• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling

2

Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent

3

'Where we are today is frightening': a Pulitzer-winning historian sees a doomsday scenario involving China and the national debt

1

Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling

2

Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent

3

'Where we are today is frightening': a Pulitzer-winning historian sees a doomsday scenario involving China and the national debt
TechSalesforce

Microsoft and Salesforce have more joint products up their sleeves

By
Heather Clancy
Heather Clancy
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Heather Clancy
Heather Clancy
Down Arrow Button Icon
September 16, 2015, 4:05 PM ET
Photograph by Anna Kuperberg

Microsoft (MSFT) and Salesforce (CRM) couldn’t negotiate a merger earlier this year, but their 18-month-old engineering relationship is getting cozier.

The two companies have already delivered on several projects that create close ties between the various Salesforce cloud services and Microsoft’s market-leading Office suite. They now have four more collaborations up their sleeves, including technology that embeds Skype conferencing and communications features right into the Salesforce user interface.

Why you care: a sales representative can now call a prospect from within the Salesforce system and dive into a pitch without having to launch an entirely separate application.

“We are doubling down for the next phase,” said Fergus Griffin, senior vice president of products and solutions marketing for Salesforce.

Several other things that customers can expect: ties between the Salesforce system and Microsoft’s digital note-taking app; support for Salesforce data in Office Graph and Office Delve analytics results; and a Salesforce1 app for Windows 10. All of these technologies should emerge in the second half of 2016, according to senior Microsoft and Salesforce executives. That seems like a long time away, but most businesses appreciate that sort of notice.

“The more lead time, the better,” Griffin said.

The relationship between the two companies reaches deeper than sharing development plans, although they haven’t gone so far as to swap source code. Griffin and his Microsoft counterpart, John Case, corporate vice president of Office and Office 365, said corporate sales teams for both companies are instructed to talk up their tight ties as a differentiator. Two of the most integrations are now available in the form of Salesforce apps for Outlook and Office.

That’s making a difference in accounts like consumer products company Unilever.

“As a global company with more than 400 brands, we are always looking for ways to strengthen collaboration across departments and take the complexity out of work,” said Paulo de Sa, vice president of employee services technology, in a statement.

You can expect Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella to perpetuate the mutual admiration when he takes the stage Wednesday afternoon during the cloud software giant’s huge customer and partner conference Dreamforce. Nadella’s appearance in San Francisco is an unprecedented show of support, when you consider the two companies barely used to speak.

After all, Salesforce blazed the trail for customer relationship management software when it launched in 1999. Its then-novel subscription service took off like a rocket. Stung by that success, Microsoft entered the CRM market more than a decade ago with its own product. Interactions between the companies were often testy as a result.

But the chilly relationship changed in May 2014, when the two disclosed a broad strategic relationship.

Rumors of a potential merger galvanized the market last spring. The talks reportedly fizzled after the two failed to agree on a purchase price.

Subscribe to Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily newsletter on the business of technology.

 

 

 

About the Author
By Heather Clancy
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

These Fortune 500 companies are bigger than most national economies—here’s where they’d rank as countries
Big TechFortune 500
These Fortune 500 companies are bigger than most national economies—here’s where they’d rank as countries
By Catherina GioinoJune 3, 2026
2 hours ago
ste
EconomyRecession
OECD warns of ‘scarring effects,’ recession scenarios—but finds ‘no signs of widespread labour displacement’ from AI
By Nick LichtenbergJune 3, 2026
2 hours ago
Google CEO Sundar Pichai
AICorporate America
By every measure, U.S. companies are winning on AI adoption—but a series of high-profile snafus shows they’re getting pummeled by costs
By Tristan BoveJune 3, 2026
2 hours ago
‘A landmark moment for homebuying’: A San Francisco seller wants OpenAI or Anthropic stock for their $3 million home
Real EstateHousing
‘A landmark moment for homebuying’: A San Francisco seller wants OpenAI or Anthropic stock for their $3 million home
By Sydney LakeJune 3, 2026
2 hours ago
Bernie Sanders wants Americans to own a piece of AI. The Trump White House seems to agree
AIBernie Sanders
Bernie Sanders wants Americans to own a piece of AI. The Trump White House seems to agree
By Catherina GioinoJune 3, 2026
3 hours ago
dw
ConferencesCOO Summit
This CEO has had 6 major jobs in Silicon Valley: How Dennis Woodside built a career on saying yes to hard problems
By Nick LichtenbergJune 3, 2026
3 hours ago

Most Popular

Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling
North America
Social Security unraveling: 7,100 workers sacked, performance metrics retired, disability claims falling
By Katie Savin, Callie Freitag, Matthew Borus and The ConversationJune 2, 2026
1 day ago
Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent
Environment
Erin Brockovich, the activist who defeated a utility giant and inspired a Julia Roberts film, is pushing data centers to be more transparent
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJune 1, 2026
2 days ago
'Where we are today is frightening': a Pulitzer-winning historian sees a doomsday scenario involving China and the national debt
Banking
'Where we are today is frightening': a Pulitzer-winning historian sees a doomsday scenario involving China and the national debt
By Nick LichtenbergJune 2, 2026
1 day ago
Cognizant CEO says AI is remaking middle managers into player-coaches who can 'both  execute and develop others'
Newsletters
Cognizant CEO says AI is remaking middle managers into player-coaches who can 'both execute and develop others'
By Diane BradyJune 2, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of oil as of June 2, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 2, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 2, 2026
1 day ago
Current price of gold as of June 2, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of gold as of June 2, 2026
By Danny BakstJune 2, 2026
1 day ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.