Why OpenAI chooses Slack CEO to lead global revenue strategy

OpenAI has made one of its boldest leadership moves yet by hiring Slack CEO Denise Holland Dresser as its new Chief Revenue Officer, marking a major shift in the company’s global enterprise ambitions.

In her new role, Dresser will shape OpenAI’s worldwide revenue strategy, with a strong focus on enterprise adoption and customer success as the company pushes deeper into corporate AI integration.

Her appointment comes after an impactful tenure at Slack, where she not only led the company but also helped guide its post-acquisition integration under Salesforce.

However, one question that remains is why did OpenAI choose Dresser to lead their global revenue strategy?

Notably, with more than a decade of experience scaling platforms inside Salesforce and Slack, Dresser brings the kind of high-level operational expertise OpenAI needs as it tries to embed advanced AI tools into everyday business workflows.

Executives inside OpenAI believe her background positions her perfectly for this moment.

OpenAI’s CEO of Applications, Fidji Simo, said Dresser has “led this kind of transformation before,” emphasising her role in making workplace technology mainstream.

Dresser's hiring is also part of a much larger leadership expansion at OpenAI throughout 2025, including the new Applications division designed to let CEO Sam Altman concentrate on research and safety.