MARIA: WELCOME BACK.
A TOP TECHNOLOGY LEADER
DECLARING, QUOTE, CAPITALISM IS
DEAD, THAT'S ONE OF THE
BLOCKBUSTER HEADLINES FROM MY
SIT-DOWN WITH THE CO-CEO OF
SALES FORCE, MARC BENIOFF SAID
TO ME THAT FACEBOOK IS THE NEW
CIGARETTES.
WE COVERED A RANGE OF ISSUES
FROM ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TO
HOMELESSNESS.
WATCH.
HOW WOULD YOU CHARACTERIZE THE
MACRO ENVIRONMENT AND I KNOW
THAT PEOPLE ARE WORRIED ABOUT
CAP EXPENDING.
>> I WAS IN YOU
>> I WAS IN MOU
>> I WAS IN MUNICH YESTERDAY,
IN LONDON ON MONDAY AND I'M IN
NEW YORK TODAY.
OUR CUSTOMERS ARE ALL STILL VERY
AGGRESSIVELY INVESTING IN THEIR
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATIONS.
THOSE TRANSFORMATIONS BEGIN AND
END WITH THE CUSTOMER.
THAT'S WHY WE'RE INVOLVED IN
THOSE CONVERSATIONS.
WE CONTINUE TO SEE A TREMENDOUS
WORK IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION
WORLDWIDE AS A ALL COMPANIES
TRANSFORM THEMSELVES TO CONNECT
WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS IN NEW WAYS
AND I THINK THE ENVIRONMENT
REMAINS VERY GOOD.
THAT SAID, YOU KNOW THAT I'M A
TRUSTEE AT THE WORLD ECONOMIC
FORUM AND THE HEAD OF THE OECD,
I SAW HIM IN PARIS, AND HE
BASICALLY HAS TAKEN HIS GLOBAL
GROWTH RATE FROM 4% TO 3%
BECAUSE OF WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH
THIS TRADE SITUATION.
SO HE SAID, AND I AGREE WITH
HIM, IF WE RESOLVE THE TRADE
SITUATION, GLOBAL GROWTH WILL
RESUME ITS CLIMB.
SO THAT WOULD BE VERY EXCITING.
MARIA: WHEN THERE'S UNCERTAINTY
AROUND, BUSINESS MANAGERS THE
FIRST THING THEY DO IS SIT ON
CAPITAL.
WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT
DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION, THIS IS
A MUST SPEND, ISN'T IT.
>> IT'S A MUST SPEND.
YOU'RE RIGHT.
BECAUSE, LOOK, EVERY COMPANY AND
EVERY CUSTOMER IS TRYING TO
BUILD A 360-DEGREE VIEW OF THEIR
CUSTOMER BECAUSE TODAY IF YOU
DON'T HAVE A DIRECT CONNECTION
WITH YOUR CUSTOMER THEN YOU'RE
NOT REALLY COMPETITIVE IN THE
WORLD AND IT DOESN'T MATTER IF
YOU'RE IN RETAIL OR BANKING OR
HEALTHCARE OR YOU PICK YOUR
INDUSTRY, MARIA, EVERYONE IS
TRANS FORMING AND CONNECTING
WITH THEIR CUSTOMERS IN NEW WAYS
AND BRINGING NEW WAYS TO CONNECT
COMPANIES AND CUSTOMERS
TOGETHER.
MARIA: I GUESS THE MARKET GOT
SPOOKED YESTERDAY AND A LITTLE
TODAY ABOUT WORKDAY AND
WORKDAY'S CEO'S COMMENTS ABOUT
THE ENVIRONMENT.
EUROPE IS HAVING A HARD TIME
GENERATING ANY GROWTH.
CAN YOU GIVE US A SENSE OF WHAT
YOU'RE SEEING IN EUROPE?
SAME THING IN EUROPE OR DO YOU
SEE EUROPE A LITTLE SLOWER THAN
THE UNITED STATES?
>> EUROPE HAS BEEN HEALTHY FOR
US.
WE'VE HAD 30% GROWTH THERE THE
LAST QUARTER.
IT'S BEEN GOOD FOR US AND LIKE I
SAID, I WAS THERE YESTERDAY, I
WAS MEETING WITH THE LARGEST
COMPANIES IN GERMANY AND IN THE
U.K. AND, LOOK, THEY'RE
INVESTING.
THOSE ARE THE CONVERSATIONS THAT
WE'RE HAVING AND EVERYBODY JUST
WANTS TO HAVE THIS TRADE ISSUE
RESOLVED.
MARIA: IS THE GROWTH STORY AT
SALESFORCE FROM DATA ANALYTICS
GOING FORWARD?
