Salesforce Finally Integrates Google App Suite

In case you had not heard from Techcrunch, Google or Salesforce, the much rumored Google Apps integration with Salesforce is now live. The two major players in cloud computing have combined forces to create a robust one stop cloud application suite. This is a good strategic play by Google, not only because Salesforce is the leader in cloud computing, but also because salespeople can drive changes with for how an organization operates. 

The mass improvements in efficiency for salespeople, who tend to go on the road and be less tolerant of IT roadblocks than those inside of a company, lead to the mass adoption of Salesforce, the first big success in cloud computing. By integrating an office application into the Salesforce suite, the same type of sweeping change may / should ensue. 

When salespeople and business managers find that for a few more dollars a more that they can operate their business in a more efficient manner, it has the chance to be the true tipping point for change. IT staffs must be beware of traditional enterprise software approaches when the people who generate the revenue embrace a completely different model. As operation decisions move up the food chain in an organization, the power shifts dramatically goes to those who earn the money and not spend it.

There is little doubt that Salesforce made the ability to work offine a requirement for Google given the close proximity of this official release with the the offline capability announced just one week ago. Given, how long this rumor has swirled around the blogs, Salesforce must have known that non-offline access would have been a problem for their user base.

Now that the offline issue is solved Salesforce is moving towards a one stop shop for your enterprise needs, whether you are a small business for a Fortune 500 company. Not to mention the obvious joy in Salesforce's CEO Marc Benioff's voice in going after Microsoft:

You’ve seen what we have been doing is slowly integrating all of our services with theirs. Certainly the enemy of my enemy is my friend, which makes Google my best friend. I have spoken with a lot of customers who want to get off of Microsoft Word.

Nice video below about the power of leveraging the cloud.