New Delhi, February 9 – Satya Nadella took the control of Microsoft as CEO one year ago. When he took over he had big shoes to fill. Steve Ballmer was not Steve Jobs. But he was hardly a bad CEO. In fact he was extremely good when it came to keeping the company in good financial health.
But it is also true that Microsoft needed some fresh prospective. Keeping this context in mind, Nadella not only had to match Ballmer in keeping the company on track so that it could keep minting money but also had to change it enough so that it could meet challenges from companies like Apple and Microsoft.
One year is too early to declare Nadella’s stint as CEO a rousing success. But it is easy to see that whatever he has done so far — and he has done a lot — is significant and has changed Microsoft for the good. Here are 6 ways in which he has changed Microsoft in the last one year.
1- Consumers first, Microsoft second:
For years, Microsoft believed it ruled the world. In fact, it actually did. From the early 1990s to around 2005, it did rule the world. But then the world of technology changed.
And yet, for almost one decade Microsoft refused to read the writing on the wall. It refused to acknowledge that devices like the iPhone and Nexus were popular with people.
No more. Under Satya Nadella Microsoft has realised it is no longer the top dog. People use Apple’s iOS devices and love them. People use Android devices and like them. So now the company is looking past the old Microsoft, or, in other words, Windows.
As Nadella is fond of saying, it now wants to serve consumers irrespective of what device they use. It wants people to use its mail service not only on a Windows computer but also on an iPhone.
This is a huge change from the days of Steve Ballmer, who tried to use popular products like Microsoft Office to save Windows by keeping them exclusive.
2- New Microsoft is hip and cool Microsoft:
Actually, it is not Microsoft. It is Satya Nadella. There is no doubt that Steve Ballmer had an imposing presence. When he used to step on the stage to deliver the news from Microsoft he carried boundless energy with him.
But at the same time, with his suit and manners honed in boardroom meetings, he also meant business. Nadella is different. When he became CEO, the images that Microsoft sent out with press releases were not the ones in which Nadella was all clad in a suit.
Instead, he wore a pair of jeans, hooded jacket and a monk-like smile. It was needed too. In an industry dominated by people like Mark Zuckerbeg, Tim Cook and Larry Page, Microsoft needed a CEO who looks and acts cool. And Nadella fits the bill.
At the same time, as the company works to reinvent its image, overall Microsoft has become cooler and more hip. Its press conferences have more jokes. Its senior executives now come across cool, funky people trying to shape future. They no longer seem like sales managers trying to shove off their products into the hands of consumers.
3- Free also fine:
As the mobile and web entered the world of technology, the way people use software has also changed. Gradually, software (and up to an extent hardware) has become vehicle to deliver services.
The money is made from services or advertisements. That is what Google does. Even Apple, which doesn’t rely on advertisements, gives away most of its software for free because it makes money from hardware.
For long Microsoft tried to resist the change. But gradually, it seems to be realising that on some occasions it is better to give away your software for free, build a platform and then make money through ad-ons. It is under Nadella’s watch that the company would be offering its Windows 10 to Windows 7 and Windows 8 users for free this year.
It is also under Nadella’s watch that the company is offering almost fully-functional versions of Office apps for smartphones and gigabits of cloud storage for free. For Microsoft, which became world’s biggest software firm by earning money from software license, this is a huge change.
4- Listen to users:
Actually, this is not something new to Microsoft. The company did use to listen to its consumers. But with Windows 8, it seemed as if the company was just not interested in any feedback from its users. This is one of the reasons why the operating system failed. But now, it seems the company is again listening closely to its consumers.
Much of the credit for this goes to Nadella, who in his talks and articles (often posted on Microsoft website) emphasises how important consumer feedback is for the company. As Microsoft builds the Windows 10, it is talking to consumers in different ways. This is a welcome change.
5- One Windows everywhere:
Actually, Microsoft’s project for “one Windows everywhere” kicked off with Windows 8. But Nadella has doubled down on it. Under him, Microsoft is also more tightly integrated and seems more capable of putting it all together.
Result: Windows 10. This will power not only laptops and desktops, but also mobile phones, Xbox, Internet of Things and even newer devices like HoloLens. The company has a vision of creating one platform that will define Microsoft.
6- No more scroogling:
The old Microsoft was getting pretty nasty and petty in its fight with Google. Failing to make any headway against Google in various markets including Search and smartphones, the company resorted to a very negative campaign titled Scroogled that made fun of Google’s privacy policies and tried to scare – in an unjustified manner – consumers.
After Nadella took over, the Scroogled campaign was silently scrapped. There are no more scroogle ads and the website that Microsoft created for the campaign now doesn’t talk about faults in Google’s products.
Instead, it introduces visitors to Microsoft products. Now that is the right way to advertise! It also shows that the new Microsoft is a company with positive attitude and not negative.
-INDIA TODAY
