Customer relationship management (CRM) is an important tool for businesses of all sizes. CRM systems effectively serve as a "home base" for key metrics pertinent to a sales cycle. For example, users can input specific dates when they have meetings with potential clients, which can help leadership understand how deals are progressing through the pipeline.

While there are a number of CRM and project management software tools, perhaps the most well-known is Silicon Valley darling Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM).  Founded over two decades ago by tech wunderkind Marc Benioff, Salesforce quickly rose in popularity due to its innovative, user-friendly features. In a way, Salesforce.com was the original CRM. 

However, throughout its history, Benioff had the foresight to understand what direction technology was moving. As a result, Salesforce.com developed quite the appetite for mergers and acquisitions. While the company has spent tens of billions of dollars acquiring competitors such as MuleSoft, Tableau, and Slack (just to name a few), it now faces new challenges.

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Source Fool.com