According to Bloomberg, Microsoft is set on finding a replacement for Steve Ballmer before the end of this year. Sources have stated that the company is currently reviewing a list of possible candidates as a successor. The choices are currently being narrowed down and lists of declined candidates and candidates currently up for consideration have arisen.
Sources who are aware of information within the review board have commented that EBay Inc.’s CEO, John Danohoe, and others have declined the opportunity. Current outside prospective candidates include Ford Motor’s CEO - Alan Mulally, former Nokia CEO - Stephen Elop, CEO of Pivotal – Paul Maritz, and current head of Microsoft business development and evangelism chief, Tony Bates.
Microsoft’s choice of CEO will be a monumental decision for a company that has only had two, Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer. Microsoft is trying to redefine itself and the choice of CEO will serve as a steering point for the company’s future vision.
Will Microsoft make its deadline to find a replacement CEO this year – and who will it be?
Source/Image: Bloomberg, Comic via: Woodenplank Studios
Reader comments
Microsoft looking to find Steve Ballmer's successor by the end of 2013
Elop or bill gates
I will be the happiest person to see Elop as the CEO of Microsoft. I'm just in love with my L920.Eloppppppp,please!!!
I'll do it. But I want at least $18/hr.
Bates more likely. Keep Elop on the phone side of business to help it keep growing. I dont' think either is a bad choice.
ELOPE!!! ELOPE!!!! ooops...i mean ELOP...LOL
Elop is my best joice. Go-go-go Elop. We're going to see the first ever Nokia's tablet and laptop. I'm will be the happiest person to grab these devices.Eloppppppp!!!
If I can't get Bill Gates I'd like Marissa Mayer.
They'd probably have to buy Yahoo! to get her. Might not be the worst idea.
On a side note that cartoon Steve balmer would look hot as a Nokia glance background. Just sayin.
My vote is for Elop. Mulally might have turned around Ford, but it's the car business, not tech. Elop can do that.
Lord Elop!
Eric Schmidt!!!!!
Bring J Allard out of retirement, make him CEO and let us have the Courier and Zune phone.
Elop!
As long as it isn't Alan Mulally I am good. No company can talk about the future and hire an old man to run them.
Give it to Elop.
Michael Scott!
Balmer as chairman and Elop as CEO. Balmer stired well the company to devices and services, and Elop would do a great job. He has been at microsoft before and he is ready now for the position.
Ok ok, I'll do it.
As much as I would like for Google to put their own "Elop" on Microsoft so that they could taste their own poison...I have no intention of leaving Windows as my computer and tablet operating system...so I hope they find someone YOUNG, someone CAPABLE, someone INTELLIGENT.
I won't come forward with any names because I'm not being paid to do market research for that :P
But anyone like that will do. Specially if Microsoft wants to really change. Enough with the old men.
And definitely NOT that pestilent conniving repulsive little worm that goes by the surname of Eflop.
I completely agree with you. They need a new young dynamic CEO who can change the perception of MS a this old world solution in the age of technology changing in the blink of an eye.
+1
+1
Guys guys guys. Its okay. I got this one. I'll do it. Sheesh
My vote is for Steven Sinofsky.
is this sarcasm? finally Windows and other divisions are nicely working together, to get someone selfish and power hungry who doesnt know anything about business (because you know... a CEO should know about it, not only technology) to take over Microsoft?... again Im sure your comment its sarcasm.
That ship has sailed.
And crashed and burned. It's called Windows 8 ;)
ELOP ELOP ELOP
Alan Mulally
He even said he isn't quitting ford for Microsoft. Didn't get the memo?
That means nothing at all, you really think he would say otherwise and stir up a bunch of press? He would say the exact same thing even if he was interested and talking with Microsoft.
Microsoft should just develop an artificial intelligence to become CEO forever. Easy right?
Cortana!
+2520
But cortana's a smart AI...
Imagine Cortana as CEO n firing her creator....hmmmmm
Lol
I want Bill Gates...
He'd be good but I think he's doing even more beneficial stuff with his charity and is better used there.
Fine...I'll take the job.
As far as this article and employee morale is concerned, I know someone at Microsoft and the day it was announced Ballmer was to be relieved I asked him his thoughts on the matter. He basically said his entire team was unanimously in favor of the move. Seems replacing Ballmer sooner rather than later is a good thing.
The sweaty, loud-mouthed, car salesman look doesn't exactly appeal to the masses. I'm sure he'd be a complete ball-breaker to work with
I'll do it for 300 million quid and an Aston Martin.
