The Fortune 500 firm’s autonomous AI agent platform just lately surpassed 1 million AI agent-customer conversations, with brokers now autonomously resolving 85% of all buyer queries, in line with Robin Washington, president and chief working and monetary officer (COFO) at Salesforce. The corporate formally launched Agentforce in October.
Throughout a digital interview on Tuesday with Edith Cooper, cofounder of Medley—a membership-based neighborhood for private {and professional} development—Washington mentioned the way forward for AI brokers within the office.
“Our assist groups are capable of give attention to extra advanced buyer questions,” she mentioned. “These are engagements that basically require human judgment, creativity, empathy—all issues that AI can’t do.”
She described this as one of the crucial transformative moments within the historical past of know-how, which impressed her to tackle an working position at Salesforce.
Washington shared that she makes use of Agentforce herself. Her AI agent helps her by dealing with routine duties, permitting her to give attention to deeper, extra significant work. “It’s my assist perform that I take advantage of quite a bit,” she mentioned. She additionally sees how these instruments may help her turn into a greater chief.
“I believe as leaders, we’ve got to understand that there’s this unprecedented alternative for development and worth creation with AI,” Washington mentioned. She emphasised the significance of cross-functional purchase in and setting the correct tone on the prime of the corporate.
Nonetheless, she additionally harassed the necessity to maintain people on the middle of AI implementation. Based on MIT analysis, the best use of AI within the office is to not absolutely substitute people, however to mix the strengths of each AI and human employees—particularly for duties the place people nonetheless outperform AI.
Profession Recommendation: Step exterior of your consolation zone
Washington started her tenure as president and COFO of Salesforce in March, a newly created place. A longtime Salesforce board member with experience in know-how, together with agentic AI, she leads the corporate’s operational and monetary technique.
“I’m approaching about 40 years of being on this journey of working and monetary roles in numerous industries,” she instructed Cooper.
Earlier than becoming a member of Salesforce, Washington held roles, together with EVP and CFO of Gilead Sciences, CFO of Hyperion Options, and chief accounting officer of PeopleSoft.
Washington described herself as a steady learner who thrives in fast-paced environments that require fixed reinvention. She values sponsorship, hiring individuals she will study from, and fostering an atmosphere for numerous thinkers.
“I believe the outcomes are broader and higher while you’ve acquired numerous considering on the desk,” she mentioned.
One other key facet of her profession journey is her willingness to step exterior her consolation zone. “I don’t assume it all the time got here naturally to me, however I’ve generally used the phrase ‘get snug being uncomfortable,’ as a result of I do know when I’m uncomfortable and never fairly certain how issues are going to prove, it’s actually a studying alternative.” She added that failures are alternatives as properly.
Washington mirrored on her profession, together with shifting to Silicon Valley in her 20s, working overseas to achieve international expertise, switching from tech to biotech, and taking up a CFO position early in her profession.
“I keep in mind, lots of people instructed me, ‘You’re loopy,’” Washington mentioned. “I simply all the time raised my hand for that robust project.”
Sheryl Estrada
sheryl.estrada@fortune.com
Leaderboard
Ken Prepare dinner, CFO, was appointed interim CEO of The Wendy’s Firm (Nasdaq: WEN). Kirk Tanner, president and CEO, is leaving to turn into the president and CEO at The Hershey Firm (NYSE: HSY) and can depart on July 18. Wendy’s board of administrators has launched a seek for a everlasting CEO. Prepare dinner, who stays CFO, performed a key position in creating Wendy’s long-term development technique. Earlier than becoming a member of the Firm, he spent 20 years at United Parcel Service, Inc. in management roles.
Matt Parson was appointed EVP and CFO of SAS, an information and AI firm. Parson succeeds long-time CFO David Davis, who’s retiring after almost 40 years at SAS. Parson spent 12 years at Pink Hat, the place he performed a key position in its worldwide growth as the corporate scaled from $200 million to just about $3 billion in annual income. He has since served as CFO at CloudBees and Paymentus, guiding the latter by way of an IPO. And Parson most just lately held twin roles as CFO and COO at ExtraHop.
Large Deal
JM Search, an govt search agency centered on non-public fairness, has launched its 2025 CFO Compensation & Insights Research, primarily based on responses from 312 sitting CFOs at primarily investor-backed companies.
The report supplies an evaluation of base compensation, money bonuses, and fairness—together with compensation notion gaps between first-time and seasoned CFOs. It additionally explores the elements driving CFO retention and departures in at present’s market, in addition to how profession paths, CFO tasks, and worth creation priorities are evolving.
Going deeper
In an episode of Wharton’s “This Week in Enterprise” podcast, the professor and director of the Pension Analysis Council on the Wharton College breaks down new information on rising 401(ok) contributions, the affect of computerized enrollment, and the financial savings behaviors of youthful generations.
Overheard
“Thanks in your contributions.”
—Elon Musk, proprietor of the social platform X (previously Twitter), posted on Wednesday in response to Linda Yaccarino stepping down as CEO of X after two years on the helm. Yaccarino introduced her resignation on Wednesday in a submit on X, expressing satisfaction within the firm’s turnaround and gratitude to Musk for entrusting her with the position, Fortune reported.
