Salesforce encouraged employees to buy and expense co-CEO Marc Benioff's latest book to boost sales

• Salesforce helped boost sales of co-CEO and cofounder Marc Benioff's latest book, "Trailblazer," by encouraging employees to buy and expense it, according to a new report from Bloomberg.
• The company reportedly sent a memo to its employees late last year saying that it would consider the book to be business material, and therefore eligible for reimbursement.
• In "Trailblazer," Benioff attributes Salesforce's focus on social good to its success.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Salesforce helped turn co-CEO Marc Benioff's new book "Trailblazer" into a bestseller by encouraging employees to buy a copy and then expense it, according to a new report from Bloomberg.

The cloud software giant sent a memo to its 48,000 employees last fall, saying it would reimburse them if they bought the book, on the basis that it considers the book to be business material, the report says.

"Our employees were invited to expense a copy and spread the word...'Trailblazer' was inspired by our employees, so of course we wanted to get it in their hands, as well as our customers', partners' and anyone else wanting to learn how business is the greatest platform for change," a Salesforce spokesperson says.

The book, "Trailblazer: The Power of Business as the Greatest Platform for Change," is all about how businesses can and should use their influence to help better the world around them. In it, Benioff attributes Salesforce's success to its corporate values: trust, customer success, innovation, and equality and its commitment to giving back.

This report comes the same week Benioff attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he spoke about the ideas he advocates for in the book. In an interview with CNBC, he said he was at a "funeral for capitalism" in Davos because capitalism as we know it is dead. He says he wants to see a move towards stakeholder capitalism, or the concept that all companies have a greater purpose besides just providing returns for shareholders.

"This obsession that we have with maximizing profits for shareholders alone has led to incredible inequality and a planetary emergency," he told CNBC. "When we serve all stakeholders, business is the greatest platform for change. And, the great news is, and I believe you can see it here, that stakeholder capitalism is finally hitting a tipping point."

Salesforce has said that the proceeds from sales of "Trailblazer" were donated to charity. While the way that most bestseller lists are calculated remains a trade secret, a report from Vox said it takes at least 5,000 books sold in a week to make the New York Times' list.

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