10.22.09
Microsoft Employee Wants the Company to Fire 20,000 More Staff
Summary: Harsh words from “Mini-Microsoft” shortly before the marketing blitz peaks and the financial results arrive
Microsoft’s negative results (due tomorrow morning) will probably provide reason for more layoffs. Microsoft is still quietly sacking employees across the United States and a Microsoft employee, “Mini-Microsoft”, believes that the company needs to be reduced further in terms of scale. To say more about his blog post:
Mini-Microsoft giving up on Windows Mobile, getting iPhone
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On the eve of the Windows 7 launch, the anonymous “Mini-Microsoft” employee blogger has resurfaced to offer his take on the state of the company, the new operating system, CEO Steve Ballmer, and more. It’s a mixed bag, but the part that stands out most is this: Mini is getting an iPhone. And he’s not happy about it.
Yes, Windows Mobile is another major problem for Microsoft and obviously a losing business. As for layoffs, Cringely went further by advising Microsoft to lay off 50,000 employees.
As Comes vs Microsoft exhibits show us, many of the bad decisions come from the top, so it’s rarely the fault of programmers alone. But as long as they work for Microsoft they simply serve the interests of those who viciously attack the competition, violate rights, and break the law in the process. IDG has this new article about how companies can collapse from within.
The tipping point is when the organization and its leaders are Always Right, even when they’re wrong. The problem with overt self-confidence is that it creates a culture wherein the leaders have no responsibility towards the membership and the community-at-large. A organization that never says, “We were wrong. We will fix this. We will change our behavior to avoid the recurrence of this problem, and we will look for the cause” — whether that happens in a small open source project or at Microsoft or a [Pick a Famous Cult You Love To Hate] — will always crumble from within. Some companies and organizations learn the lessons of their arrogance — we could argue who ought to be on that list — and survive. But that, too, comes at a painful cost.
To give just one example of arrogance coming from the top, here is a recent classic from Bill Gates. █
