Simple ways to emulate Salesforce's philanthropic policy in your business

“In business, we say that people overestimate what you can do in a year and underestimate what you can do in a decade. This is true in philanthropy as well.”

Marc Benioff

Marc Benioff, founder, chairman, and CEO of Salesforce has carved an impressive path as a leading pioneer in the CRM cloud-service technology field. But what sets him apart is also his commitment to giving back to the community. His journey started during a sabbatical he took post-Oracle and before he took over Salesforce. His spiritual guru reminded him that it is possible to give back to the world while pursuing his career ambitions. ‘It did not have to be a choice between doing business or doing good’. That has been the start of a commendable effort to pair the two ideas-' a successful business and doing good' simultaneously.

Salesforce takes its philanthropic efforts very seriously and Salesforce.org was set up at the same time as Salesforce with founder’s equity as a corporate foundation and soon evolved into a nonprofit social enterprise to give free and discounted technology to those who need it. Over the years, Salesforce.org has expanded its reach and work towards specific outcomes that are aligned to the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) wherever possible. With over $1.3B for resources in technology, volunteer time, and grants to communities, you can read more about their progress in the Salesforce.org Social Impact Report 2019.

However, not content with these measures, Marc Benioff and his wife Lynne support a wide range of causes on a personal front as well. Together with his wife, Lynne, they have personally donated $250 million to build UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals in San Francisco and Oakland. While between 2017 and 2019, Salesforce and the Salesforce Foundation gave away about $130 million, the Benioffs personally donated nearly $200 million in roughly the same time period. 

1.      1999: Salesforce Foundation established as a public charity at the same time that Salesforce.com was incorporated

2.      2000: Salesforce Foundation publicly launched, laying the foundation for a strategy that would later be known as the 1-1-1 philanthropic model

3.      2001: Salesforce invested in PowerUp, jump-starting our commitment to STEM education and employee skills-based volunteering

4.      2008: Nonprofit Starter Pack open-source data model and community-driven design and development process were born

5.      2009: Salesforce Foundation became an official reseller of Salesforce.com products for nonprofit and higher education customers. Nonprofits continue to get 10 free licenses and can buy more at a discount

6.      2013: Power of Us Hub created to help build an online community for customers, certified partners, and staff

7.      2013: The first grant to Bay Area schools, marking the beginning of our longstanding partnership with local public schools

8.      2014: Salesforce.org brand was born as we evolved into a nonprofit social enterprise

9.      2016: Nonprofit Starter Pack relaunched as Nonprofit Success Pack, turning the world’s #1 CRM into the #1 CRM for nonprofits

10.  2016: Education Data Architecture announced, providing the foundation for the connected campus

11.   2018: Nonprofit Cloud launched, building on Nonprofit Success Pack technology

12.  2018: Education Cloud launched, deepening our commitment to the education sector with its own cloud

13.  2018: Philanthropy Cloud announced in partnership with United Way Worldwide

14.  2019: Salesforce surpasses 600 interns and apprentices hosted globally from partners like Year Up, Genesys Works, Ada, and Whitehat

15.  2019: Salesforce and Salesforce.org reached $300M in all-time giving + more than 4M employee volunteer hours

16.  2019: Salesforce.org joined Salesforce as the social impact center

In terms of philanthropic ventures, the Pledge 1% encourages every entrepreneur and company to support philanthropy right from the start of their business. The unique 1-1-1 model followed by Salesforce pledges 1 percent of its revenue, 1 percent of its product, and 1 percent of its employees' time to the community. Through this principle, Salesforce has given more than $240 million in grants, 3.5 million hours of community service, and provided product donations for more than 39,000 nonprofits and educational institutions.

These are the different ways in which Salesforce integrates their philanthropic model into their work ethics.

SALESFORCE EMPLOYEE VOLUNTEERING & GIVING

Salesforce encourages its employees to give back as citizen philanthropists. Salesforce employees get seven paid days of volunteer time off (VTO) each year. They volunteer at schools, support food banks, and also share their technical expertise with nonprofits through their Pro Bono Program. This program connects nonprofits and education institutions with Salesforce employees on projects that can be completed within 10-20 hours.

Salesforce also matches employees’ donations to eligible nonprofit organizations up to USD $5,000 per year, doubling the impact of their charitable giving. In addition, The Salesforce Foundation funds initiatives aligned with Salesforce’s Education and Workforce Development strategies in regions where Salesforce employees live and work. All the proposals are currently accepted by invitation-only.

With these initiatives, Salesforce has truly set the roadmap for similar ventures where companies can create and support an inclusive and diverse workforce prepared with the skills to thrive in the 21st century. If you are interested in more information on how Salesforce solutions can help you launch similar philanthropic measures in your organization, talk to us.