Fact 1: The Salesforce Tower is the tallest office building west of the Mississippi River
Salesforce Tower is not just an impressive structure built to house offices of one of the biggest tech companies. It is the tallest office building west of the Mississippi River, standing at a whopping 1,070 feet, and the second tallest building in the Western Hemisphere, second only to One World Trade Center.
Fact 2: Salesforce was the world's first Software as a Service (SaaS) company
Salesforce introduced first-of-its-kind cloud-based Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform, pioneering the concept of delivering enterprise applications via a simple website. Salesforce was the collaborative brainchild of former Oracle executive Marc Benioff, Parker Harris, Dave Moellenhoff, and Frank Dominguez, revolutionizing the industry with this new model: Software as a Service (SaaS)
Fact 3: The 1-1-1 Philanthropic Model
Salesforce was built not only with a vision of changing the software world, but also impacting society in a positive way. They did this through what they call the 1-1-1 model of philanthropy, where they give away one percent of Salesforce’s equity, one percent of their employee's time, and one percent of their product to non-profits and educational institutions. This model has influenced other companies, such as Google, to initiate similar programs.
Fact 4: Salesforce has its very own online learning platform
Named as Trailhead, this online learning platform allows anyone to learn and skill up on various Salesforce technologies and soft skills for free. It offers a unique learning experience that includes quizzes, video lectures, and interactive examples.
Fact 5: The Salesforce Ecosystem is forecasted to create millions of jobs
According to a report by IDC, by 2024, the Salesforce ecosystem could create around 4.2 million new jobs worldwide. This is due to the rapid growth of cloud computing and the adoption of the Salesforce platform.
Fact 6: Salesforce has been named one of the most innovative companies in the world
Forbes magazine has consistently ranked Salesforce as one of the most innovative companies. This commendation is attributed to their commitment to innovation, as exhibited by their ever-evolving efficient and revolutionary business solutions.
Fact 7: Salesforce introduced the concept of an "AppExchange"
Launched in 2006, Salesforce’s AppExchange was the first-ever on-demand application sharing service. It works much like an app store, with thousands of enterprise and small business applications for users to choose from.
Fact 8: CRM was not always Salesforce's focus
When Salesforce first started, it wasn't built as a CRM tool. The company initially focused on developing software to help companies with their sales automation. The idea of creating a CRM tool was actually developed after seeing the software’s usefulness in managing and analyzing customer interactions.
Fact 9: Salesforce hosts one of the largest tech events in the world
Salesforce's annual event, Dreamforce, is one of the largest technology conferences in the world, with more than 170,000 registered participants, over 2,700 sessions, and millions of online viewers.
Fact 10: Salesforce has a heavy music influence
Salesforce employs a full-time DJ whose only job is to play music in the lobby of the Salesforce Tower. In addition, Salesforce's annual Dreamforce conference features performances by world-renowned musicians like U2, Metallica, and more.
Fact 11: The company has a Chief Love Officer
Charismatic golden retriever named Koa holds the title of Salesforce's Chief Love Officer. His job is to spread positivity and uplift the company's spirit.
Fact 12: Salesforce has made impressive strides in gender equality
Salesforce has made a public and documented effort to ensure equal pay across both gender and race. Salesforce spent $3 million in 2015 and another $3 million in 2017 to adjust salaries and ensure pay equality for all its employees.
Fact 13: The “No Software” mantra
Despite being a software company, Salesforce had a "No Software" logo. The logic behind this was that they give clients the tools to use and customize their own applications, instead of selling them a pre-packaged software.
Fact 14: Named after a Buddhist principle
The name Salesforce has a deep meaning. It was named after the Buddhist principle of “cause and effect", signifying the impact of their product on a business’ sales force.
Fact 15: Earned a spot in Fortune’s ‘Best Companies to Work For’ ten times
Salesforce’s exceptional work culture and employee benefits have snagged the company a place in Fortune’s list of ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ ten times in a row.
Fact 16: Salesforce provides solutions tailored for various industries
Salesforce has designed industry-specific solutions catering to the unique business needs of various sectors including financial, healthcare, manufacturing, or retail industries.
Fact 17: Salesforce has a Party Force
Salesforce has an internal team called the Party Force, whose primary job is to ensure that everyone is having fun at Salesforce. The team frequently organizes fun-filled activities for Salesforce workers.
Fact 18: "Ohana" is a core value of Salesforce
The term "Ohana," which means family in Hawaiian, is a core principle of the company, reflecting a culture where everyone is part of the Salesforce family and everyone supports each other.
Fact 19: Salesforce has publicly committed to efforts against climate change
Salesforce has committed to achieving 100% renewable energy for its global operations. Also, Salesforce has launched an eco-friendly version of their platform called Salesforce Sustainability Cloud, highlighting their effort towards a more sustainable planet.
Fact 20: Salesforce Chief Philanthropy Officer, Suzanne DiBianca, started in a basement
Interestingly, Suzanne DiBianca, Salesforce’s Chief Philanthropy Officer, stated in an interview that the Salesforce.org philanthropic entity was started in the basement of her house! Today, Salesforce.org is a massive socially-driven arm of Salesforce, focusing on providing technology for nonprofits and education as well as supporting social impact initiatives.