Vala Afshar, Salesforce’s digital evangelist, visited the Mobile World Congress this week at the invitation of Telefónica’s president, José María Álvarez-Pallete, for whom he feels “a great reverence, because he is a visionary, he is a technician and a data scientist”. He preaches that entrepreneurs should be guided by the social good, the best way to prosper.
You propose that companies catalyze social changes that reduce injustices.
In a conference at MWC they said that there are still 3.4 billion people who don’t have access to the internet today, out of a total of 8 billion, and it will take companies like us and our customers to help with adoption, because it’s hard to find access to education and work if you don’t have access to the internet.
Why is it so important?
If you have access to the internet, you have access to affordable education. I learn online every day. A younger version of me would have had a lot more opportunities if I had had a computer in my pocket.
How did you see the Mobile World Congress?
It’s amazing to see so many companies working to improve society with technology, but many of the conversations were about humanity and making sure we use technology to advance society.
What has been talked about the most at MWC is AI. Do you understand that many people are afraid of him?
I’m optimistic The most remarkable people I know, the ones who invent the future, are optimists. The pessimist may seem smarter, but it is the optimists who build the future. It is our responsibility to ensure that AI is used in a positive way.
Aren’t you afraid of him?
It shouldn’t be scary. If I were a venture capitalist and you came to me 15 years ago and said, “Okay, invest in my startup,” I’d ask what’s your startup: strangers get in strangers’ cars and go from one point to another other (Uber).
what changed
The prevailing logic was that we would never put our customers’ most important data outside the company’s walls. No one thought that cloud computing would be so secure, robust and flexible. And now, look: they are the most valuable companies on Earth. This is the challenge of AI. People think: should I trust the machine or a human? The biggest challenge will be getting comfortable working in an environment where intelligent software guides you along the way.
when will it happen
My son is 13 years old, but when he leaves university in ten years, he will be working as a digital employee. Your boss could be a digital worker.
But people will be replaced.
That’s not what they should be worried about. They may be more likely to be replaced by someone human who is more comfortable with AI.
What jobs will remain?
You and I love our jobs. I’m sure it never gets boring. How many people actually have that privilege? We should give people the opportunity to reach their full potential. This is a beautiful part of what AI can do.
And what do we do with bad actors?
In the eight years I’ve been with the company, more than a million people a year have applied to work at Salesforce. Our founders decided that the digital divide exists and continues to widen due to a lack of education. So we offered the training at no cost. Minimize bad actors by being more generous and the world will repay you.
Is the message to executives “be good”?
Values ??create value. Business executives like José María – Álvarez-Pallete, and I sound like the president of their fan club, lead with their hearts. They are businesses that exist to make money. This is obvious, but there are ways to live a commendable life. What is the definition of brand? Your brand, Francesc, is what we will say about you when you are not in the room.
There are also companies that wash their image with social issues.
Seven or eight years ago, a couple of Salesforce executives discovered that women in the company weren’t getting paid the same as men for the same work. Our founder believed that this could not be true. We are the most admired company, but in fact, we did not pay women the same. When you make a mistake, raise your hand and admit it. If you say you’re going to fix it, you can gain a lot of confidence by sharing the lessons, even when you fall and have to get back up.
