Bill Gates' Management Style

replicant108 wrote in to give us Tom Evslin's fascinating account of working for Microsoft in the early 90s. "So you're in there presenting your product plan to billg, steveb, and mikemap. Billg typically has his eyes closed and he's rocking back and forth. He could be asleep; he could be thinking about something else; he could be listening intently to everything you're saying. The trouble is all are possible and you don't know which. Obviously, you have to present as if he were listening intently even though you know he isn't looking at the PowerPoint slides you spent so much time on. At some point in your presentation billg will say "that's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been at Microsoft." He looks like he means it. However, since you knew he was going to say this, you can't really let it faze you. Moreover, you can't afford to look fazed; remember: he's a bully."

And that idea was...

[Tuoqui]

Linux?

"that's the dumbest fucking idea..."

[toby]

...And we can be sure he gets to hear a lot of dumb ideas.

But why greenlight them, bill?

I know I wouldn't last long

[capebretonsux]

I wouldn't last very long at Microsoft, by the sounds of it.

"that's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been at Microsoft."

And 'Clippy' was a great idea?

Dumbest F*ing Thing huh?

[Anonymous Coward]

"that's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been at Microsoft."

So when steveb came for his interview, he really must've been sleeping.

If you think he is a bully during presentations...

[Anonymous Coward]

...you should see that bastard during the regular mandatory Satanic rituals that all MS employees must attend. Suffering a powerpoint is nothing compared to watching the flying entrails of an infant. The company gym and caf is nice and all, but I'm wondering if I made the right decision.

Re:That Borg Icon

[JamesTRexx]

Be patient, they're almost done working on the monkey suit for Steve B. for the dancing monkey icon.

Creepy...

[oogoliegoogolie]

"that's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been at xxxxxxx."

I've heard rumors that that the same line can be heard at my corporation, in addition to fist-on-desk pounding, and finger pointing. No chair-throwing though, yet.

So he's copying from Steve Jobs too?

[aristotle-dude]

From TFA:

At some point in your presentation billg will say "that's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been at Microsoft." He looks like he means it. However, since you knew he was going to say this, you can't really let it faze you. Moreover, you can't afford to look fazed; remember: he's a bully."

That sounds a lot like Steve Jobs except for the closed eyes and rocking back and forth. Couldn't Bill Gates even come up with an original management style?

Re:I know I wouldn't last long

[0racle]

Bob

Re:I know I wouldn't last long

[Anonymous Coward]

The actual Great IdeaTM here was MS Bob. Clippy derived from there. MS Bob was managed by Melinda French, now a.k.a. Melinda Gates. You don't say "that's the dumbest fucking idea" to your gf. So Clippy was hired essentially to try not to waste all the effort that went into creating the totally flopped Bob.

Re:Obviously

[gEvil (beta)]

Are you saying that management should instead focus on the concepts behind the presentation rather than the quality of the presentation itself? Cos if so, that's the dumbest fucking idea I've ever heard. ; )

Re:"that's the dumbest fucking idea..."

[Tribbin]

Oh my god, I read TFA and the first thing I wondered:

1. invent 'clippy'
2. "That's the dumbest fucking idea..."
3. ???
4. clippy get's accepted

That poor guy must have gone through some hell in #3 there.

Re:That Borg Icon

[tomhudson]

"And Bill Gates isn't even the CEO of Microsoft anymore. He is the chairman."

I thought steve ("I'll fucking bury them") is the "chair-man" ...

Almost Right. I fixed it for you

[HighOrbit]

msshill: "So Bill, this world wide web thing is really starting to take off in the academic world. I think it's time we started making our own browser and include it with all installs of Windows."

billg: "That's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been at Microsoft. By contrast, over here is the best idea I've seen in a long time; its a new user-interface paradigm. I call it 'Bob'"

Re:And that idea was...

[Cyberax]

Trusted Computer Platform/Intellectual Property?

Re:That Borg Icon

[rgravina]

And Bill Gates isn't even the CEO of Microsoft anymore. He is the chairman.

Actually, I think it's Balmer who is the chair-man.

Re:"that's the dumbest fucking idea..."

[joekool]

wasn't the project manager for clippy his future wife?

via the MS Bob project anyway...

puts number 3 in a different light.

Re:It's all about presentation.

