From Ally to Action — Putting Diversity & Inclusion Front and Center for Partners

In my career, I’ve found that the most impactful work comes when you listen to the customers and partners you serve. You start by understanding their challenges and then put the resources in place to prioritize developing solutions. The same approach should be taken in developing any business strategy, including how we address diversity, equity, and inclusion for our partners and the greater Salesforce ecosystem.

At Salesforce, Equality is a core value and we are highly intentional in our approach. We don’t always get it right — but we are determined to lead with our values, listen deeply to our communities, and redesign our processes to create fair and equitable experiences for everyone. This extends to our partner ecosystem where we help partners build a more diverse workforce through programs like Salesforce Talent Alliance, which connects partners to Salesforce certified professionals, with an emphasis on underrepresented groups in tech.

On a personal level, a few years ago, I was invited to attend an event hosted by our Black Employee Resource Group, BOLDforce. I was struck by the discussion around the lack of diversity in tech at all levels, particularly in a city like Chicago with such a diverse population. This event helped me explore new ways to become an active ally and educate myself more about diversity, equity and inclusion. Then, the events of last summer brought these challenges into sharper focus and motivated me to do more. I took the time to listen deeply and understand how my role can and should affect change.

To better support our customers, Salesforce and our partnerforce need to reflect the communities where we live and work. In order to do that, we start by actively listening to our partners and then take action to support those who are experiencing barriers to success so that we can create a more equitable ecosystem. Together, we are uniquely positioned to influence not only our own workplaces, but also the marketplace. When we all work together as a collective, we can maximize our impact.

In order to get more intentional about our efforts, we hired a diversity and inclusion director for our partner ecosystem — a critical role that will help ensure everything we do for our partners has an equity lens.

Taking Action Through New Talent

I’m pleased to introduce Minea Moore, our new Partner Diversity & Inclusion Director. In her role, Minea will help drive our diversity and inclusion initiatives throughout the partner ecosystem, while advancing our Salesforce mission of Equality for All. Not only does Minea’s background in tech and supplier diversity lend well to her new role, but her passion for equity work is a key driver of the change we hope to create.

I recently sat down with Minea to discuss her new role and what she’s most excited to see in the changing tech landscape.

How do your past experiences help you achieve our goal of diversity and inclusion in the partner ecosystem ?

I’ve spent my entire career (over two decades) in the tech industry. I was at Hewlett-Packard in Boise before going on to Intel for 18 years. In 2013, when there was increased scrutiny around the lack of diversity in Silicon Valley, I took over Intel’s supplier diversity efforts, focusing on how we promote inclusion and development of diverse businesses. The headlines were about the lack of diversity from a workforce perspective, but the conversations happening behind the scenes were challenging companies to think about not just inclusive hiring, but also who they do business with.

I’ve spent the last three years at Salesforce in my previous role of Global Head of Supplier Diversity & Sustainability. All of my experiences come together even more in my new role. Now, I oversee the strategic approach to diversity, equity, and inclusion within the Salesforce partner ecosystem. We are identifying diverse businesses within our ecosystem and asking ourselves “How do we build capacity and increase visibility to them?” Whether in the supply chain or partner ecosystem, it’s always about supporting entrepreneurs. Small and mid-sized businesses are the heart of our economy.

Why is diversity and inclusion important in the partner ecosystem and customer experience?

D&I is not just the right thing to do, it’s also the smart business thing to do. From a business imperative perspective, diversity breeds innovation, especially in the tech industry. I would ask any tech company “How do you know you’re delivering the most innovative product that’s able to provide for the needs of your customers?” Because in reality, your customers are very diverse. It also allows you to reach new customer segments and enter into new communities you may not have known existed. Diverse talent brings a different perspective that will ultimately lead to a better product or solution.

This is why we recently launched a new, Black-owned business page on AppExchange. Through this platform, we strive to not only empower Black-owned apps and expertise, but to ultimately drive more equitable business practices. We will continue to update AppExchange to highlight partners from other underrepresented groups. This is one way we help our customers bring diversity into their businesses.

“Diversity and inclusion is not just the right thing to do, but it’s also the smart thing to do for business…diversity breeds innovation, especially in the tech industry.”

We just introduced the Lead Pillar to our partner ecosystem. How does the Lead Pillar amplify our impact?

At Salesforce, we’re in this unique position to do more. But our partner ecosystem is in a more strategic place to not only impact the workforce, but also the marketplace. We bridge the gap between those two to maximize impact. There’s a piece of it that means driving diversity, inclusion, and equity (DEI) in the work we’re doing. But there’s also this element of inspiring and bringing our partners along the way so we can maximize that growth. We do that by integrating DEI into our existing processes and tools and by providing our partners with education and opportunities to come along this journey with us.

We hold ourselves accountable (through things like the V2MOM), but also hold our partners accountable. The Lead Pillar is a new pillar that includes equality and sustainable development goals. The great thing is, the approach isn’t a mandate, but a celebration of our partners’ work. If Salesforce works to set an example that equality is important, and our partners do the same, we can make a greater impact and change the face of what tech looks like.

“I believe from the bottom of my heart that the Salesforce ecosystem has the opportunity to impact the overall tech industry.”

What are you most looking forward to in your new role?

Right now, I’m doing a lot of listening and learning; connecting with as many people as possible within the first 90 days. My goal is to align all of us in a common vision to accelerate our growth. There are so many things I’m excited for, but I believe from the bottom of my heart that the Salesforce ecosystem has the opportunity to impact the overall tech industry. That’s not something I can do on my own — it’s a collective effort from all of us. That includes our partners in the ecosystem. Many of them are already doing this work and paving the way, and it’s my goal to identify them, showcase their stories, and support them to fuel the industry-wide impact.

Learn more by catching up on the following sessions that aired during Partnerforce FY22 Kickoff:

• Lead Together: Community Diversity & Inclusion
• The Power of Diversity & Inclusion: a Salesforce Partner view in EMEA & LATAM
• The Salesforce Partner Program FY22: Leading Together
• Growing and Diversifying the Ecosystem: Salesforce Talent Alliance