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Salesforce Pitches New Tools to Help Distribute Covid Vaccines

Salesforce Pitches New Tools to Help Distribute Covid Vaccines

Salesforce.com Inc. unveiled software aimed at helping health care companies and governments manage the largest vaccination push in human history, the company’s latest attempt to become a one-stop shop for technology to navigate the coronavirus pandemic.

Once a Covid-19 vaccine is approved, Work.com for Vaccines will offer hospitals, labs and other providers a command center that analyzes distribution efforts, tracks inventory and forecasts supply needs, the San Francisco-based company said Wednesday in a statement. The platform will also help schedule patient appointments, monitor outcomes and train medical professionals on proper procedures.

Salesforce’s strategy of developing Covid-related apps helps the company burnish its image of doing good while also contributing to revenue growth. The software maker said federal and state agencies are already using its Work.com platform for virus contact-tracing and other functions. In the three months that ended July 31, Salesforce’s revenue climbed 29% to $5.15 billion, demonstrating its strategy has paid off despite a pandemic-fueled recession.

Chief Operating Officer Bret Taylor said the new offerings would make Salesforce more “relevant” to customers.

“We’ve been focused on how we can help our stakeholders take critical action to help the world respond to this pandemic,” Taylor said in an interview. “It started with distributing 50 million units of personal protective equipment to hospitals. This is really building on that, which is saying, what role can we play and leverage our business as a platform for change?”

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.