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Ex-Microsoft Exec Explains Why Microsoft Is ‘Failing’
By Leander Kahney (3:50 pm, Feb. 04, 2010)
Steve Ballmer at CES 2010 with a prototype tablet from Hewlett-Packard.
The New York Times has a fascinating piece by ex-Microsoftie Dick Brass on how interdepartmental fighting is causing the company to fail. Microsoft has turned into an anti-innovation company, he says.
Internecine warfare among Microsoft’s divisions has created a “dysfunctional” corporate culture that thwarts creativity instead of nurturing it. “The company routinely manages to frustrate the efforts of its visionary thinkers,” he writes.
Before leaving in 2004, Brass was in charge of Microsoft’s tablet initiative, but it was scuppered at every turn. Explains Brass:
When we were building the tablet PC in 2001, the vice president in charge of Office at the time decided he didn’t like the concept. The tablet required a stylus, and he much preferred keyboards to pens and thought our efforts doomed. To guarantee they were, he refused to modify the popular Office applications to work properly with the tablet. So if you wanted to enter a number into a spreadsheet or correct a word in an e-mail message, you had to write it in a special pop-up box, which then transferred the information to Office. Annoying, clumsy and slow.
It’s a fascinating read — and a great argument for why having a despot like Steve Jobs is a good idea. Companies need a singular vision to execute on the tough stuff, like creating new product categories. And this is why Apple over and over has set the standards with the iPod, iPhone and iPad.
Posted by Leander Kahney in Apple, News, Opinions | Comment on this article
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Agreed. There can be only one Captain of the ship and their word is law. Otherwise you have mutiny & anarchy. For all the anti Jobs talk out there, he gets things done/made, they work, and they’re innovative.
Ictus75, on February 4th, 2010 at 3:56 pm
So sadly true…
But I mean, look at that CEO. I mean, Bill Gates is a respectable man, but Steve Ballmer???
Me, on February 4th, 2010 at 3:56 pm
Bill Gates was a far superior leader at Microsoft. Ballmer? Pffft. Words fail me.
Montana Bob, on February 4th, 2010 at 4:25 pm
I can’t agree more. I worked at a prominent software company where nobody was the de-facto leader. Every team pulled things their own way and covering your butt was the order of the day. Creating the daily reports became more important than developing software. Nothing of worth got done.
With 5 good developers I could have accomplished what they did with nearly 200.
Don Pope, on February 4th, 2010 at 4:52 pm
“Anti-innovational” is absolutly correct.
Steven, on February 4th, 2010 at 6:29 pm
App specific touch or stylus input is a bad idea. It need ot be provided by the OS so all apps can use it.
The neat thing about iPhone OS is that when you enter any text input screen, teh appropriate keyboard comes up. If the app asks for it, it can aslo be a specific keyboard – IE you dont normally need a direct key for @ unless you are entering an email address. Otherwise it can be an option-key press.
I really miss this on my tablet, tap in a txt box, I then have to bring up the keyboard, or writing recognition panel, that then floats over whatever you wanted t enter text into, rather than resizing the view like iPhone does.
That is the sort of integration I am expecting from iPad that you dont get in Windows Linux or Mac OS X.
John, on February 4th, 2010 at 7:02 pm
I never thought about it before, but Steve Jobs approach is a little like china’s approach. One strong central leader with an agenda that bulldozes any bureaucracy and democratic interference. That is how China is moving ahead at an accelerated rate. Like the Three Rivers Dam project. It would be a bad structure for a business to have, without a visionary leader like Jobs.
nomoremsbs, on February 4th, 2010 at 8:30 pm
Kinda sad really, Once Bill Gates turned over MS to Ballmer it’s been a downhill slide for anything innovative out of the MS camp. Hearing things like this only confirms what is pretty clear to consumers. They only want to deal in software, but taking 10 years to get Cleartype into windows probably represents many other cases of “good ideas” to make Windows better but just gets stuck in the politics of the management team.
Bill Gates was a bit of an odd duck, but he had passion for the business. I don’t see anything changing until Ballmer is ousted, which as long as they rake in billions in profit they probably don’t do a thing.
GS, on February 4th, 2010 at 11:21 pm
I was pleasantly surprised reading the posts up to this one – no real MS bashing. But a general recognition that MS has lost something since Bill Gates departed and under the stewardship of that bonkers man, Steve Ballmer, they are not going to get that something (?) back.
Jamie, on February 5th, 2010 at 4:54 am
Interesting article.
Ballmer has the charisma of a toad, and you couldn’t find a less visionary front-man if you tried.
I’m fairly ambivalent about Microsoft myself; they’ve had their hey-day. It’s almost sad to see them reduced a bystander status.
Phil, on February 5th, 2010 at 7:17 am
“Agreed. There can be only one Captain of the ship and their word is law. Otherwise you have mutiny & anarchy.”
That is the Saddam Hussein model of governance.
iGenius, on February 5th, 2010 at 8:37 am
Agreed. M$ and the technology industry lost someone visionary when Bill Gates left and Bonkers Ballmer took over. I look at him doing keynotes or presentations and I just think he’s taking M$ in the wrong direction, which in some ways is actually good
aaron, on February 5th, 2010 at 6:24 pm
I used to work for MS, and I hate to say it but except for Xbox, this guy has nailed it on the head. The infighting and backstabbing between divisions is horrible.
Steve Ballmer is an asshole, and doesnt understand technology. They need someone who is technical, and a futurist.
Rock, on February 6th, 2010 at 1:51 am
And, the decline of MS set in long before Bill Gates ‘left’ the company.
J, on February 6th, 2010 at 9:20 am
“Anti-innovational†is absolutly correct. – This is a perfect word for Microsoft now.
Adrian, on February 6th, 2010 at 11:31 am
I think that while a community like that of Microsoft which is internecine is not going to be productive, it is not necessary that a community must have one visionary to guide it.
Look at Linux. There is no one governor guiding it on a path, yet it is a highly evolved and reliable – much more than Windows – piece of software. The point is fighting and mistrust. Nobody getting in the way of the progress of others. You must have peace and trust to move forward, which is what I think the Linux community has (to the extent which is humanly possible).
hprYeV, on July 12th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
when i got my new windows seven computer it woundnt let me on the second day. someone had to go fix it. i agree that microsoft has to think more about there customer. the xbox360 has the red lights of death. they should have fixed that before they even got it out. Bill gates computer is a cheap rip off of the mac. Bill gates bried judges and juries. And now apple is ahead of them. I hope BIl Gates gets more and more misserable.
microsoft sucks, on July 26th, 2010 at 11:42 am