Salesforce Economy in India Poised to Create 1.8 million Jobs and Generate $88.6 Billion by 2028

New Delhi – Salesforce (NYSE: CRM), the global leader in customer relationship management (CRM), has unveiled findings from an IDC study projecting significant growth in the Salesforce economy, fueled by artificial intelligence (AI). The study forecasts that Salesforce and its ecosystem of customers and partners in India will create a net gain of 1.8 million new jobs and generate $88.6 billion in new business revenues between 2022 and 2028.

The IDC Salesforce Economic Impact Study highlights the transformative power of AI-powered cloud solutions in driving economic growth.

Key Drivers of AI Adoption

AI adoption is rapidly increasing in India, with 79% of companies currently using AI-powered CRM solutions and 80% utilizing enterprise AI software platforms. The primary motivations for adopting AI-powered cloud solutions include:

Improved employee productivity (35%)
Enhanced customer experience (34%)
Increased quality in product, production, supply chain, and service (29%)

Ecosystem Impact

The growth of AI-powered applications presents substantial opportunities for the partner ecosystem to support customers on their AI journey. To fully implement AI-powered cloud solutions, the study found that:

64% of respondents in India required IT project consulting or systems integration
62% needed cloud services such as storage, security, and other applications
55% required ongoing IT managed services

Impact on Jobs

Over the next 12 months, AI-powered cloud solutions are expected to significantly impact organizations:

58% of respondents cited an increased need for workforce AI skills
51% anticipate improved job satisfaction
50% foresee higher productivity, enabling more tasks to be completed in less time

This evolution in the workplace is also creating new job categories, including AI ethicists (62%), data architects (58%), and chief AI officers (52%).

Challenges

Despite the promising outlook, businesses in India face several challenges in implementing AI-powered cloud solutions:

Trustworthiness and bias in data (34%)
Lack of skilled employees such as data scientists, data engineers, and AI modelers (33%)
Issues related to AI governance and risk management (30%)

Comments on the Study

Arundhati Bhattacharya, CEO and Chairperson of Salesforce India, remarked, “In an AI-first world, as businesses continue to transform, the economic impact on jobs and revenue is immense. The IDC-Salesforce Economy study defines the footprint of Salesforce and the broader economy, highlighting AI’s potential to create jobs and drive business impact. India has demonstrated remarkable growth, and we are thrilled about the ecosystem we are building, which is fueling the AI revolution from predicting the future to creating it.”

IDC Methodology

The IDC InfoBrief employs IDC’s Economic Impact Model (EIM) to forecast the economic impact of Salesforce and its ecosystem. This model incorporates data from IDC’s market research and external sources to predict revenues and jobs supported by cloud computing and AI technologies.