Former Microsoft senior VP Joachim Kempin tells Reuters Microsoft needs a change in leadership-- even if CEO Steve Ballmer "systematically" forces out any potential challengers to his leadership.
"For Microsoft to really get back in the game seriously, you need a big change in management," Kempin says. "As much as I respect Steve Ballmer, he may be part of that in the end."
Kempin worked at Microsoft from 1983 to 2002 and is the author of "Resolve and Fortitude: Microsoft's 'Secret Power Broker' Breaks His Silence". His leaving Microsoft was mired in controversy following the use of a number of contracts he crafted with PC makers as ammo against Microsoft in the 1998-2002 antitrust prosecutions by the US government.
According to Kempin, Ballmer has repeatedly ousted potential rivals to the CEO throne he occupied since 2000. This was first seen in 2002 departure Richard Belluzzo (former Microsoft COO and Xbox console creator), and more recently with the November 2012 leaving of Windows boss Steven Sinofsky.
Other major Microsoft staff departures include Windows and online head Kevin Johnson (now at Juniper Networks), Office chief Stephen Elop (Nokia) and software guru Ray Ozzie.
"Ozzie is a great software guy, he knew what he was doing. But when you see Steve (Ballmer) and him on stage where he (Ozzie) opposed Steve, it was Steve's way or the highway," Kempin says.
Kempin describes Ballmer as "a very good business guy," but suggests he should be COO, replaced by "a younger person who understands the Facebook Inc generation and this mobile community."
The book has plenty of criticism for Microsoft itself, saying the company "missed all the opportunities" of tablets and Microsoft. Kempin claims Microsoft had tablet projects running during the Windows XP days, while mismanagement partly brought about the current PC decline.
"Just think about the insult of Microsoft coming out with a tablet themselves, trying to mimic Apple, and now they are going to come out with a notebook on top of it," Kempin says.
But Ballmer takes the brunt of Kempin's criticism. "[Microsoft] does not need this guy on stage with this fierce, aggressive look, announcing the next version of Windows and thinking he can score with that."
Go Former Microsoft Exec Cays CEO Ballmer Culls Internal Rivals to Retain Power (Reuters)
