According to a press release on Salesforce.com, Inc. the customer relationship management (CRM) platform is set to acquire Slack Technologies, Inc., an intra-business communications platform known for its chat application. The companies’ Dec. 1 announcement explains that Slack shareholders will receive both cash and fractions of Salesforce shares in the buyout.
Salesforce, a publicly-traded, San Francisco, California-based company, self-describes as “the global CRM leader,” that reportedly “empowers companies of every size and industry to digitally transform and create a 360° view of their customers.” According to Salesforce, Slack has “transformed business communication” with its channel-based messaging platform that is both secure and scalable for even the world’s largest companies.
The press release claims that the unification of these two companies “will be transformative for customers and the industry. The combination will create the operating system for the new way to work, uniquely enabling companies to grow and succeed in the all-digital world.”
Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO of Salesforce, remarked that the acquisition is “a match made in heaven.” He said, “[t]ogether, Salesforce and Slack will shape the future of enterprise software and transform the way everyone works in the all-digital, work-from-anywhere world. I’m thrilled to welcome Slack to the Salesforce Ohana once the transaction closes.”
Slack CEO and Co-Founder Stewart Butterfield shared Benioff’s sentiment, stating, “[p]ersonally, I believe this is the most strategic combination in the history of software, and I can’t wait to get going.” The announcement states that Slack will become an operating unit within Salesforce and will continue to be led by Butterfield.
The press release explains how Slack is set to become the new interface for “Salesforce Customer 360.” As part of Salesforce, the announcement further claims, Slack will be able to expand its operations “not just among Salesforce customers, but for any company undergoing digital transformation.”
According to the press release, the companies anticipate that the deal will close in the second quarter of Salesforce’s fiscal year 2022, subject to Slack stockholder and regulatory approval, in addition to other closing conditions.