Former Microsoft exec: Microsoft has ‘become the thing they despised’
http://www.bgr.com/2012/07/05/micros...obile-tablets/
It contains a link to a Vanity Fair article:
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/dai...-steve-ballmer
Following the first paragraph of that article is a link to an interesting history of Microsoft by Paul Allen, which is a must read, but there are comments at the end of article from current and former Microsoft employees, among others. They describe an employee ranking system called "Stacked Ranking". During regular reviews a manager is forced to rank 20% of his/her group at the top, 70% in the middle, and 10% at the bottom. Those at the bottom can expect a short employment life. It also appears that MS "Technical Evangelists" are astroturfing the article, which another comment noted were "reality distortion fields".
As several comments noted:
and
and
mmm... I'm going to research that claim marked in red.
and
Given the failure of WinPhone and the apparent rejection of Win8 Metro and Surface, it appears to me that Steve Ballmer's days at MS are numbered. He is obviously in the 10% rank and if MS eats its own dog food he must go.
It contains a link to a Vanity Fair article:
http://www.vanityfair.com/online/dai...-steve-ballmer
Following the first paragraph of that article is a link to an interesting history of Microsoft by Paul Allen, which is a must read, but there are comments at the end of article from current and former Microsoft employees, among others. They describe an employee ranking system called "Stacked Ranking". During regular reviews a manager is forced to rank 20% of his/her group at the top, 70% in the middle, and 10% at the bottom. Those at the bottom can expect a short employment life. It also appears that MS "Technical Evangelists" are astroturfing the article, which another comment noted were "reality distortion fields".
As several comments noted:
Anon1
As somebody who joined as an engineer in one of Microsoft's fast moving division early this year, I can say that the first and second paragraph are spot on. In my first one-to-one meeting with my manager, he went over the exact same points. He talked about stack-ranking and said that somebody from the overall team would have to take the hit. Even if the team had 100 out-performing members, somebody HAS to fill the bottom-stack. He also talked about how important visibility is here. The more people that have seen/used my code and/or tool, the better are my chances of getting a good review. The engineering behind it is secondary, the primary thing is usage/visibility. He in fact asked me to go around talking to leads from Test/Development and Program management just so that I could get noticed and he could SELL me when he has the review with his managers. We don't talk about engineering improvements or how our work has an impact on the product, but how to we can stand out from other teams and showcase our work
As somebody who joined as an engineer in one of Microsoft's fast moving division early this year, I can say that the first and second paragraph are spot on. In my first one-to-one meeting with my manager, he went over the exact same points. He talked about stack-ranking and said that somebody from the overall team would have to take the hit. Even if the team had 100 out-performing members, somebody HAS to fill the bottom-stack. He also talked about how important visibility is here. The more people that have seen/used my code and/or tool, the better are my chances of getting a good review. The engineering behind it is secondary, the primary thing is usage/visibility. He in fact asked me to go around talking to leads from Test/Development and Program management just so that I could get noticed and he could SELL me when he has the review with his managers. We don't talk about engineering improvements or how our work has an impact on the product, but how to we can stand out from other teams and showcase our work
Angela_in_Seattle
5:44 PM on 7/5/2012
Stacked Ranking is where they throw all the people in a work group together in a pit and let them eat each other. Afterward, the survivors are ranked according to ability by people who don't actually work with them directly, thus permitting the lead to apologize in a credible fashion when someone who has been an excellent employee for at least 12 years (rarely less - and if you've been there over 15 years, you have a bullseye on the back of your head) given gleaming gold stars for performance for the last six months, suddenly has a big fat goose egg review and is escorted out the door for nonperformance issues.
That's what "stack ranking" is. The human toll is incalculable. It pits people against each other who should be working TOGETHER, lets schmoozers get away with very little work as long as they socialize right, and as for the people who lack "proper social skills" by nature of their brain wiring but who are good coders/debuggers/etc., well, they're just out of luck. After all, somebody has to take the hit!
