--- title: Marc Benioff: Lilly Ledbetter Inspired Me To Be A Better CEO description: ‘I know firsthand how easy it is for inequality to happen’ canonical: https://time.com/4289963/lilly-ledbetter-inspire-ceo/ author: Marc Benioff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-04-12T13:13:28.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:44:54.570Z og:title: Thank You, Lilly Ledbetter og:description: Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says he knows 'how easy it is for inequality to happen’ og:url: https://time.com/4289963/lilly-ledbetter-inspire-ceo/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfb914de3ddf8aca0/69888eaee20a873f51a905d8/lilly-ledbetter.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Democratic National Convention, Charlotte, NC og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Thank You, Lilly Ledbetter twitter:description: Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff says he knows 'how easy it is for inequality to happen’ twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltfb914de3ddf8aca0/69888eaee20a873f51a905d8/lilly-ledbetter.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Thank You, Lilly Ledbetter > Sponsored content. 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It is a free newsletter available at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: Some of The World's Most Powerful Women Share Their Best Advice [Watch (HLS stream): Some of The World's Most Powerful Women Share Their Best Advice](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/LF8Rmcmf.m3u8) (1:11)  _Published 2016-02-02_ by [Marc Benioff](https://time.com/author/marc-benioff/) ## Marc Benioff Benioff is Salesforce Chair and CEO, TIME owner, and a global environmental and philanthropic leader Apr 12, 2016 1:13 PM UTC  Lilly Ledbetter, namesake of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act speaks at the 2012 Democratic National Convention at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, Tuesday, September 4, 2012. Lilly Ledbetter, namesake of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act speaks at the 2012 Democratic National Convention at the Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, North Carolina, Tuesday, September 4, 2012. Kye R. Lee—Dallas Morning News/MCT/Getty Images by [Marc Benioff](https://time.com/author/marc-benioff/) ## Marc Benioff Benioff is Salesforce Chair and CEO, TIME owner, and a global environmental and philanthropic leader Apr 12, 2016 1:13 PM UTC I remember watching as President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act in January 2009\. It was the first bill he signed into law after becoming President, and it gave women greater ability to challenge unequal pay. In his remarks, the President declared that, “It’s not just unfair and illegal—but bad for business—to pay someone less because of their gender, age, race, ethnicity, religion or disability.” It was an inspiring moment in our civil rights history. Earlier this year, I was thrilled to attend a [White House event](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mMp0GnPSy4&feature=youtu.be) celebrating the seventh anniversary of the enactment of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act and to finally meet the woman for whom the Act is named. Lilly Ledbetter spent almost two decades working as a supervisor at a Goodyear plant in Alabama—a job that was largely done by men. She learned through an anonymous note that she was being paid significantly less than men who were doing the same job she was doing. The difference amounted to more than $200,000 over the course of her career. As Ledbetter has said, nobody wants to be the poster child for unequal pay. But after she received that note, that’s exactly what she became. Her battle for fair pay made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which decided that Lilly was not entitled to any additional compensation because she filed her claim more than 180 days after receiving her first discriminatory paycheck. Justice was not served, but the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act ensures that the 180-day [statute of limitations](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statute%5Fof%5Flimitations) for filing an equal-pay lawsuit regarding pay discrimination resets with each new paycheck affected by that discriminatory action. I know firsthand how easy it is for inequality to happen. Two female leaders in my company came to me one day and said we might be paying women less than men at Salesforce. It was hard for me to believe there could be a problem—it goes against our value system. But we did the research, looking at every salary of every employee. And in fact, we found that we _were_ paying some women less. We’ve now spent $3 million dollars to ensure that women and men are paid equally at Salesforce. We’re now more conscious about equality, and it’s a core value for the company. **_Read more:_** [_7 TED Talks That Will Make You a Better Leader_](http://motto.time.com/4117158/ted-talks-leadership/?iid=sr-link1) Today, on Equal Pay Day, I want to honor Lilly Ledbetter for her bravery and relentless pursuit of equality. Ledbetter has not only inspired me, but she’s helped make real change for other women across the country. But the battle is far from over. In fact, we’re just at the very beginning. [According to the World Economic Forum’s 2015 Global Gender Gap report](http://reports.weforum.org/global-gender-gap-report-2015/press-releases/), it will take more than 100 years to achieve economic gender parity around the world based on our current pace of change. That is unacceptable. **_Read more:_** [_How To Negotiate the Problem of Women and Men Negotiating_](http://time.com/3839208/salary-negotiation-workplace-gender-bias/) It’s time for every CEO, every business leader, every community leader and every world leader to step up and make a commitment to equal pay and equality for all. By weaving equality into the very fabric of our companies, we can make equality for all more than just an ideal, but a reality. _Marc Benioff is the chairman and CEO of_ [_Salesforce_](http://www.salesforce.com/)_._ ## Transcript [ MUSIC ] Don't wait for people to give you your power. Just take it. Think of yourself as a thermostat. You do have to have situational leadership. Sometimes you have to dial things up. And sometimes you have to dial things down. Best piece of advice? Sing every day. Resist the temptation to hire in your likeness. So the best piece of advice I've ever gotten is super simple. Work harder than everybody else. Hire people that think differently than you do. That add something different than what you have to offer. From my father before I went to basic training just to keep my sense of humor. Make it a great place to work. And you'll attract talent. You can develop talent. And great products come from great teams. Being patient. Don't be so restless. You're not the smartest person in the room. It's okay to take risks. Play nice. It'll always come back to you no matter what happens. You need to collaborate with your colleagues and make them as successful as yourself. There are very few decisions, career decisions, that you make that are irreversible. Always be yourself. 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