I'M REALLY GETTING TO THIS
RECENT ACQUISITION YOU MADE.
I KNOW IT'S EARLY ON SO YOU'RE
NOT GOING TO SAY A LOT ABOUT IT
BUT TABLEAU HAS BEEN TALKED
ABOUT IN TERMS OF ANOTHER BIG
GROWTH STORY FOR SALESFORCE.
WHERE DO YOU SEE THE GROWTH
WITHIN THE COMPANY IN THE NEXT
FIVE, 10 YEARS.
>> WE'VE HAD A FANTASTIC
SHAREHOLDER RETURN AND IF YOU
BOUGHT OUR STOCK IN 2004, IT'S
BEEN A 3400% RETURN.
WE FORECAST WE'LL GO FROM
GUIDANCE $16.9 BILLION OR
APPROXIMATELY $17 BILLION THIS
YEAR TO $28 BILLION WITHIN THREE
YEARS, FISCAL YEAR '23.
WE SEE EXPANDED GROWTH BUT THAT
GROWTH IS ANCHORED ON ONE THING,
WHICH IS THIS DIGITAL
TRANSFORMATION PHENOMENON AND
THE FOCUS ON CUSTOMER WHICH IS
THE ONLY WORD THAT WE DO AT
SALESFORCE WHICH IS HELP
COMPANIES CONNECT WITH THEIR
CUSTOMERS.
MARIA: DO YOU WORRY ABOUT THE
TRADE FIGHT GOING ON AND CHINA
GETTING AHEAD OF US IN SOME OF
THESE REALLY IMPORTANT
TECHNOLOGIES LIKE A.I.?
>> I DON'T VIEW IT LIKE THAT.
I THINK ACTUALLY THAT WE'RE
QUITE COMPETITIVE WITH ALL
COUNTRIES AND ALL INDUSTRIES.
AND I COULD MAKE THE CASE ON WHY
THAT IS TRUE.
BUT WHAT I WILL TELL YOU IS
THERE IS A LOT OF TRANSFORMATION
HAPPENING.
THIS IS THE FOURTH INDUSTRIAL
REVOLUTION.
YOU DO HAVE A.I.
YOU DO HAVE ROBOTICS.
YOU HAVE THE BIOSCIENCES.
MARIA: OH, YEAH.
>> THERE'S MANY THINGS
HAPPENING R AROUND THE WORLD AND
IN ALL INDUSTRIES AND I'VE NEVER
SEEN SO MUCH TRANSFORMATION AND
CHANGE AND INNOVATION.
MARIA: YOU'VE GOT YOUR DREAM
FORCE CONFERENCE COMING UP NEXT
MONTH.
THIS IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO PUT
ON THIS BIG SHOW, TELL THE WORLD
WHAT'S COMING, WHAT'S COMING AT
SALESFORCE.
CAN YOU GIVE US A HINT IN TERMS
OF THE PUSH INTO NEW AREAS.
>> YOU JUST TALKED ABOUT IT.
IT'S ALL ABOUT A.I.
WE CALL IT EINSTEIN.
EINSTEIN, ARTIFICIAL
INTELLIGENCE, AND JUST TO
CONNECT THE DOTS, ONE OF THE
THINGS THAT WE JUST SHOWED IS WE
HAVE EINSTEIN AND IT'S RUNNING
ON A DRONE AND IT'S OVER THE
OCEAN RIGHT NOW IN SANTA BARBARA
AND IT'S ABLE TO CLASSIFY -- I
JUST PUT THIS ON MY TWITTER FEED
THAT IT SAW A GREAT WHITE SHARK
HEADING TOWARDS A SCHOOL OF KIDS
IN A SURF CAMP IN SANTA BARBARA.
IT WAS ABLE TO CALL THE PARK AND
SAY HEY, GET THE KIDS OUT OF THE
WATER AND YOU CAN SEE THE SHARK
AND YOU CAN SEE THE A.I. SAYING
OH, THERE'S A SHARK THERE.
NOW, JUST FIVE YEARS AGO, THAT
WAS NOT POSSIBLE.
OKAY.
BUT TODAY AND YOU KNOW THIS
ALREADY BECAUSE OF THE SPECIAL
YOU JUST DID ON A.I., IT IS
POSSIBLE AND WE CAN DO A LOT OF
THINGS AND THAT'S AN EXAMPLE OF
IMPROVING THE WORLD THROUGH A.I.
BECAUSE YOU KNOW, TECHNOLOGY IS
NEVER GOOD OR BAD.
IT'S WHAT YOU DO WITH THE
TECHNOLOGY THAT MAKES A
DIFFERENCE.
