Obama Transition Team Picks Salesforce for Citizen Idea Site

By Greg McNevin

January 19, 2009: With Barack Obama’s swearing in as President of the United States closing in and change sweeping through America’s political landscape, Salesforce.com has announced that it will be playing its own part in the process, with the company’s customer relationship management solution powering Obama’s Change.gov website.

The website is being promoted as a place for Americans to log on and express ideas on topics such as energy, healthcare and oil policy, with each idea able to be read and promoted by other citizens, and the most popular eventually delivered directly to the President-elect post inauguration.

Salesforce.com says it has been working with Obama’s transition team to tap the wisdom of crowds and build the first 'Citizen's Briefing Book' as part of an effort to foster greater collaboration with citizens and create a more transparent government.

Salesforce.com says that the Obama-Biden Transition Team and consulting partner Reside, was able to implement its CRM Ideas solution in less than four weeks.

“We are honored to be one of the first solutions selected by the transition team to help the President-elect realise his vision of a more transparent government,” said Marc Benioff, Chairman and CEO of salesforce.com. “With Salesforce CRM Ideas, government can transform a closed conversation into a collaborative dialogue that leverages the wisdom of the crowd.”

The service is now live at citizensbriefingbook.change.gov.

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