Salesforce.com Named to FORTUNE's 2009 '100 Best Companies to Work For' List

SAN FRANCISCO, January 26, 2009 – Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM), the enterprise cloud computing company, today announced it has been ranked #55 on the 12th annual "100 Best Companies to Work For" list. The annual survey polls employees from companies nationwide about the quality of their corporate cultures, and evaluates criteria such as the company's pay and benefit programs, hiring practices, internal communications, training, recognition programs and diversity efforts.

According to the list: "Employees at this on-demand software provider rave about its 1/1/1 approach to philanthropy: 1% of time (staff gets six paid days a year to volunteer); 1% of equity (1% of pre-IPO equity was allocated to the Salesforce.com Foundation); and 1% product donations (giving discounts to nonprofits using the CRM software)."

"We are honored to be publicly recognized along with technology industry leaders Cisco, Google and eBay for our commitment to the customers, partners and communities we serve, and for the unique the culture we've built at salesforce.com," said Marc Benioff, chairman and CEO of salesforce.com. "As we approach our tenth anniversary, I can think of no better way to celebrate than with this milestone achievement."

Benioff attributes the company's inclusion on the list not only to the camaraderie of its employees in pursuing their shared vision for the End of Software, but also to its commitment to corporate philanthropy and to helping employees achieve success with both their professional and personal goals.

Varun Gupta, a salesforce.com quality assurance engineer, agrees: "Looking at my various career options, there were several things about salesforce.com that clearly stood out -- its vision for cloud computing, rapid growth and more. But what truly sold me was the company's dedication to giving back to the communities it serves, which allows me to pursue my personal service- oriented goals without having to leave work."

While salesforce.com is best known for its pioneering work in enterprise cloud computing, it is also changing the face of corporate philanthropy through its 1/1/1 integrated corporate philanthropy model which is now being adopted by other companies. For example, as part of 1% time, all employees around the world spend a half day doing community service as part of the company's employee orientation. The company also offers a Fellowship program where a salesforce.com employee is given a year to work at the Salesforce.com Foundation. This model, along with an innovative approach to human resources, supports the company's belief that happy, healthy and motivated employees enable the company -- and ultimately its customers -- to excel.

Another distinguishing ingredient to the company's success is how it uses its own technology to tap into the wisdom of its employee community. The company's own deployment of Salesforce CRM Ideas gives employees the opportunity to post ideas related to their work which are then voted on by other employees so that the best ideas bubble to the top. Managers and company leaders gain direct insight into the most popular ideas coming from the employee community which has led to numerous innovative ways to not only improve the employee's work experience, but also the company's products.

"Using our own Salesforce CRM Ideas technology to listen to our employees has forever changed the way we communicate," said Erin Flynn, senior vice president of Employee Success at salesforce.com. "We've been able to tap into their collective wisdom to make a difference in the employee experience and in our business. It's what makes our company revolutionary."

Tapping into the collective wisdom of its employees has even modified the company's process for developing and rolling out new product offerings. Based on employee feedback, the company rolled out a new product development methodology that has led to both new efficiencies and employee empowerment. Chris Fry, vice president of Core & Platform Development at salesforce.com, says, "People are more empowered because we try to put them in control wherever possible. Our Agile Delivery Methodology (ADM) was a radical transformation for our organization and we are both more effective and more efficient as a result."

How FORTUNE Chose the "100 Best Companies to Work For"

To pick the "100 Best Companies to Work For," FORTUNE works with Robert Levering and Milton Moskowitz of the Great Place to Work(R) Institute -- a global research and consulting firm with offices in 30 countries -- to conduct the most extensive employee survey in corporate America.

More than 81,000 employees from 353 companies responded to the 57-question survey created by the Institute. Two-thirds of a company's score is based on the survey, which is sent to a minimum of 400 randomly selected employees. The remaining third is based on a company's responses to the Culture Audit questionnaire, which asks detailed questions about demographics, pay and benefits, and open-ended questions on philosophy, communication and more.

In his FORTUNE.com blog, Managing Editor Andy Serwer writes, "No matter what happens with the economy, the demand for talent will remain. Great companies know that super-motivated, happy, world-class employees are an incredible competitive advantage."

The full list and related stories appear in the February 2 issue of FORTUNE, available on newsstands on Monday, January 26, and now at FORTUNE.com/bestcompanies.

About Fortune
FORTUNE is a global leader in business journalism with a worldwide circulation of more than 1 million and a readership of nearly 5 million, with major franchises including the FORTUNE 500 and the FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For. FORTUNE Live Media extends the brand's mission into live settings, hosting a wide range of annual conferences, including the FORTUNE Global Forum. FORTUNE magazine's online home is CNNMoney.com, the most visited and utilized business destination website.

About the Salesforce.com Foundation
The Salesforce.com Foundation is the leader in pioneering, evangelizing and implementing the 1/1/1 Model and using it as a means to improve the lives of people around the world. The 1/1/1 Model harnesses the power of people and technology through 1% Time, 1% Equity, 1% Product, and being "one" with the earth, to build deep relationships with communities around the world and increase the effectiveness of nonprofit organizations in achieving their goals. The Foundation concentrates on the use of technology, specifically as it relates to organizations with youth development programs. It has supported technology projects around the world that help kids in bereft urban and rural areas access technology to create better futures for themselves. The 1/1/1 Model has had a profound effect on salesforce.com and its communities: Since July of 2000, salesforce.com employees have given over 90,000 hours of their time and expertise back to the community. More than 5,000 nonprofits in 56 countries around the world are using donated licenses to run their businesses more efficiently; and numerous organizations are benefiting from technology related grants from the Foundation. For more information on the 1/1/1 Model, please visit www.sharethemodel.org. For more information on the Salesforce.com Foundation, please visit http://www.salesforcefoundation.org.