Hasta La Gadget!

A few weeks back it was announced that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer is going to retire within 12 months. The company’s board is currently exploring various external and internal candidates. There were rumors circulating last week about Stephen Elop, who held the top spot at Nokia, being tapped for the job. However, a recent report claims that he probably won’t be Microsoft’s new CEO. Reuters reports today that at least three of the top 20 Microsoft investors want the company to hire a “turnaround expert” as its new CEO. They’re apparently urging Microsoft to put Ford co-CEO Alan Mulally and Computer Sciences Crop CEO Mike Lawrie on the shortlist.

The board’s committee is trimming down a list of 40 possible candidates, it is being said. Names of the people on that list haven’t leaked out as yet. It is not known right now if Microsoft is considering Mulally or Lawrie, or has even reached out to them. Mulally is knowing for turning around Ford during its tough times, however as per the company’s succession plan, he is expected to hold on to the reins until at least 2014. Lawrie is currently executing a multiyear turnaround plan at Computer Sciences, he has previously worked at Misys Plc and IBM. The appointment of Microsoft’s new CEO is one of the most closely watched developments in the technology industry, since it will have a direct impact on the direction Microsoft takes in the future.

Top Investors Reportedly Want A Turnaround Expert As New Microsoft CEO original content from Ubergizmo.

On Monday, Microsoft announced out of the blue that it has acquired Nokia’s core phone business for $7.17 billion. The deal saw Stephen Elop, Nokia’s CEO, return to Microsoft. Outgoing CEO Steve Ballmer, who is set to retire within 12 months, said that Elop has gone from being an external candidate to an internal one. Since the deal was announced it has been rumored that perhaps the most coveted job at Redmond might go to Elop. People with knowledge of the matter “strongly” hint to Reuters that while Elop is a probable candidate, it’s unlikely that he might become Microsoft’s new CEO.

The source adds that this deal won’t distract the committee tasked with finding a new CEO from conducting a “thorough search” for the best possible candidate. Investors and people familiar with Microsoft’s board’s thinking believe that Elop’s track record at Nokia is “decidedly mixed,” which is probably one of the reasons why he’s not apparently a frontrunner for Ballmer’s job. During his tenure as Nokia’s CEO, the company shares fell 60 percent. He took the helm of the Finnish company back in 2010, becoming the first non-Finn to clinch the job. In its search, the board’s special committee will look at all possible external and internal candidates, no other names have surfaced so far.

New Microsoft CEO Might Not Be Stephen Elop [Rumor] original content from Ubergizmo.

File this one in the “Well, yeah,” department. Stephen Elop may have stepped down from his CEO gig at Nokia, but Microsoft’s former head of its Business Division may still harbor C-level dreams. In an interview with The Seattle Times, Redmond’s soon-to-be-former CEO Steve Ballmer confirmed that Elop is in the running for his gig, stating, “Stephen will go from external [candidate] to internal.” So the personable mobile exec will be keeping his name badge either way — time will tell, of course, which washroom he ultimately gets the key for.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Microsoft, Nokia

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Via: Windows Phone Central

Source: Seattle Times

Late last week, Microsoft announced its current CEO, Steve Ballmer, would be retiring from his role within the next 12 months. At the time, Microsoft didn’t give any details in regards to why exactly Ballmer was making his exit from the company, instead taking the time to show their appreciation for his previous work to help shape the company into what it is today. But one analyst is arguing that Ballmer may have been pushed out of his CEO role due exceptionally poor sales of the Microsoft Surface RT. (more…)

Microsoft May Have Forced Ballmer’s Retirement Due To Surface RT Debacle original content from Ubergizmo.

A little Friday advice: if you work for one of the great mammoths in the history of technology, and your faltering CEO just emailed to say he’s departing, make sure you click the right buttons when you reply.

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