Steve Ballmer
Steve Ballmer
Steven Anthony "Steve" Ballmer is an American businessman who was the chief executive officer of Microsoft from January 2000 to February 2014, and is the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers. As of May 11, 2015, his personal wealth is estimated at US$22.7 billion, ranking number 21 on the Forbes 400. It was announced on August 23, 2013, that he would step down as Microsoft's CEO within 12 months. On February 4, 2014, Ballmer retired as CEO and was succeeded by...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionEntrepreneur
Date of Birth24 March 1956
CityDetroit, MI
CountryUnited States of America
We are very happy to be in this position to return almost $75 billion in capital to investors over four years, ... We're also pleased to be able to say that we put many of our legal issues in the rear view mirror so to speak, which affords us the opportunity to move forward with the cash management plan.
When should a company take a position on a broader social issue and when should it not? What message does the company taking a position send to its employees who have strongly-held beliefs on the opposite side of the issue?
A breakup of Microsoft, I think, would be an awful thing for consumers and for the industry. The real issue in a possible breakup would be the harm it does to innovation,
[Apple and RIM] are probably restricted, in some sense, to a certain maximum. ... If you want to reach more people than that, you sort-of have to separate the hardware and the software issue.
So, I think the output of our innovation is great. We have a culture of self-improvement. I know we can continue to improve. There is no issue. But at the same time, our absolute level of output is fantastic.
My wife spent a lot of time on what we do from a civic contribution giving perspective, for a number of years, I've really joined her in that. We're focused on issues in the United States, particularly issues with people who have been trapped in neighborhoods in what I might call intergenerational poverty.
We don't trounce our competition, ... We compete.
We're very confident about our growth outlook -- so confident that we announced today we're accelerating our stock-buyback plans,
I've never thrown a chair in my life.
These changes are designed to align our Business Groups in a way that will enhance decision-making and speed of execution, as well as help us continue to deliver the types of products and services our customers want most.
The small-business market is the biggest part of the computer market, ... We really need to get after that.
The stuff AOL is doing now is unbelievably egregious. They're trying to get personal computer companies to delete features of Windows and not let people have the choice of using our software,
Is there anyone who believes that the search experience isn't going to be dramatically different 10 years from now than it is today?
Things are working well. We're always trying to improve, though.