here, this post offers a real, human glimpse behind the curtain.
Read Tim’s onboarding story below.
Onboarding at Pracedo: Tim Crumpler's story of fire alarms, free swag & pub-based bonding
So, I joined Pracedo on 1st May 2025 – happy new job to me! Honestly, I think I peaked in onboarding experiences. If there was an award for “Smoothest Start Ever”, Pracedo would deserve to win it, and I’d like to personally nominate them.
Here’s a few thoughts on my onboarding experience…
As with any job change, there was a strange period, following my resignation, of getting ready to leave a workplace and people that were familiar and putting trust in yourself that you have made the right decision – after all, with every new role, you are always (to varying degrees) walking into the unknown.
As my notice period ticked down, handover activities got crossed off the ‘To Do’ list, goodbyes were exchanged and leaving drinks were consumed. This meant I had more head space to start to think about the ‘new world’. When I say ‘think about’ this can probably be read as ‘overthink about’. At varying times over the few weeks prior to starting at Pracedo, the following thoughts popped into my head; “Am I doing the right thing?”, “Why am I leaving a role that I am good at and familiar with?”, “Is now the time I am about to finally get ‘found out’?” (imposter syndrome is real!), “Will my new colleagues think I’m an idiot?” and “Will I make a fool of myself in my first week?”
As my first day arrived, I was about to find out.
Let’s start with the essentials. When I arrived, my laptop was ready to go. Not “IT-is-still-building-it” ready, but actually ready – powered on, password working, and no need to chase anyone down three corridors and a stairwell. I also received an epic goodie bag filled with cool merch. We’re talking serious swag here – not just a sad branded pen and stress ball. It felt like Christmas, except I didn’t have to pretend to like the socks that someone had bought for me (I am a grown-up; I can buy my own socks).
But the real highlight? When I arrived at the office at 10am, the entire building was outside. Why? A fire alarm was blaring, of course! But it honestly felt like a full-blown welcome party had been arranged just for me. There were people everywhere, the sun was shining (miraculously), and I had that surreal moment of thinking, “Wow, these people really go all out for new joiners.”
Once we got into the building, I was given a tour of the office and I met the team – who are genuinely some of the nicest, most welcoming folks I’ve ever encountered. They made me feel right at home, didn’t quiz me on obscure Salesforce features, and even pretended to laugh at my awkward new boy banter. The fact that I knew a few people from previous roles probably made things a little easier, but everyone seemed really keen to make sure I felt part of the team immediately.
A morning of setting up my new kit (a shiny new MacBook Air in the lovely Midnight (blue) colour!), logging onto various apps and working out where everything was, flew by quickly and then it was time for a bite to eat and a diet coke in the pub next door – perfect! The afternoon passed by without incident; I managed to tick off most of my onboarding activities, met some other colleagues and spent time with my assigned ‘Buddy’ – a brilliant initiative (and a lovely guy!).
To top it all off, we headed to the pub after work. Because what better way to celebrate surviving your first day than bonding with new colleagues over a pint or two? It was the perfect mix of relaxed atmosphere, friendly chats, and desperately trying to remember everyone’s name (Pro tip: just nod confidently and say “Hi, mate!” for the first week). The plan was to stay for a quick pint before heading across London to Paddington to catch my train home at 8.24pm. When 8.00pm arrived and I was still outside the pub enjoying my 3rd pint, it became clear that I was going to miss my train. A quick check confirmed that my ticket was non-transferrable so I bit the bullet and paid for another ticket for the 10.24pm train – plenty of time to make it! So, full disclosure, I ended up missing that train too (although, to my credit, when I realised that was going to happen I had at least already left the pub). I eventually caught the 11.20pm train home and climbed into bed at 1.35am.
In summary, a very enjoyable evening and it was nice to spend time with new people – even if it did result in me having to buy three train tickets to eventually get home. Was that evening a sign of things to come every time there is a social? Probably.
Now that the whirlwind of the first day is behind me, I’m genuinely excited to dive into customer projects, get stuck into some meaty work and, hopefully, make a positive impact. Everyone I’ve met so far is clearly an expert in their field, they’ve all made me feel so welcome and, also, are just really fun to be around. Thank you to everyone who helped make my first day so awesome – you should all be up on the stage when the non-existent award is handed out.
If the rest of my time at Pracedo is anything like the first day, I’m in for a pretty awesome ride.
Why Partner with Pracedo?
At Pracedo, we specialise in helping recruitment businesses harness the full potential of Salesforce’s Agentforce. With our expertise in AI-driven solutions, we empower recruitment organisations to streamline processes, improve candidate experiences, and maximise hiring efficiency. Whether you’re looking to implement Agentforce from scratch or optimise your existing Salesforce setup, our team of experts is here to guide you every step of the way. Contact us today to learn how we can help you transform your recruitment strategy with the power of AI.
Pracedo is an award-winning Summit (Platinum) Salesforce Consulting Partner that delivers innovative Salesforce implementations to forward-thinking customers.
With 15 years of experience focused on Salesforce, we work with our customers to unlock the platform’s power through tailored implementations that facilitate achieving business goals and ambitions. Our talented team of over 80 Salesforce professionals globally means that Pracedo offers a boutique consultancy experience, delivered locally to you, with the breadth and depth of knowledge earned from delivering over 1000 projects across our locations.
Pracedo specialises in Digital Transformation and Change Management. Implementations and customisations include: Salesforce Sales Cloud, Salesforce Service Cloud, Salesforce Marketing Cloud, Salesforce Marketing Cloud Account Engagement, Salesforce Revenue Cloud, Salesforce Experience Cloud and Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud.