By the way: there is no 'career path' at Microsoft. Plan on 10-12 years, chock the money away, and get out before they turn the guns on you. Disassembler, you too shall be disassembled.
5:44 PM on 7/5/2012
Stacked Ranking is where they throw all the people in a work group together in a pit and let them eat each other. Afterward, the survivors are ranked according to ability by people who don't actually work with them directly, thus permitting the lead to apologize in a credible fashion when someone who has been an excellent employee for at least 12 years (rarely less - and if you've been there over 15 years, you have a bullseye on the back of your head) given gleaming gold stars for performance for the last six months, suddenly has a big fat goose egg review and is escorted out the door for nonperformance issues.
That's what "stack ranking" is. The human toll is incalculable. It pits people against each other who should be working TOGETHER, lets schmoozers get away with very little work as long as they socialize right, and as for the people who lack "proper social skills" by nature of their brain wiring but who are good coders/debuggers/etc., well, they're just out of luck. After all, somebody has to take the hit!
By the way: there is no 'career path' at Microsoft. Plan on 10-12 years, chock the money away, and get out before they turn the guns on you. Disassembler, you too shall be disassembled.
Compare MS... ? hehe, $7 Billion for Skype is a typical Balmer deal. It can never earn it back. Not a snow balls chance in H... Will Skype save Win-8 ? That would take an act of God. Since all the MS' management are atheists at heart, they will just wreck an other decent product.
Balmer tried to pay $40 Billion for yahoo. If Balmer had got his way, he'd be unemployed today.
In year 2000, I bumped into Balmer. I going up the stairs, he down. He purposely walked into me. What a pathetic power freak clown. Obviously he has manhood issues.
To think that MS can pull out of its slump now, with all this history, is to bet against the obvious.
MS has so much bad management, its just when it will fall. Its paid politicians in government are, as you read this, writing the second wave of laws to force all government agencies from federal to the lowliest little town sheriffs office to use MS products and MS-cloud services. Under threat of law. Desperation of MS. That's proof of it.
A pyramid of cards, held up by spit, hot glue and bribes.
Balmer tried to pay $40 Billion for yahoo. If Balmer had got his way, he'd be unemployed today.
In year 2000, I bumped into Balmer. I going up the stairs, he down. He purposely walked into me. What a pathetic power freak clown. Obviously he has manhood issues.
To think that MS can pull out of its slump now, with all this history, is to bet against the obvious.
MS has so much bad management, its just when it will fall. Its paid politicians in government are, as you read this, writing the second wave of laws to force all government agencies from federal to the lowliest little town sheriffs office to use MS products and MS-cloud services. Under threat of law. Desperation of MS. That's proof of it.
A pyramid of cards, held up by spit, hot glue and bribes.
and
Edna_Bucket
10:44 AM on 7/4/2012
The scheme was also used to rid the company of whistleblowers:
http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/02/12/vMicrosoft.pdf .
They fired a British PhD after he complained about H-1B violations that led to a government ruling against them: http://tinyurl.com/7lhq6yc .
They were using an offshore division in British Columbia as an H-1B/L1 visa mill for "low-grade" testers, not innovators: http://www.sikhchic.com/article-deta...?id=1013&cat=8 . The Director even told reporters: "It's the guys without a turban who are the standouts", as though Microsoft is proud of its exclusionary policies.
All of this evidences a company dedicated to treating employees as battery hens.
...
10:44 AM on 7/4/2012
The scheme was also used to rid the company of whistleblowers:
http://www.courthousenews.com/2010/02/12/vMicrosoft.pdf .
They fired a British PhD after he complained about H-1B violations that led to a government ruling against them: http://tinyurl.com/7lhq6yc .
They were using an offshore division in British Columbia as an H-1B/L1 visa mill for "low-grade" testers, not innovators: http://www.sikhchic.com/article-deta...?id=1013&cat=8 . The Director even told reporters: "It's the guys without a turban who are the standouts", as though Microsoft is proud of its exclusionary policies.
All of this evidences a company dedicated to treating employees as battery hens.
...
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