Ballmer Says Elop A Candidate For Microsoft CEO

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Can someone explain to me why Microsoft would consider this guy for CEO? Was it his two years heading up Microsoft's Office division? Was it his performance at the helm of Nokia?

In a comment that should surprise no one, Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said Tuesday that Nokia's Stephen Elop is a candidate to replace him. "Stephen will go from external [candidate] to internal," Ballmer told the Seattle Times, though he also said the Microsoft board will evaluate all candidates.
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He did a great job at Nokia, cutting value to half so that it'd be even cheaper for MS to buy them.
 
Why would you listen to the departing CEO about any candidate? I would think that's the last person you want to take advice from...
 
I really think they should look outside if they plan to continue focusing on mobile ... if they are going to circle the wagons and try and maintain Windows/Office then they can look in house ... if they are going to pursue a fully integrated vertical strategy then they should definitely go outside as I don't think they have done well on that internally to date
 
Because a guy running a failing, irrelevant dinosaur company seems like the perfect candidate for CEO :rolleyes:
 
The whole thing stinks. Elop leaves Microsoft, further runs Nokia into the ground, Nokia is then bought out by his former employer who then hires him back onto the board where he was before. Even if it is merely coincidence it still reeks and won't do anything to repair Microsoft's tarnished image. Then, he was also at the helm of Macromedia when they were bought out by Adobe so he has experience with the whole being bought out thing too.
 
blitzkommando said:
The whole thing stinks. Elop leaves Microsoft, further runs Nokia into the ground, Nokia is then bought out by his former employer who then hires him back onto the board where he was before. Even if it is merely coincidence it still reeks and won't do anything to repair Microsoft's tarnished image. Then, he was also at the helm of Macromedia when they were bought out by Adobe so he has experience with the whole being bought out thing too.
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Listen, sure the conspiracy theorists have a good base to start with, it all does look quite suspicious, but I think we can all acknowledge that there is also at least a slight possibility that he wasn't a trojan horse for Microsoft but is in fact just terrible at running a technology company.
 
Does anyone else get weird vibes from this? He leaves Microsoft for Nokia. Nokia then partners with Microsoft. Later Microsoft buys Nokias Devices divisions with all its patents. Now he leaves Nokia to go back to Microsoft and he's a candidate to be CEO! Seems fishy to me.
 
delahaya said:
Does anyone else get weird vibes from this? He leaves Microsoft for Nokia. Nokia then partners with Microsoft. Later Microsoft buys Nokias Devices divisions with all its patents. Now he leaves Nokia to go back to Microsoft and he's a candidate to be CEO! Seems fishy to me.
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This is something I have not heard before. Your ideas are intriguing to me and I wish to subscribe to your newsletter.
 
delahaya said:
Does anyone else get weird vibes from this? He leaves Microsoft for Nokia. Nokia then partners with Microsoft. Later Microsoft buys Nokias Devices divisions with all its patents. Now he leaves Nokia to go back to Microsoft and he's a candidate to be CEO! Seems fishy to me.
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Microsoft didn't buy the Nokia Patents ... they only get a license (for which they are paying 2 Billion of the 7 Billion) ... it was clear that Nokia couldn't compete with a standalone OS so they had two choices ... align with Google/Android and be one of the pack (hasn't worked out well for anyone not named Samsung, the only profitable Android OEM) or align with MS to differentiate themselves (and receive lots of incentives to be their flagship OEM) ... didn't work out for them but the other route could have failed just as badly ;)
 
Ualdayan said:
Listen, sure the conspiracy theorists have a good base to start with, it all does look quite suspicious, but I think we can all acknowledge that there is also at least a slight possibility that he wasn't a trojan horse for Microsoft but is in fact just terrible at running a technology company.
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I think it's a bit of both, as I stated. He has been in several companies during their collapses and takeovers. He was CIO of Boston Market during their bankruptcy for instance. I just find it unfathomable that mere incompetence is the single cause of all of these. I think that much is obvious given that he always finds himself in a leadership position immediately after such events, or in this case before.
 
