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

Trendingnow

1

Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster

1

Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place

2

MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year

3

Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
LeadershipraceAhead

Benioff to CEOs: Pick One Thing

Ellen McGirt
By
Ellen McGirt
Ellen McGirt
Down Arrow Button Icon
Ellen McGirt
By
Ellen McGirt
Ellen McGirt
Down Arrow Button Icon
April 4, 2017, 12:45 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Salesforce sure knows how to throw a party.

Last night, Salesforce hosted an Equality Awards Gala at the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C., ahead of Equal Pay Day and announced some news of their own. Billie Jean King, Lilly Ledbetter, Patricia Arquette and Mary J. Blige all received “trailblazer” awards, and a resplendent Nancy Pelosi kicked off the event. “Look, I want to elevate equality in the world,” CEO Marc Benioff told raceAhead after playing host and emcee. “Companies have a role in this and business is the greatest platform for change.”

Salesforce has made pay equity a thing and is correctly proud of their efforts to remedy unexplained gender gaps in employee pay. Last year, in a first-ever assessment, the company analyzed the salaries of more than 17,000 employees. They found that approximately 6% of employees required some sort of adjustment, an equal number of men and women. It cost them about $3 million to fix it.

According to Cindy Robbins, Salesforce’s executive vice president of employee success, it started when Benioff first raised the question of where the executive women were. “It was during one of our quarterly business review meetings—with top management and extended teams—and Marc asked, ‘why aren’t there more women here?’” The conversation was initially about pipeline and making sure that high potential women weren’t skidding off the path somewhere at Salesforce. “Going forward, he wanted to have at least 30% women in attendance,” she said. It fell to Robbins to figure out why it wasn’t easier for women to get ahead at Salesforce.

Working with her friend and colleague Leyla Seka, an executive vice president at Salesforce, she brought three options to Benioff to consider: Increasing maternity leave, revamping their programs for high potential women, and making sure women were paid on par with men. “I told Marc I didn’t know if we had a problem with pay equity,” she said, “But we can’t look under the hood and see a big dollar sign and not fix it.”

This morning, Robbins announced that a second equal pay adjustment has been made, affecting 11% of employees, costing another $3 million to remedy. This go round, they looked at bonuses as well as salaries. And, the second analysis also included the race and ethnicity of U.S. based employees. From her statement:

“The need for another adjustment underscores the nature of pay equity—it is a moving target, especially for growing companies in competitive industries. It must be consistently monitored and addressed. Salesforce will continue to focus on equality, diversity and inclusion at all levels, and we plan to review employee compensation on an ongoing basis.”

But they’re keeping an eye on the pipeline. Changes to their leadership development programs resulted in a 33% increase in the number of women who were promoted last year. The company also extended parental leave to 26 weeks for primary caregivers at 80% pay and instituted a gradual return program.

Though the business case for inclusion is discussed internally, the company’s diversity numbers don’t differ widely from the rest of their tech titan peers. Still Benioff deserves credit for emphasizing the moral case with such public fervor. When I asked the Salesforce chief for advice for his CEO peers, he answered right away: Pick one thing and do it. “I’m trying to motivate people to follow our example and equal pay is just one thing, it’s easy to do,” he tells raceAhead. “Every CEO can do one thing. Whether it’s investing in your K-12 public schools—because education is equality—or pay equality, or LGTBQ equality, but they can do one thing.” But keep it real, CEOs. “They have to pick the thing that they feel passionate about, and it has to be authentic to them.”

About the Author
Ellen McGirt
By Ellen McGirt
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Leadership

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 Leadership

Nike’s earning numbers exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. But CEO Elliott Hill’s next test is the World Cup
RetailNike
Nike’s earning numbers exceeded Wall Street’s expectations. But CEO Elliott Hill’s next test is the World Cup
By Mia OsmonbekovJune 30, 2026
2 hours ago
Young worker at desk
SuccessGen Z
Remote-first fintech giant Revolut is making the office compulsory for new Gen Z grads—and they’ll earn flexibility like their peers after one year
By Emma BurleighJune 30, 2026
7 hours ago
Henry Kravis
SuccessCareers
KKR cofounder once impressed Roy Disney with a habit most analysts skipped—it turned a 1-hour meeting into all-day mentorship: ‘I thought I’d died and gone to heaven’
By Preston ForeJune 30, 2026
8 hours ago
Bill Gates (left) and Warren Buffett
SuccessWarren Buffett
Warren Buffett breaks from a ‘lifetime’ pledge to the Gates Foundation as the Epstein fallout deepens
By Sydney LakeJune 30, 2026
8 hours ago
kean
PoliticsElections
New Jersey Republican to reappear in Congress after unexplained 4-month absence
By Mike Catalini and The Associated PressJune 30, 2026
10 hours ago
swiss
EuropeHeat
It’s so hot in Switzerland that yodelers are standing in fountains
By Jez Fielder and The Associated PressJune 30, 2026
10 hours ago

Most Popular

Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
Success
Elon Musk on MacKenzie Scott giving away $26 billion of her fortune: 'Sadly,' it makes the world a worse place
By Sydney LakeJune 29, 2026
1 day ago
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
Success
MacKenzie Scott alone accounted for one-third of America's $19.2 billion in megagifts last year
By Sydney LakeJune 25, 2026
6 days ago
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
Success
Philanthropy leader at Warren Buffett and Bill Gates’ Giving Pledge says children of billionaires are pushing them to give their wealth away faster
By Preston ForeJune 27, 2026
4 days ago
'Humanity has chosen to become idiots': This Brown professor switched to take-home exams after a mass shooting and discovered mass cheating
AI
'Humanity has chosen to become idiots': This Brown professor switched to take-home exams after a mass shooting and discovered mass cheating
By Catherina GioinoJune 29, 2026
1 day ago
The retired college professor fighting a $313 trespassing ticket in Wisconsin thinks he's part of a national struggle
Environment
The retired college professor fighting a $313 trespassing ticket in Wisconsin thinks he's part of a national struggle
By Catherina GioinoJune 28, 2026
3 days ago
Current price of oil as of June 29, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of June 29, 2026
By Joseph HostetlerJune 29, 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.