“Force Multiplier” is an original podcast that brings technology, culture, and community together to solve some of the world’s biggest problems. Through well known guests like cultural icon Charlamagne Tha God, the CEO of The Nature Conservancy, the Head of Advocacy at UNICEF, and other global leaders, the podcast highlights how technology can be used for good and how unprecedented collaboration, culture, and community can help solve global issues like climate change, health inequity, mental wellness, the unhoused crisis, workforce development and nutrition insecurity.
It is hosted by Baratunde Thurston, who holds space for hard and complex conversations with a blend of humor, wisdom, and compassion. Coded as “society and culture” on Apple podcasts, the podcast is fostering a unique new approach to collaboration, ultimately creating a “force multiplier” effect—the goal is for episodes to inspire everyone, no matter where they sit, to find new ways to multiply the impact of the work that matters most to them.
The world’s biggest problems are too complex for any one person—or one organization—to solve on their own. “Force Multiplier” was created as a partnership between Salesforce.org and iHeartRadio, to show how individuals can combine forces to create a much more powerful impact– one relationship at a time.
The team at Salesforce.org knew first-hand how action leadership in one sector could impact another and set out to create a platform to share those stories—to encourage leaders in the private sector, the public sector, and the nonprofit sector to connect with their peers to share ideas and collaborate.
Salesforce.org tapped into a powerful storyteller with an established fanbase in the social impact space to host the series. Baratunde Thurston is an Emmy-nominated host who previously worked for The Onion, produced for The Daily Show, advised the Obama White House and wrote the New York Times bestseller How to Be Black. He was listed #2 on the Rocket Social Impact Purpose Podcast Round-Up report, making him the perfect host for “Force Multiplier”.
Force Multiplier debuted on August 12, 2021 and continues to ask, “How can we work together to change the world?” The series not only shines a light on real-world problems and how they intersect (for example, mental health challenges don’t exist in a vacuum, they also lead to housing instability), it also recognizes that cross-sector partnerships fueled by technology are our best hope as we tackle our world’s biggest issues. By sharing the positive impact of collaboration with a global audience and inspiring them to make change as well, the podcast has the potential to multiply those impacts even further.
When the team created the “Force Multiplier” podcast, the goal was to amplify stories of how tech can be used for good—and it’s doing just that. Hundreds of thousands of listeners have heard interviews highlighting collaborative work—including how The Nature Conservancy and Patagonia Provisions are working together to fight climate change, or how UNICEF is providing mental health services training worldwide to strengthen the families it supports—learning, while also being entertained by Thurston’s engaging interview style.
The podcast has already gained an impressive following, as season 1 of the podcast ranked in the top 1% globally with over 514K downloads and an average completion rate of 63% with over 38k downloads occurring in the first week alone. More than 155 million people listened to the podcast at least once a week in 2021, and the audience continues to grow. “Force Multiplier” has already seen impact, as cultural icon Charlamagne Tha God along with key Salesforce.org partners like Feeding America, Goodwill, Habitat for Humanity, Morehouse School of Medicine, Patagonia Provisions, and UNICEF shared compelling and actionable content with rave reviews.
