Microsoft - the biggest start-up in the world

After helping to build five start-ups (Forte, AltaVista, Napster, Bowstreet, Groove) over the past 14 years, I joined Microsoft, the biggest start-up in the world. Microsoft has over 60,000 employees and $40B in revenue, but still operates like a nimble start-up. Just this week Microsoft made a big strategic shift jumping into the web based service business with Windows Live and Office Live.

My colleague, Sam Ramji, is working on a SaaS start-up offering to make it easier and cheaper  for SaaS (Software as a Service) companies to use Microsoft platforms for their infrastructure. This is just another example of Microsoft listening to users and delivering what they need. In fact, Microsoft recently hosted a  SaaS CEO Round-table, with companies that do NOT use Microsoft platforms, to learn why they chose alternative platforms and what we need to do to make Microsoft the preferred choice. Check out Sam's blog for frequent updates on SaaS developments.

Visual Studio is about to release the most comprehensive, powerful, easy to use development environment ever built. It is phenomenal and will change the way software applications are built.

SQL Server is also releasing a new version this year with market leading performance and scalability. Ten years ago SQL Server didn't show up on any-ones radar. Today it is the market share leader in the database market.

Five years ago Sharepoint did not exist. Today it is the leading document repository with more than twice as many servers deployed as its closest competitor. Sharepoint 2005 is awesome. The content/document management applications being built on top of Sharepoint by companies like KnowledgeLake, and Meridio  are absolutely amazing. Documentum and FileNet can't compete on a price/performance basis.

MSN Search was no where five years ago. Today it is as good or better than Google in terms of size, speed, and relevance. The technical advances made by the MSN Search team are truly extraordinary.

Most importantly, Microsoft is led by true entrepreneurs. Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer are two of the richest men in the world. But, it was never about the money for them. They could have quit working twenty years ago, but they come to work every day with more passion and energy than I have seen from any start-up CEO. They lead by example and all 60,000 employees follow with pride. It is an amazing place to work. The biggest start-up in the world!

Comments

[Not impressed]

Was this post handed down directly from the corporate marketing department? I mean, I'm the first one to admit that MS has made some impressive changes lately, but c'mon, I thought part of the point of this blog was to lend credibility to MS among entrepreneurs. A point-by-point description of software releases isn’t going to cut it, and the assertion that the MS Live _announcement_ merits referring to a 60-thousand-employee megalith as a “nimble start-up” is just ludicrous spin.

[Jeff Tash]

In my ITscout Blog posting, see http://itscout.blogspot.com/2005/11/microsofts-big-squeeze.html, I wonder if Don, perhaps, "has been drinking way too much corporate Kool Aid."

[Jeff Tash]

The URL in my prior comment has a superfluous comma suffix. See

http://itscout.blogspot.com/2005/11/microsofts-big-squeeze.html

[Vinnie Mirchandani]

Don, first of all, I like the fact that Microsoft lets its managers have their own blogs. The transparency is healthy.

You cite several projects MS is working on - but do you really need to spend $ 6 b a year in R&D to do those?

Most metrics coming out of the Valley show new start ups through use of open source, cheaper Intel machines, global labor, cheaper broadband, SaaS are being funded at 1/5th of what they were during the late 90s - are your teams working at the productivity of the new world?

Also, few start ups have the luxury of only spending 15% of revenue on R&D and spending twice as much on sales and marketing.

You really want to behave like a start up? Slash each individual development team's budgets by 50% and put the rest in a VC fund and fund true start ups with hungry entrepreneurs around the world.

as for your sales and marketing budget - like you gave your investors a cash dividend last year. Slash your sales budget and give your corporate customers much lower prices.

I heard Ballmer at Gartner IT Expo acknowledge you need to increase your speed of delivery and innovation.

Run really lean and innovate - then you can call yourself a start up... it would be good to see Microsoft that way again

you may enjoy an article I wrote for Optimize magazine this week about software industry (lack of) innovation

http://www.optimizemag.com/article/showArticle.jhtml?articleId=172301797&pgno=1

[james governor]

come on in the coolaid tastes great. not sure why trackback didn't stick so:
http://www.redmonk.com/jgovernor/archives/001075.html