As many people know by now, Microsoft's Bill Gates has stepped down. The former CEO had decided that it was time he focused 100 percent of his energy on designing software. Therefore, he promoted Microsoft President Steve Ballmer to replace him as CEO of the software giant. Will this make any major changes in the way Microsoft is run? And how does Gates look at the next 10 years in the ever-developing software industry?
During the conference call in which the changes were announced, Gates talked about the need to focus his energies on developing software. The reason for this, as he put it, is that there is a need to design "breakthrough technology for the way that people look at the Internet." Gates went so far as to say that this next decade could be labeled as the "software decade."
When elaborating on the move to chief software architect, Gates said, "I'm returning to what I love most - focusing on technologies for the future. This was a personal decision, one I have discussed with Steve and our board of directors for some time. Although I've been able to spend more time on our technical strategy since naming Steve as president in July 1998, I felt that the opportunities for Microsoft were incredible, yet our structure wasn't optimal to really take advantage of them to the degree that we should. Steve's promotion will allow me to dedicate myself full-time to my passion - building great software and strategizing on the future, and nurturing and collaborating with the core team helping Steve run the company."
As has been the strategy of Microsoft in the past, Gates talked about programs that would revolutionize the software industry. He believes that the Internet will become an even more integral part of human daily life, at least in the West. "In the next decade, the Internet will dictate how people do business, communicate with one another… even entertainment, people will use the Internet as a means for reading electronic books."
As far as the new CEO is concerned, Ballmer takes over the management side of business at Microsoft. Gates, the new chief software architect, said, "These are dramatic times in our industry. As we look ahead to what it will take to do an amazing job executing against our new strategic direction of building next-generation services for our customers, we recognize that we must refocus and reallocate our resources and talents against our key priorities and challenges."
Ballmer outlined his core priorities and announced plans for a major strategy day this spring, when the company will outline details of the Internet User Experience vision and strategy. He also talked about Gates' and Microsoft's four technical group vice presidents, including Paul Maritz, Jim Allchin, Bob Muglia and Rick Belluzzo, heading the development of technologies and user scenarios that are key to the success of the Internet User Experience and Next Generation Windows Services.
The announcement turned humorous during the question and answers segment, with one reporter commenting that Microsoft should merge with another formidable Internet company in order to combat the recent AOL/Time Warner merger. Shortly after that, another reporter insinuated that Microsoft should fold. Gates' concluded the news conference call by saying that he feels Microsoft has the ability to compete with all the competitors that are on the market.
As far as can be seen at this time, no major changes seem to be taking place in the company. All in all, Microsoft will still be Bill Gates' baby. He will still be involved in all major decisions. From the inception of the company in 1975, co-founders Gates and Paul Allen envisioned the personal computer becoming an empowering tool with software being at the center of that empowerment. It seems that many of the goals of Microsoft have become realities. It will be interesting to see if the next decade becomes, as Gates predicts, the "software decade."
As many people know by now, Microsoft's Bill Gates has stepped down. The former CEO had decided that it was time he focused 100 percent of his energy on designing software. Therefore, he promoted Microsoft President Steve Ballmer to replace him as CEO of the software giant. Will this make any major changes in the way Microsoft is run? And how does Gates look at the next 10 years in the ever-developing software industry?