kbrickley said:
Microsoft didn't buy the Nokia Patents ... they only get a license (for which they are paying 2 Billion of the 7 Billion) ... it was clear that Nokia couldn't compete with a standalone OS so they had two choices ... align with Google/Android and be one of the pack (hasn't worked out well for anyone not named Samsung, the only profitable Android OEM) or align with MS to differentiate themselves (and receive lots of incentives to be their flagship OEM) ... didn't work out for them but the other route could have failed just as badly ;)
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Is this guy some kind of SkribbelKat spin-off or something? No one is that stupid.
 
dgz said:
Is this guy some kind of SkribbelKat spin-off or something? No one is that stupid.
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Which part is stupid? They (Nokia) tried to make their own OS work first and that failed and became too resource intensive to support ... they could have tried continuing to make that work but isn't that the definition of insanity (doing the same thing and expecting different results) ...

once they realized their own OS had failed they had two choices left ... align with Google and use Android but they would be one of many Android OEMs at that point and it would be more difficult to standout from the bunch, this is also the reason that Samsung is still the only Android OEM making a profit with Android

or they had the choice to align with MS, who offered them tons of money and wanted to make them the Flagship OEM for their OS ... in retrospect this also turned out to be a poor decision and there are plenty of CEOs who make stupid choices without any sort of Trojan Horse scenarios being involved

So, please educate me as to which part of that analysis is "Stupid" ... it can certainly be "wrong" but although Trojan Horse conspiracies are sexier, they are not necessarily any more fact based than my analysis :cool:
 
I wish I could fuck things up and get promoted. So much easier than successful results.
 
I dunno, but you'd think the last thing whoever gets the job would want is be endorsed by Ballmer...:D
 
I don't think he went to Nokia to run the company into the ground. I think it just worked out well that way.
 
UPDATE:

Elop has joined Microsoft and will be running Xbox.

Nokia CEO Stephen Elop will join Microsoft and lead an "expanded devices team." Julie Larson-Green -- Microsoft's current overseer for Devices and Studio Engineering, which encompasses all hardware, including Xbox -- will continue to lead the division until the acquisition is completed, after which she will join Elop's new team. Elop will lead the new division, including Xbox, at that time.
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http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/09/03/microsoft-to-acquire-nokias-smartphone-division
 
blitzkommando said:
The whole thing stinks. Elop leaves Microsoft, further runs Nokia into the ground, Nokia is then bought out by his former employer who then hires him back onto the board where he was before. Even if it is merely coincidence it still reeks and won't do anything to repair Microsoft's tarnished image.
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Not a coincidence. This guy was immediately badmouthing Maemo/Meego & Symbian right off the bat, then shortly after, got Nokia to shit-can development on those systems, when they went exclusively to Windows Phone (not even considering selling both WP & Android handsets as an option).

In 3 years, he gutted & devalued Nokia to 85% of its worth so that Microsoft scored the best bang for their buck, and he immediately jumps ship back to Microsoft.

The obvious next step in this strategy/conspiracy is for Microsoft to push for a closed ecosystem similar to that of Apple, iPhone & iTunes/App Store. Having Elop as CEO, or having Windows Phone & WPS become a Microsoft exclusive would take balls, but I really wouldn't be surprised to see exactly this in the next few years. However, I would be very surprised if the end-result of this strategy was any more successful than their Windows RT plans.
 
LeviathanZERO said:
UPDATE:

Elop has joined Microsoft and will be running Xbox.



http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/09/03/microsoft-to-acquire-nokias-smartphone-division
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Too funny. The Metro lady, aka the ribbon lady Julie Larsson-Green was just yanked off the Windows division in the recent re-org so she couldn't do further damage there, and placed on Xbox - a division where the product basically sells itself - while they figured out what to do with her. Now Elop's coming in and pushing her aside. Fun times at MS.
 
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