When Elijah Christy and Prashant Vajpayee met through a groundbreaking mentorship program between Salesforce Workforce Navigators and Mentra, they were separated by geography, career stage, and job title. But what they shared—curiosity and a drive to grow—laid the foundation for a uniquely powerful partnership.
“I’ve worked in tech for a few years but was still struggling with how to advocate for myself in the workplace,” said Elijah, a recent Informatics graduate diagnosed with autism and ADHD as an adult. “This program and Prashant’s help gave me not just skills, but confidence. It showed me I’m not alone.”
For Prashant, a seasoned Salesforce Product Manager working on agentic AI initiatives, mentoring Elijah was both a way to give back and an opportunity to deepen his own understanding.
“I’ve mentored before, but this experience was completely different,” he shared. “Human connection is what makes mentorship really work.”
Their story is just one example of how this innovative collaboration is reshaping how we think about talent, training, and mentorship in the age of AI.
The Program: A Collaboration Between Salesforce and Mentra
The mentorship program was part of a larger, three-phase initiative launched by Salesforce Workforce Navigators, an internal Salesforce program designed to support jobseekers, and Mentra, a hiring platform purpose-built to support neurodivergent professionals.
Together, they designed a unique pilot model:
- Certify: Participants first completed Salesforce’s Agentblazer AI certification, gaining hands-on experience with AI agents and real-world applications of Salesforce technology with the help of assigned mentors.
- Mentor: Graduates were then paired with Salesforce employees who are expert in Salesforce, AI, and emerging technologies for one-on-one mentorship focused on AI skill development, career readiness, and personal growth.
- Demo: The final phase culminated in a demo day, where mentees showcased AI projects they built—spanning industries like healthcare, agriculture, and education—while honing their communication and presentation skills.
Out of more than 250 interested jobseekers, 29 neurodivergent participants completed the program, with 20 receiving direct mentorship from Salesforce professionals.
“We designed the program to go beyond training,” said Jhillika Kumar, founder and CEO of Mentra. “It’s about building community, fostering self-advocacy, and preparing people to thrive in environments that support them—not just survive in ones that don’t.”
A Mentorship Built on Learning, Structure, and Shared Growth
From the very beginning, Elijah and Prashant clicked. Their weekly check-ins became a space not just for learning agentic AI, but for honest conversation and collaborative problem-solving in the AI and emerging technologies landscape.
With the help of professional experience and technical expertise of Prashant, Elijah worked on professional development skills—crafting a compelling LinkedIn presence, refining interview techniques, and articulating strengths in ways that employers could understand and value. Then came the real challenge: building a functional AI project.
With Prashant’s guidance and motivation, Elijah learned Agentforce skills to implement Agentforce with third party applications and took on the ambitious task of designing a customizable AI agent framework using Salesforce tools and APIs. His goal was to create a chatbot that could be adapted across industries, with features that could handle compliance requirements and different user needs.
“It helped me tie everything I’ve learned in tech together,” Elijah explained. “I built a general framework that could be used for anything from healthcare to retail. It was one of the projects selected for Mentra demo day. That hands-on experience and demo to a larger audience was invaluable.”
Prashant served as coach, sounding board, and technical guide—always encouraging Elijah to push further while offering empathy and flexibility.
“Eli was so engaged—punctual, flexible, and always ready to learn,” Prashant recalled. “He wasn’t just learning about AI. He was building something meaningful with it. And that was inspiring.”
AI as an Enabler for Neurodivergent Talent
For Elijah, the technical growth was real. But so was the transformation in confidence. One of his biggest breakthroughs came not from code, but from clarity.
“In a previous job, I struggled with onboarding because nothing was documented. I ended up creating the documentation myself and eventually helped reduce onboarding time by over 100%. But I didn’t know how to talk about that,” he said. “This program and Prashant’s mentorship helped me turn that into a story—something I can proudly share with future employers.”
Prashant mentioned that it is important to understand their perspectives. He also sees AI as an enabler.
“AI is changing how we work. But it should also change who gets to participate,” he said. “People with disabilities or communication differences often get left out. This program proves they shouldn’t be.”
From Individual Impact to Systemic Change
What makes this program unique isn’t just the skills—it’s the structure: a phased approach that blends certification, mentorship, and demo-based storytelling. Participants choose their own AI project topics, often tied to passions like mental health, agriculture, or education.
“There’s something really powerful about seeing someone in your dream job and learning directly from them,” Jhillika said. “We created synergy—Salesforce provided effective mentors like Prashant, and Mentra brought the talent and the structure. It made for meaningful, lasting interactions.”
The results speak for themselves. Many mentees, like Elijah, have stayed in touch with their mentors and are continuing to build on the momentum. Mentors, in turn, are rethinking how they approach inclusion in their own teams.
Looking Ahead: Building Towards an AI Future
Elijah describes himself as proud to be an Agentblazer—early adopters of the Salesforce AI ecosystem. He sees it not just as a certification, but as a mindset.
“It feels like being one of the first people to use Facebook or buy Bitcoin. You’re ahead of the curve. You can feel it.”
When asked what he’d say to a Salesforce leader in 30 seconds, his answer was simple: “This program changed how I see my work. Prashant was a patient, supportive, and experienced mentor who helped me in the areas I struggled in. Even though I’m not a Salesforce employee, it gave me tools I use every day. And it should be shared widely—because it works.”
Final Takeaway: The Power of Human Connection
At its core, this collaboration wasn’t just about technology or training—it was about people. It was about recognizing that potential exists everywhere and showing people what’s possible with mentorship.
