'I'm BIG, I'm BALD and I'm LOUD!' Blubbering Ballmer admits HE was Microsoft's problem. A tearful Steve Ballmer has admitted he was a big part of the problem at Microsoft – and that the company needs to rethink its management structure to succeed in the future. "At the end of the day, we need to break a pattern. Face it: I'm a pattern," company CEO Ballmer told The Wall Street Journal with apparent tears in his eyes. "Maybe I'm an emblem of an old era, and I have to move on. As much as I love everything about what I'm doing the best way for Microsoft to enter a new era is a new leader who will accelerate change. " Ballmer, due to retire by August 2014, said he had been trying to make Microsoft change its business strategy to focus on the cloud and mobile, rather than its desktop roots, since October last year.
But the rate of change wasn't fast enough and board members were growing frustrated. He singled out John Thompson, Symantec's former CEO, as a particular critic. "Hey, dude, let's get on with it," Thompson said he told Ballmer. "Charge! Hey, Bill Gates! We've found 14 IT HOTSHOTS to be the next Steve Ballmer. High performance access to file storage Analysis Now for that question everybody's asking: who will be the new Microsoft chief exec once Steve Ballmer slips into retirement by next year? The software giant's co-founder and chairman Bill Gates, fellow company board member John Thompson and executive recruitment agency Heidrick & Struggles are tasked with cracking that puzzler. But before they find a replacement, Gates and Co have an even bigger question to answer: what type of company do they want Microsoft to be?
The corp's head of PR Frank Shaw has channelled Dickens ("It was the best of times, it was the worst of times") to conclude that the world just can't fathom the Windows 8 maker: "If you really want to understand what’s going on with a [company] as complex as the one we operate in, you’ve got your work cut out for you. " From Azure cloud systems to video-game gumble like Kinect, Microsoft is a diversified operation - but will it remain so in the hands of a new gaffer? Cisco ... Elop Favored By Gamblers As Microsoft's Next Chief Executive. BALLMER TO RETIRE FROM MICROSOFT. High performance access to file storage Steve Ballmer is leaving identity crisis-hit Microsoft.
The software maker's chief announced his intention to retire from MS within the next year. He said: "There is never a perfect time for this type of transition, but now is the right time. " Whomever the new boss of Microsoft will be, he or she has a big job ahead of them in forcing the company to swallow a business strategy that wraps itself around devices and services - something Redmond has failed to achieve to date. Microsoft, in recent months, has undergone one of the biggest restructures in its life as the Seattle-based company attempts to shake off the fact that it is still best known for selling shrink-wrapped packages of software. The hunt is now on for a replacement and Microsoft said a special committee would direct the transition from Ballmerism.
BBC NEWS: Microsoft chief Steve Ballmer to retire within 12 months. Microsoft Chief Steve Ballmer to Step Down Within 12 months. Microsoft on Friday announced that Chief Executive Officer Steve Ballmer has decided to retire as CEO and will step down within the next 12 months. Ballmer will continue to serve as CEO until his successor is selected, the company said. Wall Street is cheering the news, as shares of Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) are trading up nearly 9 percent in pre-market trading on Friday. Ballmer, 57, joined Microsoft in 1980 as the company's 30th employee, and was eventually named CEO in January of 2000, while founder Bill Gates remained chairman of the board.
“There is never a perfect time for this type of transition, but now is the right time,” Ballmer said. “We have embarked on a new strategy with a new organization and we have an amazing Senior Leadership Team. My original thoughts on timing would have had my retirement happen in the middle of our company’s transformation to a devices and services company. Managing Editor, SecurityWeek. Previous Columns by Mike Lennon: Ballmer's emotional farewell to Redmond: I LOVE THIS COMPANY. High performance access to file storage Microsoft's 99,000 employees face a future without its chief chair-flinger Steve Ballmer who just announced his retirement to a happy Wall Street.
He penned a letter to MS staff that was stuffed with classic Ballmerisms, including a repeat of one of his famously sweaty outpourings: Ballmer joined Microsoft in 1980 - five years after it was founded by Bill Gates. He began life at Redmond as the software vendor's first business manager. During his tenure, Ballmer oversaw the development and meteoric rise and spectacular fall of Microsoft's Windows Operating System through its XP golden years, via the laughable Vista and finally ending up with Windows 8 and Surface which has failed to capture the imagination of consumers quite in the way that Big Steve might have hoped.
Here he is in one of his more memorable performances: And, of course, who could forget: Goodbye, balmy Ballmer, and thanks for all the discs. BILLION DOLLAR BALLMER: Microsoft chief makes $1bn simply by quitting. High performance access to file storage Steve Ballmer has just seen his personal wealth surge by a cool $1bn after announcing his retirement from Microsoft - which immediately caused the company's stock to soar close to a 12-month high on Wall Street. The software vendor, which trades on Nasdaq under the MSFT banner, saw its shares initially surge by close to 9 per cent following Ballmer's surprise decision to quit his CEO role after 13 years at the helm of Microsoft. They have now settled around the $34.50 mark - up nearly 7 per cent and close to the multinational's 52-week high share price of $36.43. All of which means Ballmer has gained better than $750,000,000 following his announcement that he will serve out over the next 12 months while Microsoft looks for a successor.
He owns 333.252 million shares in Microsoft. Quitting means he's winning big time, which must make it "the right time" for one of Redmond's "largest owners". Top 10 Steve Ballmer quotes: '%#&@!!' and so much more. High performance access to file storage When it comes to quotable CEOs, Steve Ballmer may not be the best in the business, but he has managed come up with some zingers. As he prepares to make his transition from top dog at Microsoft, we thought it would be a good time to survey some of the most memorable Ballmerisms of past years, and see how they worked out in practice. Some are prescient, others scary – and in some cases he's flat out wrong. 10. "Fucking Eric Schmidt is a fucking pussy. This one goes in at number 10 because it's not rock-solid attributable – but it's too good not to use. According to court documents, Ballmer flew off the handle in 2005 when Microsoft staffer Mark Lucovsky told him of his plans to move to Google.
Ballmer described the account as a "gross exaggeration," and said that he's made a commitment not to swear, but you can't help feeling that there might be a grain of truth in it. The thought of an enraged 6ft 5in. 9. 8. 7. 6. Why Teflon Ballmer had to go: He couldn't shift crud from Windows 8, Surface. High performance access to file storage Analysis Microsoft chief exec Steve Ballmer has gone sooner than anyone, even he himself, had expected.
On Friday he announced he will give up the reins following a 12-month transition. A one-year exit is proper given Ballmer’s position: the CEO of a major listed company. What’s strange, however, is the timing - that Ballmer should be going now. The shy and retiring boss announced his exit just weeks after signing off on Microsoft's biggest reorganisation in its history, ripping up product groups for a structure to foster engineering collaboration and innovation and to turn Microsoft into a successful internet and devices company.
Further, the software giant is on the home straight to releasing the second instalment of Windows 8, the operating system that was supposed to have turned PCs into touch-driven machines. Forget what you might read about the CEO transition plan starting years ago: Ballmer had no immediate plans to step down. TechCrunch: Ballmer’s Biggest Regret Is Missing Out On “The New Device Called The Phone”