WE HAVE TO KEEP THAT MIND AS WE
START TO THINK ABOUT VALUES AND
OUR BUSINESSES.
MARIA: YOU MAKE A REALLY GOOD
POINT.
WE ARE RIGHT NOW IN THIS
DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW TECHNOLOGY
WILL CHANGE AS A RESULT OF
PERHAPS MORE REGULATION.
SO WE'VE GOT SOME SOCIAL MEDIA
COMPANIES THAT ARE STRONGER AND
MORE POWERFUL THAN WE'VE EVER
IMAGINED P.
WHAT ARE YOU EXPECTING?
AND IS IT BIFURCATED IN TERMS OF
TECH WHERE WE MIGHT SEE
REGULATION ON NOT REGULATION?
WHAT DO YOU EXPECT IN TERMS OF
WHAT'S COMING FROM WASHINGTON,
WHAT SHOULD BE CHANGED WITH
REGARD TO REGULATION ON BIG
TECH?
>> WELL, YOU KNOW I JUST WROTE
ABOUT THIS IN MY BOOK, WHICH IS
THAT -- WE WERE THERE TOGETHER,
ACTUALLY, IN DAVOS IN JANUARY,
2018 AND I SAID FACEBOOK IS THE
NEW CIGARETTE.
IT'S ASTICK TESTIFY.
IT'S -- ADDICTIVE.
THEY WANT YOUR KIDS.
THEY'RE PASSING YOUR INFORMATION
TO 50,000 OTHER COMPANIES.
YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S HAPPENING.
NOW THEY'RE BUYING ASSETS LIKE
WHAT'S APP AND INSTAGRAM AND
CO-MINGLING THAT DATA AND IF YOU
SAW THAT NETFLIX SPECIAL CALLED
THE BIG HACK THEY'RE CREATING
MARKET SEGMENTS AND SHIFTING
ELECTIONS BASED ON THAT DATA.
THAT'S NOT GOOD.
NOBODY WANTS THAT.
WE WANT SOCIETY BASED ON TRUST
AND TRUTH.
THAT'S SO IMPORTANT.
THIS IS SOMETHING WE ALL NEED TO
BE COMMITTED TO.
WE HAVE TO FOCUS ON TRUST AS OUR
HIGHEST VALUE.
MARIA: YOU WRITE A BOOK, IT'S
CALLED TRAILBLAZER, THE POWER OF
BUSINESS AS THE GREATEST
PLATFORM FOR CHANGE.
WHY DID YOU WRITE THIS BOOK?
>> CAPITALISM AS WE KNOW IT IS
DEAD.
BUSINESSES NEED AND WE ALL NEED
A NEW CAPITALISM.
THAT IS A CAPITALISM THAT IS
MORE FAIR, MORE EQUITABLE AND
MORE SUSTAINABLE.
AND THAT'S A CAPITALISM THAT
INCLUDES ALL STAKEHOLDERS, NOT
JUST SHAREHOLDERS.
THIS CONCEPT THAT THE BUSINESS
OF BUSINESS IS BUSINESS IS OVER.
WHAT ARE STAKEHOLDERS?
IT'S YOUR EMPLOYEES, YOUR
CUSTOMERS, YOUR PARTNERS.
BY THE WAY, I'M FROM SAN
FRANCISCO.
IT'S ABOUT OUR HOMELESS.
MARIA: I'VE GOT TO TALK TO YOU
ABOUT THAT.
>> LET'S DO IT.
ALSO, PUBLIC SCHOOLS AND THE
PLANET.
I MEAN, I'M THE CEO OF A BIG
COMPANY NOW, NOT JUST A START-UP
LIKE WHEN I MELT YOU.
WE HAVE 45,000 EMPLOYEES,
$130 BILLION.
YOU KNOW IN MARKET CAP.
MARIA: CONGRATULATIONS.
WHAT AN INCREDIBLE GROWTH STORY.
>> ISN'T THAT COOL.
MARIA: YOU'RE USING THAT TO
GIVE BACK.
>> WE'VE HAD A GREAT
SHAREHOLDER RETURN, 3500% SINCE
WE WENT PUBLIC.
OF
WE'VE ALSO HAD A GREAT
STAKEHOLDER RETURN, $300 MILLION
IN GRANTS, 4 MILLION HOURS OF
VOLUNTEERISM.
WE HAVE ALSO BEEN ABLE TO RUN
40,000 NON-P PROFITS AND NGOs
FOR FREE ON OUR SERVICE.
WE'RE A NET YEAR
WE'RE A NET ZEAR
WE'RE A NET ZERR
WE'RE A NET ZERO COMPANY.
