The Top 4 Things You Missed at Dreamforce 2021

Another Dreamforce is in the books, and although this year’s event looked different than those in the past, it wasn’t lacking the usual entertainment, insight, and community building that we’ve come to expect from a traditional Dreamforce experience. Dreamforce 2021, a mix of in-person event and virtual global gathering, had a little bit of everything: Will Smith and Ted Lasso…I mean, Jason Sudeikis? Check. Exciting product announcements? Yep. Marc Benioff donning some sweet kicks in his mainstage keynote? Obviously.

The good news is that if you missed any of the big moments from #DF21, we’re here to give you a rundown of the top four moments from the event. And if you’d like to go back and watch — or rewatch — any sessions that you may have missed the first time around, they’re all available for you to catch on demand through our new streaming platform, Salesforce+.

Rob Acker, CEO of Salesforce.org, opening our keynote session

1. The Salesforce.org Mainstage Keynote Hit the Highlights

Salesforce.org CEO Rob Acker took center stage to talk through Salesforce.org highlights from the last year. Chief among them? Salesforce.org has become the largest tech-for-social-impact community in the world. That’s thanks to you, our incredible customers and partners who choose Salesforce.org as the platform that powers your purpose as an organization.

It wouldn’t be a proper highlight of all things Salesforce.org without mentioning our new podcast, Force Multiplier. The podcast, which is done in collaboration with iHeartRadio, is hosted by bestselling author Baratunde Thurston and spotlights leaders across the nonprofit, for-profit, and education sectors in their work to tackle some of the biggest problems facing the world. Each episode dives deep into a big issue — like health equality, workforce development, and nutrition insecurity — and the cross-sector partnerships focused on solving them.

And of course, the highlight of all highlights: our incredible world-changing customers. We spotlighted the work that GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, is doing with Nonprofit Cloud to power the COVAX Collaboration Platform, otherwise known as the largest vaccine operation in history. Big Brothers Big Sisters of America has always prided itself on cultivating strong relationships. But through the many changes over the last year and a half, they transformed their programs to offer a whole new range of engaging community experiences. Educational institutions are another place where traditional operations have been turned upside down since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the University of California is leading the way on how higher education is redefining the student experience. Last but not least, 3M Gives offered some key takeaways on helping employees find purpose in their work lives.

2. Nonprofit Cloud is Delivering Unique Experiences to Drive Impact

During the Nonprofit Cloud keynote, we heard from International Justice Mission on how they are partnering with Nonprofit Cloud to deliver unique digital experiences to create more impact, support constituents, and find success from anywhere. The organization also shared how they’re using technology to deliver on their 2030 Strategic Vision, which maps out a plan for rescuing millions, protecting half a billion, and bringing justice for those in poverty.

The keynote also included a handful of exciting product announcements, including Slack for Nonprofits, Experience Cloud for Nonprofits, Einstein for Nonprofits, and the Power of Us Program Reimagined (the latter for AMER only). To learn more on the Nonprofit Cloud roadmap, you can catch the Nonprofit Cloud Roadmap session on Salesforce+.

In addition to checking out the Nonprofit Cloud roadmap session on Salesforce+, you can also watch the four other nonprofit sessions on demand:

• Top Trends Driving Demand for New Digital Experiences featuring Lilly School of Philanthropy
• How UNICEF AU Made A Case for Changing Digital Experiences
• Nonprofits Creating Exceptional Experiences With Salesforce with Autism Plus and Canadian Cancer Society
• Integrated Fundraising in the Power of Us Program

3. Education Cloud is Going From Experiences to Lifelong Relationships

The Education Cloud portion of the event featured two student success Trailblazers from Case Western Reserve University who are using Education Cloud to drive learner and institution success. Salesforce.org’s Navneet Johal talked with Tom Matthews, associate provost for student success, and Robert Soloman, vice president and chief diversity officer, about student wellbeing and how to drive holistic student support from both a technology and cultural perspective. Tom also shared incredible success metrics the university has seen since using Education Cloud.

Product announcements included new Education Cloud innovations that empower schools, colleges, and universities to drive learner and institution success from anywhere including retention tools, a student-facing scheduling wizard, chatbots, and a new Slack app for Student Success Alerts. On top of that, the Education Cloud team announced the rebranding of Advisor Link to Student Success Hub for Higher Ed.

Don’t forget to check out the on-demand sessions on Salesforce+, featuring institutions that are transforming experiences into lifelong relationships:

• Create a Mobile-First Admissions Experience with CRM with SNHU
• Aalto University and Fluido brought us “Transform Student Service with Advisor Link & Service Cloud”
• Alumni & Friends: UChicago’s Application of Experience Cloud
• Mapping an End-to-End Student Journey with Education Cloud with Ivy Tech Community College

4. Philanthropy Cloud is Delivering a Corporate Citizen Employee Experience

A company’s success is intertwined with its community impact, especially in today’s distributed workforce. During the Philanthropy Cloud keynote, we heard how 3M is engaging employees through corporate giving programs in order to reach both its impact targets and its business goals. To learn more about how a company’s success is intertwined with its community impact, you can catch that session on demand on Salesforce+ now.

Of course the Philanthropy Cloud team brought exciting product announcements, too. The team talked through the new Matching Gifts and Slack-First Philanthropy, which will enhance the employee experience, drive further engagement, and maximize impact while minimizing administrative overhead — the ultimate win-win. Other announcements included Philanthropy Cloud improvements in Impact Reporting & Grantmaking and global availability next year.

Watch the on-demand Philanthropy Cloud sessions via Salesforce+ now:

• Four Pillars of a Successful Workplace Giving Program
• How Kellogg Company Persevered to Help Its Communities

Still hungry for some more education content? Mark your calendars for next year’s Education Summit!

Education Summit celebrates 10 years of digital transformation across our education community. On April 20-22, you can join us in person in Phoenix, Arizona, or engage with us virtually for three full days of inspiring speakers, customer success stories, and the latest Education Cloud innovations. Interested in joining the conversation? Our call for proposals is now open. Submit your session ideas today!

Miss out on some of the highlights above? Rewatch any of our Dreamforce content on demand now.

About the Author

Traci DePuy
Head of Global Events at Salesforce.org