Object Model of Salesforce Government Cloud

As government agencies embrace digital transformation, the need for platforms that ensure compliance, scalability, and citizen-centricity has never been greater. Salesforce Government Cloud answers this call—offering a secure and flexible environment tailored for public sector workflows.

One of the most crucial elements in understanding how the platform operates is the object model. In this blog, we’ll explore how data is structured in Salesforce Government Cloud and the key standard and custom objects that power mission-critical processes.

What Is an Object Model in Salesforce?

In Salesforce, an object is a database table that stores data. The object model is the relationship between these objects that define how data flows between entities such as citizens, departments, and service cases. It’s akin to a blueprint for how your agency tracks and manages information.

Object Model

Core Entities in Government Cloud

Below is an overview of the most essential objects that form the backbone of city, state, or federal government operations using Salesforce.

Organization
- Represents: The overall government body or department using Salesforce.
- Purpose: Centralized control of settings, data policies, and compliance.
- Relationships: Parent to Accounts, Cases, and all major records.
Account
- Represents: Agencies, departments, or external organizations (e.g., contractors, vendors).
- Purpose: To group related records and manage organizational relationships.
- Customizations: In the public sector, Accounts may also be used to represent grant recipients or local businesses.
Contact
- Represents: Employees, contractors, citizens, or stakeholders.
- Purpose: Stores personal information (name, role, communication preferences).
- Relationships: Often tied to an Account (e.g., John Smith works at the City Housing Dept).
Citizen (Custom Object)
- Represents: The general public interacting with the agency.
- Purpose: Used to track service history, communications, and eligibility.
- Key Fields: National ID, Address, Preferred Language, Program Eligibility
- Relationships: Can be linked to multiple Cases, Events, or Surveys.
Case
- Represents: Requests, complaints, or incidents logged by citizens.
- Purpose: Central to service management (e.g., pothole repair, benefit claims).
- Key Fields: Case Type, Status, Priority, SLA, Owner
- Automation: Escalation rules, assignment flows, and status tracking.
Service Request (Custom or Extended Case Object)
- Represents: Specific workflows for services like permits, licenses, or inspections.
- Purpose: Manages lifecycle from request to resolution.
- Benefits: Tailored workflows that automate approvals, payments, and documentation.
Grant (Optional, Custom Object)
- Represents: Government grants issued to individuals or organizations.
- Fields: Grant Amount, Usage Reports, Deadlines, Renewal Options
- Relationships: Often linked to Accounts (organizations) or Citizens (individuals).
Inspection (Custom Object)
- Represents: Field visits for compliance, infrastructure, or environment.
- Features: Checklists, Geo-tags, Photos, Mobile Access
- Linked With: Case or Service Request objects
Program Enrollment (Custom Object)
- Represents: Enrollment of a citizen in a specific service or welfare program.
- Purpose: Tracks eligibility, status, usage, and benefits
- Benefits: Supports lifecycle tracking from application to exit.
Survey/Feedback (Optional)
- Represents: Citizen input after service interaction.
- Tools: Salesforce Surveys, Public Sector Solutions add-ons
- Benefits: Helps agencies measure service quality and improve delivery.

How These Objects Work Together

Here’s a simplified flow:

A citizen submits a complaint via a portal (→ new Case).
The case is related to their Citizen record and routed to the correct Department (Account).
A Contact (employee) is assigned to the case.
A Field Inspection is scheduled via a related Inspection record.
Once resolved, a urvey is sent for feedback.
All this data rolls up to the Organization for analytics and compliance reporting.

Object Relationships

Object Relationships Lookup

Security and Compliance Considerations

Government Cloud ensures that all object data respects:

Field-Level Security
Role Hierarchies
Audit Trails
FedRAMP, DoD IL4, and FISMA Compliance

Admins can define fine-grained access policies to ensure only authorized personnel see or modify sensitive data.

Analytics and Reporting

Objects like Case, Program Enrollment, and Citizen feed data into dashboards powered by:

Reports
Tableau CRM (GovCloud edition)
Einstein Analytics (when enabled)

This allows executives to monitor trends, SLAs, satisfaction scores, and budget utilization in real-time.

Final Thoughts

Salesforce Government Cloud provides a robust object model tailored to the unique needs of public sector organizations. From managing citizen services to inter-agency collaboration, the data architecture is flexible, secure, and highly scalable.

Understanding the object model is crucial to:

Designing better solutions
Ensuring compliance
Delivering faster and more transparent services

As agencies evolve, this model adapts—enabling true digital transformation rooted in data clarity and mission delivery.

Great! Here's an Appendix section you can add to the blog, listing commonly used custom fields for key objects in Salesforce Government Cloud implementations. These help public sector agencies capture the specific data points they need for service delivery, compliance, and reporting.