VENDORiQ: Salesforce on the Agent-Hype Train with Tableau Einstein

Why It’s Important

Tableau is a leading data visualisation and business intelligence platform, known for its user-friendly interface and powerful analytics capabilities. Salesforce, a cloud-based customer relationship management (CRM) platform, acquired Tableau in 2019 for $15.7 billion, aiming to enhance its data analytics offerings.

The integration of AI into data analytics and CRM platforms holds significant potential. AI can automate data preparation, enhance pattern recognition, and provide predictive insights. However, the current state of AI, particularly in autonomous agents, falls short of the capabilities Salesforce is claiming:

1. Technological Limitations: AI agents are not yet sophisticated enough to autonomously discover and surface complex business insights without significant human oversight. The claim of agents translating insights into action autonomously is particularly dubious.
2. Lack of Concrete Examples: The announcement is rife with buzzwords but lacks specific examples of how these AI agents will function in real-world scenarios. This is often indicative of marketing getting ahead of actual product development.
3. Integration Challenges: Seamlessly integrating AI agents across diverse platforms (Salesforce, Tableau, Slack) is a technical challenge that is unlikely to be fully met in the near term.
4. Data Privacy and Governance: The use of AI agents across multiple platforms raises serious questions about data governance and privacy that are not adequately addressed in the announcement.

The announcement lacks specific release dates for many touted features, suggesting they are still in early development. Salesforce has a history of making ambitious AI claims, such as with Einstein AI, which initially overpromised and underdelivered.

Despite the hype, the integration of Tableau and Salesforce does offer potential benefits:

• Improved data accessibility across platforms.
• Enhanced visualisation capabilities within Salesforce.
• Potential for more streamlined workflows between analytics and CRM functions.

Who’s Impacted

• CIO/CTO
• Data architects
• AI/ML development teams
• Enterprise application managers
• Data governance teams

What’s Next?

1. Evaluate Current Usage: Assess your organisation’s utilisation of Tableau and Salesforce to identify areas where integration could provide immediate value.
2. Pilot Programs: Consider small-scale pilot programs to test specific features of Tableau Einstein, focusing on tangible improvements to existing workflows rather than ambitious AI agent capabilities.
3. Data Governance Review: Conduct a thorough review of your data governance policies to ensure they can accommodate the increased data sharing between Tableau and Salesforce.
4. Vendor Dialogue: Engage in detailed discussions with Salesforce representatives to get specific timelines, use cases, and technical specifications for the AI agent features.
5. Skill Gap Analysis: Assess your team’s capabilities in AI and data science. Consider training programs or hiring to bridge any gaps.
6. Competitive Analysis: Evaluate how Tableau Einstein compares to other BI tools in your stack or in the market, particularly in terms of AI integration.
7. ROI Projection: Develop a detailed ROI projection for adopting Tableau Einstein, factoring in both immediate benefits and long-term potential.
8. Staged Adoption Plan: If proceeding, develop a staged adoption plan that prioritises proven features over speculative AI agent capabilities.
9. Negotiate Pricing: Einstein is a premium-priced product. Early adopters may wish to negotiate with Salesforce, for instance on licensing or added services

By taking these steps, organisations can benefit from the genuine advancements in Tableau-Salesforce integration while avoiding the pitfalls of over-reliance on unproven AI agent technologies.

Related IBRS Advisory

• VENDORiQ: Salesforce Delivers Next-Generation AI Models to Power Agentforce – IBRS
• VENDORiQ: Salesforce Announces the Acquisition of Own Company to Bolster its Data Protection Capabilities – IBRS