Steve Ballmer, worst CEO

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BladeVenom

Lifer
Jun 2, 2005
13,365
16
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According to Forbes. http://www.forbes.com/sites/adamhar...een-fired-cisco-ge-walmart-sears-microsoft/3/
Not only has he singlehandedly steered Microsoft out of some of the fastest growing and most lucrative tech markets (mobile music, handsets and tablets) but in the process he has sacrificed the growth and profits of not only his company but “ecosystem” companies such as Dell, Hewlett Packard and even Nokia. The reach of his bad leadership has extended far beyond Microsoft when it comes to destroying shareholder value – and jobs.

Microsoft peaked at $60/share in 2000, just as Mr. Ballmer took the reins. By 2002 it had fallen into the $20s, and has only rarely made it back to its current low $30s value.
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Nice to know I'm not the only who thinks that.
 
Arkaign

Arkaign

Lifer
Oct 27, 2006
20,736
1,379
126
yep, Ballmer is only there because he performed okay at much lower-level duties in earlier years with the infinitely wiser Gates at the helm.

He sucks and needs to go, but ...

who is smart enough to fix Microsoft?

Windows 8 is hilariously bad. It's so bad that shorting microsoft stock will make people lots of money if timed right :p
 
Sephire

Sephire

Golden Member
Feb 9, 2011
1,689
3
76
Windows 8 is going to be flop. That metro interface is not going to work on desktops.
 
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thegimp03

Diamond Member
Jul 5, 2004
7,420
2
81
I'm not surprised that Chambers is on this list, but, every time he opens his mouth people listen to him and maybe Cisco thinks that firing him would do a lot more harm than good.
 
R

Rifter

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,522
751
126
Its too bad they stopped him before microsoft folded. I would be very happy if microsoft didnt exsist.
 
IndyColtsFan

IndyColtsFan

Lifer
Sep 22, 2007
33,655
688
126
100% agree. Balmer screwed the pooch in multiple areas and with everything seeming to converge to a mobile form factor, Microsoft has been left out in the cold and the window, if it hasn't already closed, is closing quickly.

They've been late in a lot of key areas (namely internet browser), but this is much different and I don't think they'll be able to come to dominate the market. At best, they can become a solid third alternative at this point.
 
IndyColtsFan

IndyColtsFan

Lifer
Sep 22, 2007
33,655
688
126
Rifter said:
Its too bad they stopped him before microsoft folded. I would be very happy if microsoft didnt exsist.
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Microsoft isn't going anywhere in the forseeable future. They may shrink or have to retreat from some markets and due to their lack of a solid mobile platform that sells, they probably won't be seeing big growth; however, they're still making money hand-over-fist on Windows, Office, and their enterprise products right now.
 
PingSpike

PingSpike

Lifer
Feb 25, 2004
21,758
603
126
I think Ballmer sucks, and I love making fun of him...but worst CEO? Sorry, no...we have to consider the competition. There are other companies that are literally destroying the entire country. Microsoft releasing a few failed phones and missing some market opportunities doesn't even qualify as worth mentioning against that backdrop.
 
lokiju

lokiju

Lifer
May 29, 2003
18,526
5
0
Markbnj said:
Maybe it's time for Gates to pull a Jobs.
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I said this exact thing to a co-worker last week.

I think it's time he comes back, corrects course and puts into place a proper plan for running the company in his vision/manner, when he's gone.

It kills me that the tech company I work with is now 2.5 times the cost per share than Microsoft.

I think it's time to do the employee stock purchase option :)
 
R

Rifter

Lifer
Oct 9, 1999
11,522
751
126
IndyColtsFan said:
Microsoft isn't going anywhere in the forseeable future. They may shrink or have to retreat from some markets and due to their lack of a solid mobile platform that sells, they probably won't be seeing big growth; however, they're still making money hand-over-fist on Windows, Office, and their enterprise products right now.
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I know, i just wouldnt loose any sleep if the didnt exsist.
 
D

darkewaffle

Diamond Member
Oct 7, 2005
8,152
1
81
PingSpike said:
I think Ballmer sucks, and I love making fun of him...but worst CEO? Sorry, no...we have to consider the competition. There are other companies that are literally destroying the entire country. Microsoft releasing a few failed phones and missing some market opportunities doesn't even qualify as worth mentioning against that backdrop.
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Kind of what I was thinking, this list was probably made by the same people who thought EA was the worst company in America as well.

Also I like how Ballmer "singlehandedly" is responsible for everything lol.

Windows 7 and Office 2010 did nothing to excite tech users, in corporations or at home, as Apple took the leadership position in personal technology.

So today Microsoft, after dumping Zune, dumping its tablet, dumping Windows CE and other mobile products, is still the same company Mr. Ballmer took control over a decade ago. Microsoft is PC company, nothing more, as demand for PCs shifts to mobile. Years late to market, he has bet the company on Windows 8 – as well as the future of Dell, HP, Nokia and others. An insane bet for any CEO – and one that would have been avoided entirely had the Microsoft Board replaced Mr. Ballmer years ago with a CEO that understands the fast pace of technology shifts and would have kept Microsoft current with market trends.
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And if you keep reading you quickly realize the author knows approximately fuck-all about anything in particular.

Further, each of the CEOs is allegedly responsible for seeing declining or stagnating stock prices since the year 2000. Right. Nothing else happened in the last twelve years really.
 
A

alent1234

Diamond Member
Dec 15, 2002
3,915
0
0
in the last 12 years MS has

made SQL server competative with Oracle
built up great plains to something usabe
exchange is the defacto email server and not going anywhere
windows server rules
x-box is making a lot of money now
icloud even works because Azure is the backend for it
 
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BladeVenom

Lifer
Jun 2, 2005
13,365
16
0
PingSpike said:
I think Ballmer sucks, and I love making fun of him...but worst CEO? Sorry, no...we have to consider the competition.
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No other company in the world was in as good a position as Microsoft was when Ballmer took over.

All their customers are locked in. They had the hugest pile of cash. They also had top technology and lots of talent.
 
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