Microsoft's Steve Ballmer To Retire In 12 Months

Karloff

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Oct 19, 2009
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Microsoft's Steve Ballmer To Retire In 12 Months



He's going to help choose a successor first.

This will be Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer's last year. He intends to stick around long enough to help choose a successor and then leave, a process that should take twelve months. "There is never a perfect time for this type of transition, but now is the right time," says Ballmer, as he praised the current leadership team, and wished them every success. He could have stuck around, he says, but right now the company needs someone who's going to be in the hot seat for the long term, to help plan company strategy, and that person was never going to be him.

Ballmer has fond memories of his time with the company. "I love the bigness and boldness of our bets," says he, possibly with an eye on 8% when the news broke [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/127082-Microsoft-Believes-Xbox-One-And-Kinect-Are-One-And-The-Same].

"I take this step in the best interests of the company I love," says Ballmer. "It is the thing outside of my family and closest friends that matters to me most." We'll keep you posted as to who ends up in the hot seat next. As for Ballmer, good luck to him; and good luck to his successor, for that matter.

Source: Microsoft [http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/news/press/2013/aug13/08-23StatementPR.aspx]


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Teoes

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Jun 1, 2010
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That picture is perfect.

Zachary Amaranth said:
Can't someone else choose his successor? He hasn't been horribly good at this.
Cut the head off a chicken and make the decision based on where it falls?

(Slightly more) OT: See ya!
 

darthzew

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Jun 19, 2008
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Is his head photoshopped onto that body? The skin color is wrong in like a perfect straight line. It's weird.

Eh, you could do a lot worse than Ballmer. I've enjoyed Microsoft's recent trend toward innovation, good or bad.
 

SonicWaffle

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Oct 14, 2009
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Teoes said:
That picture is perfect.
If by perfect you mean "OH GOD HE'S IN MY HOUSE, SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!"

Teoes said:
Zachary Amaranth said:
Can't someone else choose his successor? He hasn't been horribly good at this.
Cut the head off a chicken and make the decision based on where it falls?
Sacrifice an XBone and read the future on its innards.
 

fix-the-spade

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Feb 25, 2008
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Does this mean a strategic change where they look at trends and try to match the desires of their customers?

I hope so, the whole let's dictate what you want approach of Microsoft has been somewhat grating the last couple of years, plus being single handedly responsible for a rapid slump in PC sales is such a fine reputation builder.
 

Doom972

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darthzew said:
Is his head photoshopped onto that body? The skin color is wrong in like a perfect straight line. It's weird.
I noticed that too. It looks disturbing. As if his head is overheating and is going to explode.
 

ZZoMBiE13

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Oct 10, 2007
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If it came to light that Steve Ballmer regularly devours human infants, I don't know if I would be all that surprised.
Also, Win8 sucks.

That's all I got.
 

Something Amyss

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Dec 3, 2008
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Teoes said:
That picture is perfect.

Zachary Amaranth said:
Can't someone else choose his successor? He hasn't been horribly good at this.
Cut the head off a chicken and make the decision based on where it falls?

(Slightly more) OT: See ya!
I would have more faith in that decision, that's for sure!
 

mad825

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I think this has to be the best piece of news this year, the second that GTA V will likly be on PC.
 

ForumSafari

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Saw this coming with the disappointment the Surface has been financially and the headache of Office. It's a pity because I actually love the Surface, love Windows 8 on tablets generally too but Office 365 is worrying from an IT security standpoint so loads of businesses will never implement it.

Still, it's hard to take him seriously when all I can picture him doing is yelling "DEVELOPERS DEVELOPERS DEVELOPERS DEVELOPERS".
 

Kargathia

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Jul 16, 2009
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darthzew said:
Is his head photoshopped onto that body? The skin color is wrong in like a perfect straight line. It's weird.

Eh, you could do a lot worse than Ballmer. I've enjoyed Microsoft's recent trend toward innovation, good or bad.
It's a shadow, cast by a lamp behind his right shoulder, quite likely the light generated by whatever slide show is up on the screen. You'll notice his ear and cheek are also noticeably lighter than his face.

Am curious though, whether he's retiring, or that the disastrous Xbone announcement was cause for the board to go head-hunting.
 

Covarr

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May 29, 2009
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This is dandy. Ballmer fucked up Windows 8, and he was well on the way to fucking up the Xbox One. Hopefully the next CEO will be one without so much disdain for the users.

P.S. Thanks
 

Callate

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Dec 5, 2008
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And stock rises 8% when you announce your intent to retire? Ouch. That's got to be a bit of a kick in the shorts.

Still, Microsoft has clearly not been healthy for some time. Many of the products it's released have been ill-conceived and reactionary, and its internal workings, according to some sources, are increasingly back-biting and self-destructive. I hope they can pull things out of their current fall, for the sake of the PC market if nothing else.
 

MCerberus

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Jun 26, 2013
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Retirement, Retirement, Retirement, Retirement, Retirement, Retirement!
Anyway, the EA executive shift resulted in a marked reduction in evil, I hope the same happens for MS and their incompetence.
 

darthzew

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Jun 19, 2008
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Kargathia said:
darthzew said:
Is his head photoshopped onto that body? The skin color is wrong in like a perfect straight line. It's weird.

Eh, you could do a lot worse than Ballmer. I've enjoyed Microsoft's recent trend toward innovation, good or bad.
It's a shadow, cast by a lamp behind his right shoulder, quite likely the light generated by whatever slide show is up on the screen. You'll notice his ear and cheek are also noticeably lighter than his face.

Am curious though, whether he's retiring, or that the disastrous Xbone announcement was cause for the board to go head-hunting.
Being allowed to choose his successor seems like an indicator that this is voluntary. If the board really turned on him, they'd have picked their own guy.
 

Azex

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Cant believe how Jake the Dog nailed him in Pirates of Silicone valley