10,000 and a Kia, then you got yourself a deal.
Meanwhile, HP leaves the Microsoft ship...winsupersite.com
And Lenovo is sailing along just fine.
and that has been said for years and years "microsoft is doomed" and "nobody will upgrade to windows" yet Win8 marketshare already beats all combined OSX versions and well.. the insignificant linux markertshare was easy to reach.
not many people care about HP anyway. why do you think Linux hasnt been used for many people? one of the reasons its it doesnt run "photoshop" or "it doesnt play my videogame" and stuff like that. so whatever you say we dont care, honestly HP can go and make their own OS (oh wait... they failed at it) we still wouldnt care.
Around 4 years ago we were replacing all of our desktop PC's at work. The sysadmin announced we were all getting Linux (Ubuntu I think) with OpenOffice... When we all stopped laughing we told him to put Windows and Office on them :P
I don't know if Linux will ever reach critical mass to appeal to general consumers. It really only appeals to gear-heads at the moment. I used to use it extensively 10 years ago, but grew weary of always having to mess around 'under the hood', dick about with makefiles, spend hours in newsgroups or reading manuals. I think it's improved vastly since then, and even things like Ubuntu are much easier to use. At the end of the day I just want something fast & efficient that doesn't get in my way or make me think about it... so that's Windows 7 for me. I have 8 too, but it's still at that annoying / less intuitive part of it's lifecycle, which should improve after a few service packs.
Who cares HP when we have our own Surface flagship. Only thing is Surface should be made available worldwide
Well, crap, declining sales. There still selling tons of computers and business is still buying there hardware. You may not like HP. But emotions isn't going to help. This is a big deal.
I believe it's their last big move. Before HP's death...
Bates or Elop look to be the best available choices.
While I think Elop would be agood choice, I'd rather he stay in his current position because he seems to be managing that well and I wouldn't want his replacement to mess that up. My vote is for Bates.
I would like to see Mulally run it. I think elop should stay focused on hardware and mulally would provide a great outsiders perspective.
Employees at MSFT aren't very excited at an old, non-techie becoming CEO. That would be bad for morale.
+1. Bringing Mulally would be a disaster. There is a difference between an assembly line and a software development center. Age is not on his side as well, I would be really surprised and sad if Mulally is chosen.
Errm. Hardly. Where do you think a lot of current thinking on how software is built comes from? Oooooh...Toyota.
Mulally has already expresses that he's happy at Ford and not interested in being CEO as Microsoft.
He even said he isn't quitting ford for Microsoft. Didn't get the memo?
Mulally was great for Boeing and should have been made CEO. He's done a bang-up job at Ford, but there is a huge difference between a large scale industrial type manufacturing company and a high tech company like Microsoft. I just don't think he's the right man for the job. Streamlining a company like Microsoft is not the same as steamlining a Ford or Boeing. It would be like trying to do surgery with a hunting knife. It could be done, but the results wouldn't be pretty and could have long term adverse impacts on the patient.
Yeah, they should totally rush this decision...
Yeah, can't believe why they want to rush such an important decision. Unless they have already found a good candidate they were always hoping for, it makes no sense.
They said "within 12 months" not "12 months from now".
Usually when the doctor announces "you have 6 months to live" he doesn't mean "I mean you had the 6 months, 3 months ago". :P
But I think these guys mean to say that they have more time and such a huge decision should take longer.
Are they rushing? They will have taken at least a few months before they make their decision. How long is a company supposed to take to decide on a new CEO? And this is a pretty fast moving industry. MS going too slow and cautious is what has held them back in the past.
As long as it takes to find a solid replacement, not just settling for what they can scrape up in a few months. Look at what terrible leadership did to the Xbox One -- it turned what could have been something revolutionary into a laughing stock. Now imagine that repeated, except for the entire company instead of one division.
Steve has probably been talking about this for a while now. I really doubt Microsoft found out when we did. With that said, we don't know how long they been looking for a new CEO. So they may not be rushing anything.
My money is still on Elop
+1 It simply has to be Elop.
It could very well be Tony Bates who came to Microsoft as part of Skype acquisition. He was then the CEO and founder of Skype.
My vote is for Cortana! She is rumored to be ready in early 2014 anyway!
Ai voice support as the CEO of Microsoft? The future is near.
Tony Bates and Elop would make good choices, with Bates having less baggage.
How about co-CEOs... devices: Elop, services: Bates
+1 to the traitor :D
Mine too, but I hope I lose the bet.
Elop has my vote