Skip to main content

Why Bill Gates Left Microsoft

Posted by Dave Methvin, Jun 25, 2008 08:11 PM

(Commentary)

Under the leadership of Bill Gates, Microsoft (NSDQ: MSFT) accomplished a lot. Now he's retiring from the company to dedicate more time to his charitable foundation. Yet I wonder why he's decided that now is the time to move on. I think the answer can be found in a 2003 rant by Bill about his problems in using the Microsoft Web site, Windows Update, and Windows in general.

In that e-mail missive, Bill released his frustration about all the problems he had. If you look at the actual problems, though, you might think he wrote that e-mail in 2008 rather than 2003 because few of them have been fixed. In other words, Bill complained but nobody seemed to do anything about it. When the guy at the top can't get his pet peeves addressed after five years, something is wrong with the company.

At one time, Gates seemed to have fearsome powers. The "BillG Review" was an event to be dreaded, but most of all an event for which to be prepared. Joel Spolsky gave an account of his first BillG review. That review sounded tame compared with this one with the Gates classic line of "I can't believe that anyone with any f-ing IQ is working on this problem."

Joel Spolsky's take on the de-evolution of Microsoft provides a clue as to why Gates lost his lust for Microsoft: Steve [Ballmer] took over the CEO role on the theory that this would allow Bill to spend more time doing what he does best, running the software development organization, but that didn't seem to fix endemic problems caused by those 11 layers of management, a culture of perpetual, permanent meetings, a stubborn insistence on creating every possible product no matter what ... and a couple of decades of sloppy, rapid hiring has ensured that the brainpower of the median Microsoft employee has gone way down.When Bill focuses on his charitable foundation, he'll be back at the helm of a small but well-capitalized organization. Unlike Microsoft, though, it's not one that needs to answer to stockholders and I suspect he'll keep the organization tight and responsive. I have to think that is one of the primary reasons he's leaving Microsoft. He wants to work at an organization where he can make decisions and there is at least some hope that the company can make them happen. Those days are gone for Bill Gates and Microsoft.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Best scents to help you relax and stay alert

By: Allie Firestone, 10/15/08 3:03 PM Fall is chock-full of scents, and that’s one of the reasons I love it. Picking up on the huge variety of smells—whether it’s pumpkin pie, freshly-baked cookies, or spiced apple cider—is something I recently realized that I take for granted. Scientists say that humans can distinguish over 10,000 different odor molecules. Turns out, while it doesn’t require any conscious thought, our ability to pick up on a scent involves a sensitive and complex function that has powerful effects on our memory and behavior. How else can I explain how one whiff of pumpkin immediately conjures up thoughts of trick-or-treating and holiday gatherings? Scientists dedicated to tracking the complex relationship between smells, our behavior, and our moods have found that certain scents trigger feelings, including those that help us relax and fall asleep and those that perk us up and keep us alert and focused. Sleep and Relaxation Looks like I’m not the only one tossing and t...
2 comments
Read more

Anti-cancer foods

Posted by: Zap Mon, Sep 29, 2008, 1:44 pm PDT Source: Yahoo Health It turns out that a healthy diet can help to override any cancer-prone genes you might have at work in your body. "Nutrition has a bigger influence on cancer than inherited genes, which means you could significantly reduce your odds of the disease through diet alone," explains Joel Fuhrman, M.D., author of Eat for Health (Gift of Health Press). OK, OK. I know what you're thinking right about now: She's going to tell me I have to eat kale at every meal. Not so! I mean, for the record, you should always eat as many fruits and veggies as possible, because they will dramatically lower your odds of ever hearing the dreaded diagnosis. But there are many other, less rabbity ways to eat away at your cancer risk. Add whole grains to your diet. My two faves, aside from a thick piece of freshly baked whole-grain bread? Oatmeal with a pinch of cinnamon for breakfast, or brown rice with a chicken and veggie stir-f...
1 comment
Read more

Heart Healthy Fish - Health Benefits of Fish

July 6, 2010 Do fears about mercury keep you from reeling in the health benefits of fish? If so, you could be missing the love-your-heart boat. For most people, the healthy fats in fish provide a huge benefit to your heart and overall health -- even with a little mercury. Skeptical? Get this: Eating one to two 6-ounce servings of omega-3-rich fish each week reduces your risk of dying from heart disease by 36 percent! And your all-cause mortality rate drops by 17 percent. Soon-to-be or currently breastfeeding moms need to be especially careful to avoid excess mercury. Still, most people can do their heart and body right by eating one or two servings a week of omega-3-rich fish that is relatively low in mercury. Unfortunately, most fish contain some mercury, thanks to industrial processing. But the less time fish spend simply living in a mercury-laden environment or eating other fish containing mercury, the lower the contamination levels will be. So for low-mercury fish, we're talkin...
1 comment
Read more