2023 Top 15 Chief Diversity Officers Accelerate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Lori Castillo Martinez Focuses on the Employee Experience at Salesforce


Lori Castillo Martinez is Executive Vice President and Chief Equality Officer at Salesforce. Salesforce has set multi-year goals to drive representation. First, to double the U.S. representation of Black leaders at the Vice President level or higher. Second, to increase the representation of underrepresented minority leaders by 50%, and to increase U.S. representation of Black, Indigenous, Latinx, and Multiracial employees by 50%. Third, is to develop a U.S. workforce that is made up of 50% underrepresented groups. The first and third goals were met early. Lori believes representation is about more than recruitment and hiring. It is about the experience, so she introduced several programs to promote a more inclusive workplace, such as a Warmline that connects Black, Latinx, Indigenous, LGBTQ+ and Women employees to advocates to help with pivotal career moments and conversations, an Amplify Sponsorship program that matches women of color with senior leaders for sponsorship and career-building opportunities, and a new Equality business partner team to deepen expertise and drive change in the largest functions.


Lori focuses on inclusion by removing barriers, redesigning systems with equality at the center, and utilizing different aspects of the ecosystem, such as partners and customers to accelerate this work. She is the co-chair of Salesforce's Racial Equality and Justice Taskforce, which works to effect systemic change by driving inclusive business practices, investing in, and empowering minority-led organizations, cultivating partnerships, and advocating for policies for racial equality.


Favorite Quote: I have the opportunity to change people’s individual experiences every day — that’s powerful. It’s a commitment I make each time I am in any meeting or call, to always bring it back to the people who make up this company. - Lori Castillo Martinez