Marc Benioff is chairman and CEO of salesforce.com. He founded the company in March 1999 with a vision to create a Web-based software utility that would replace traditional enterprise software technology. He is now regarded as the leader of what he termed "The End Of Software," the growing idea that Web-based applications deliver immediate benefits at reduced risks and costs. Under his leadership, salesforce.com has become the global leader of this new industry and SunBridge, the leading incubator in Japan, named Benioff Entrepreneur of the Year for his work in catalyzing technology change.
Benioff, a 25-year software industry veteran, is recognized as one of the preeminent thinkers in information technology. In May 2003, President George W. Bush appointed Benioff co-chairman of the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee (PITAC), a bi-partisan organization of business leaders and academics that guides the Administration on developing and adopting vital information technology. In October, Hawaiian Governor Linda Lingle named Benioff to Citizens to Achieve Reform in Education, a committee that has been called together to build public support for education reforms in Hawaii's public schools. Fortune Magazine called Benioff one of its Top 10 Entrepreneurs to Watch in 2003; BusinessWeek named him one of the 25 people responsible for turning e-business around; CRM Magazine recognized him as one of the 20 most influential people in the industry; and Silicon.com named Benioff to its list of Agenda Setters for 2003. Also this year, Ernst & Young honored Benioff as a Northern California Entrepreneur of the Year for his innovation in software-as-service.
Throughout his career, Benioff has been determined to use information technology to produce positive social change. In July 2000, with Colin Powell in attendance, he launched the salesforce.com/foundation, a multi-million dollar global philanthropic organization aimed at bridging the digital divide. Pioneering the "1 percent solution," where the company contributes 1 percent of profits, 1 percent of equity, and 1 percent of employee hours back to the communities it serves, the salesforce.com/foundation has demonstrated the power and impact of integrated philanthropy.
In 2004, Benioff co-authored Compassionate Capitalism, the first-ever best practices guide for corporate philanthropy that illustrates the success of the integrated model. The book was launched in conjunction with the World Economic Forum's 2004 meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Previously, members of the World Economic Forum selected Benioff as a "Global Leader of Tomorrow," one of 100 leaders in business, politics, and the arts committed to addressing social issues. Computerworld awarded Benioff an Honors Laureate for his visionary way of using information technology to better communities. In addition, he received the Promise of Peace award from the Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu for his work using technology as a means to further Middle East peace and the Bridge Award from the non-profit organization HEAVEN (Helping Educate, Activate, Volunteer, and Empower via the Net) for providing internet access to the underserved in America's inner cities.
Prior to creating salesforce.com, Benioff spent 13 years at Oracle Corporation, holding a number of leadership positions in sales, marketing, and product development. Most recently, he was a senior vice president reporting to company chairman Lawrence J. Ellison, a founding investor in salesforce.com. Before joining Oracle, Benioff worked at Apple Computer and founded Liberty Software. He received a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Southern California in 1986.
This is a presentation delivered at the Web 2.0 Conference held in San Francisco, CA, October 5-7, 2004. Our thanks go to MediaLive International and O'Reilly Media, the producers of Web 2.0, for permission to bring you this session, one of many from Web 2.0 here on IT Conversations.
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