Good morning. As the role of CFOs continues to evolve, some companies are thinking of new ways to amplify their strategic mindsets. There has been a trend in finance chiefs taking on the additional role of chief operating officer, but Salesforce has taken that a step further.
The tech giant announced on Wednesday that Robin Washington was appointed to the newly created position of president and COFO—chief operating and financial officer—effective March 21. Washington, a longtime Salesforce board member who is adept in technology including agentic AI, will lead Salesforce’s operational and financial strategy, which used to be the job of two people. As COFO, Washington isn’t seen as wearing two different hats.
Brian Millham, the chief operating officer, will retire on May 1, and transition into an advisory role. And, Amy Weaver, the current CFO, announced last year that she would be transitioning from Salesforce once a new CFO was named. In a LinkedIn post on Aug. 28, Weaver said she decided to step down “after nearly 11 wonderful years at Salesforce.” She will serve as a special advisor to Benioff through April 2026.
Washington spent decades working on financial and operational strategy, including serving as EVP and CFO of Gilead Sciences, CFO of Hyperion Solutions, and chief accounting officer of PeopleSoft. She has been a member of the Salesforce board since 2013, and lead independent director since 2022.
After Washington joins the company as COFO, Arnold Donald will become the lead independent director, and Washington will remain on the Salesforce board, the company said. She has also served on the boards of Alphabet, Eikon Therapeutics, Honeywell International, and Vertiv Holdings.
Pending board approval, Washington will be offered a compensation package with a total potential maximum value of $38.5 million, assuming maximum payouts, achievement of goals, and that she remains at Salesforce, according to her offer letter. That total potential value includes a base salary of $1.1 million; an annual cash bonus of up to $1.9 million; a one-time sign-on bonus of $8.5 million in cash that she’ll have to repay if she leaves within two years; a performance-based equity grant with a potential maximum value of $18 million; and, a time-based restricted-stock unit grant valued at $9 million.
Salesforce is No. 123 in the Fortune 500, so her appointment is considered a Fortune 500 Power Move. Marc Benioff, chair and CEO of Salesforce, said in a statement that he’s thrilled to welcome Washington as COFO at “this incredible moment when Al agents are redefining the workforce.” Washington is a key architect of the company’s strategy to “accelerate the rise of Agentforce—the first digital labor platform,” he said.
In a recent episode of Fortune’s Leadership Next podcast, Benioff talked with host Diane Brady about Agentforce, which allows companies to create AI agents to help employees with their work. A recent report by the Bank of America Institute refers to agentic AI as the newest AI wave that may ultimately spark corporate efficiency that transforms the global economy.
Washington is ready to lead Salesforce, its employees, and customers into this “agent-first era that will fundamentally change how businesses operate, innovate, and grow,” she said in a statement.
“I am deeply honored to step into this role at such a defining moment for Salesforce and the entire industry,” she said.
Sheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
Leaderboard
Fortune 500 Power Move
Ford Motor Company (No. 17), announced on Wednesday that Sherry House, who has served as vice president of finance since June, will become Ford’s chief financial officer as planned effective Feb. 6. House succeeds John Lawler, who will continue to serve as Ford’s vice chair. Every Friday morning, the weekly Fortune 500 Power Moves column tracks Fortune 500 company C-suite shifts—see the most recent edition.
More notable moves announced on Wednesday:
Christopher A. McGinnis was appointed CFO of GoodRx (Nasdaq: GDRX), a prescription savings platform in the U.S. McGinnis brings 30 years of financial experience to the role. He will join GoodRx following his role as CEO of CitizensRx. Before that, McGinnis held executive roles at Lumeris/Essence Healthcare, serving as its CFO and EVP of operations.
Ahmed Misbah was promoted to CFO of Swvl Holdings Corp. (Nasdaq: SWVL), a global technology-enabled mass transit solutions provider. Since June 2021, Misbah has served as group finance manager, head of finance, and director of finance. Before Swvl, he worked as a senior associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC in the United Arab Emirates.
Big Deal
The mandate of many finance chiefs is expanding, and that’s reflected in a new CFO survey from research and consulting firm Gartner. Over three-quarters of the 251 respondents said they have assumed ownership or co-ownership of their organization’s enterprise data and analytics function, or D&A, to help drive profitability. Many CFOs also said they are increasingly overseeing operations regarding artificial intelligence, information technology, real estate, cybersecurity, and environmental social governance, commonly known as ESG.
“For most CFOs, the responsibilities they carry beyond finance include a mix of enterprise data and analytics, enterprise risk, corporate strategy, M&A, and procurement,” Mallory Bulman, CFO advisory leader in Gartner's finance practice said in a statement. “This expanded role will require CFOs to make decisive trade-offs in their own time and prioritization decisions.”
Going deeper
“Meet the CEO who turned the Swedish NoseFrida into a huge hit with American parents of babies” is a Fortune Well article by Beth Greenfield. Originally developed by a pediatrician in Sweden, NoseFrida, a device used to help clear a baby’s congested nose, was soon distributed in the U.S. exclusively by a Swedish mother of teens living in Miami. “And in 2010, in a move that would change the course of American babycare, she gave one to her neighbor, new mom and in-house Marlins attorney Chelsea Hirschhorn,” Greenfield writes.
Overheard
“Whether or not DeepSeek’s claims ultimately hold up, this latest technology disruption makes one thing clear: The industry’s fixation on scale and spend as hallmarks of innovation and value creation requires recalibration.”
—Edwin Olson, the CEO and cofounder of May Mobility, an autonomous vehicle technology startup, writes in a new Fortune opinion piece.