WE DON'T HAVE ANY NET NEW CARBON
EMISSIONS.
THAT'S OUR STAKEHOLDER RETURN.
ALL COMPANIES CAN REPORT NOT
JUST THEIR SHAREHOLDER RESULTS
LIKE YOU COVER SO WELL HERE BUT
YOUR STAKEHOLDER RESULTS TOO.
WE DO.
WE PUBLISH A STAKEHOLDER REPORT.
THE SES HAS AN OPPORTUNITY, I --
THE SEC HAS AN OPPORTUNITY TO
SAY TO COMPANIES, TELL US ABOUT
YOUR STAKEHOLDERS AND WHAT
YOU'RE DOING FOR THEM.
MARIA: I WANT TO PUSH BACK ON
THIS FOR A MINUTE.
BECAUSE THIS HAS BEEN IN YOUR
BLOOD, IN YOUR DN A A, THIS
WHOLE NOTION OF STAKEHOLDERS.
SO YOU'RE MAYBE DIFFERENT IN
THIS CATEGORY.
WHEN I FIRST SAW THE BUSINESS
ROUNDTABLE DECISION, I THOUGHT
WAIT A MINUTE, DOES THAT MEAN
EMPLOYEES AND THE COMMUNITIES
YOU OPERATE IN WEREN'T IMPORTANT
BEFOREHAND.
I THOUGHT IT WAS A LITTLE BIT OF
PR.
I SAID WAIT A SECOND, WHAT ABOUT
SHAREHOLDERS, WHAT ABOUT
CAPITALISM?
WHO IS GOING TO STAND THERE AND
DEFEND CAPITALISM?
>> THIS IS A NEW CAPITALISM.
IT'S WHERE SHAREHOLDERS ARE AS
IMPORTANT AS STAKEHOLDERS AND
IT'S COMING FROM WITHIN THE
COMPANIES.
IT'S COMING FROM WITHIN.
PEOPLE WHO ARE WORKING INSIDE
COMPANIES TODAY SAY HEY, I'M NOT
JUST HERE TO MAKE MONEY.
I'M HERE TO IMPROVE THE STATE OF
THE WORLD.
I KNOW YOU FEEL THAT WAY.
IT'S WHY YOU ARE HERE WITH THIS
NETWORK AND LEFT THE OTHER
NETWORK.
YOU'RE HERE BECAUSE THIS IS YOUR
PLATFORM YOU USE YOUR PLATFORM
TO IMPROVE THE WORLD.
I KNOW THAT BECAUSE I WATCHED
YOU FOR DECADES.
I'M ALSO USING MY PLATFORM TO
IMPROVE THE STATE OF THE WORLD.
MARIA: WHAT ARE YOU THINKING
ABOUT THE HOMELESSNESS ISSUES IN
CALIFORNIA RIGHT NOW?
ANY IDEAS IN TERMS OF --
>> I HAVE A LOT OF IDEAS.
THAT'S WHY A YEAR AGO I SPENT
$7 MILLION TO WORK TO PASS A TAX
TO TAX SALESFORCE WHICH IS
CALLED PROPOSITION C IN SAN
FRANCISCO TO CREATE MORE
HOMELESS SERVICES BECAUSE WE
BADLY NEED EXTREMELY LOW INCOME
HOUSING AND SOCIAL SERVICES.
IT'S BEEN PROVEN BY MEDICAL
STUDIES, BY CLINICAL STUDIES,
AND WE'RE JUST NOT DOING ENOUGH
AND SO 62% OF THE VOTERS
ACTUALLY PASSED THIS AND IT'S IN
THE COURTS RIGHT NOW.
BUT WE NEED MORE SERVICES.
AND THIS CONCEPT OF EXTREMELY
LOW INCOME HOUSING, AS I TOLD
YOU, I WAS JUST IN EUROPE, IF
YOU GO TO FRANCE THEY HAVE A
MINISTER OF LOW INCOME HOUSING.
THEY CALL IT SOCIAL HOUSING.
AND THEY PLAN IT INSIDE THEIR
COMMUNITIES.
WE JUST DON'T DO THAT.
WE HAVE NOT PLANNED THESE BIG
CITIES LIKE YOU JUST MENTIONED
TO REALLY KNOW -- EVERYBODY'S
NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO AFFORD
THE GORGEOUS APARTMENT OR HOUSE
THAT YOU AND I LIVE IN.
WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO CREATE
HOUSING FOR EVERYONE AND THAT IS
A WAY, A CRITICAL WAY TO HELP
ELIMINATE HOMELESSNESS.
THE KEY TO HOMELESSNESS IS