[egyptiankarim]

I remember learning about this managerial style from George Bluth who constantly shot down his son's business ideas in order to keep him constantly striving to gain his approval. I'm still waiting to read the Slashdot post about BillG burning his hands on a cornballer :)

Re:This explains a lot

[twitter]

So I guess Mr. Gates isn't responsible for everything wrong at Microsoft ... it's the people who didn't listen to his good judgment. ;-)

That's the dumbest fucking thing I've seen since I've been at Slashdot.

Oh wait, that's a joke. Never mind, but I'm still not responsible for anything but your success.

The Story of Bob

[hansamurai]

melindaf: So I've got this great idea, it's this little smiley face that helps you manage your tasks and do your work!

billg: That's the dumbest-

melindaf: You want some tonight or not?

billg: ...

melindaf: How about we call it Bob.

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[ShieldW0lf]

It was a test. And you failed. All of us.

Like I was telling my daughter yesterday, the appropriate thing to do when you meet such a person is to drill them in the nose with your knuckles as hard as you can, unless they outweigh you by a significant margin, in which case you should hit them with a chair until they crumple to the ground.

This is how you deal with bullies.

You certainly don't turn yourself one after another into his bitch and make him rich as reward for his antisocial behavior.

I bet Bill wears an "Everything I needed to take over the world, I learned from the bully in kindergarten" T-shirt to bed as a nightie.

Re:"that's the dumbest fucking idea..."

[PPH]

Or perhaps it makes 2 parse diffrently.

another conversation

[Anonymous Coward]

billg: "that's the dumbest fucking idea i've heard..."
presenter: "this is madness!"
billg: "THIS IS MICROSOFT!!!" *looks at steveb and points to a chair*

Re:It's all about presentation.

[Anonymous Coward]

yep, you're idea

No, I'm not!

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[chris_eineke]

And the author had just told him that his code was crap to his face. Doh! :-P

"And the soldier had just told him that torture was against Western values to his face. Doh! :-P"

Re:That Borg Icon

[kalidasa]

Let me guess - that's the dumbest f***ing icon you've seen in all your time on Slashdot?

The Actual Correct Response

[jbrader]

When billg says, "That's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been at Microsoft," what you should reply is, "Bullshit, how could it be any dumber than a talking paper clip?"

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[ObsessiveMathsFreak]

Like I was telling my daughter yesterday, the appropriate thing to do when you meet such a person is to drill them in the nose with your knuckles as hard as you can, unless they outweigh you by a significant margin, in which case you should hit them with a chair until they crumple to the ground.

Forget it. The chair would get to within a foot of Bill's nose before being parried by Darth Balmer's lighting counterstrike. Bill would then begin a wide gaped laughing as their pair of you batter each other back and forth across the meeting room to a backdrop of animated powerpoint slides and starfield screensavers.

Two important facts stand against you
1) Balmer is not related to you
2) There are no impossibly deep shafts nearby.

Even if your friends managed to get the firewalls down, how are they going to get all the way into the heart of Redmond campus to save your fallen ass? You gave into your anger. Such is the reward of the dark side.

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[SuluSulu]

...in which case you should hit them with a chair until they crumple to the ground.

So this is where Ballmer gets his management style.

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[RealGrouchy]

Even if he didn't realize it at the time, telling off the richest guy in the world is pretty frickin' awesome.

Keeping your job after it is just icing on the cake!

- RG>

Re:I know I wouldn't last long

[wenchmagnet]

Not only MS Bob / Clippy, but Melinda should also be credited for coming up with the name "Microsoft" for Bill's company shortly after their third date!

Re:"that's the dumbest fucking idea..."

[Tablizer]

wasn't the project manager for clippy his future wife?

Future wife: "And then this dancing paper-clip asks you if you are trying to write a letter."

(Gates is rocking with his eyes closed)

Gates: "That's the dumbest fucking idea I've ever heard."

Future wife starts crying.

Gates opens eyes and sees her tight crotch and big tits:

Gates: "On second thought, it wouldn't hurt to try it out."
         

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[tourvil]

Two important facts stand against you
1) Balmer is not related to you
2) There are no impossibly deep shafts nearby.

I'm not so sure about #1. He did suggest using a chair as a weapon...

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[CptNerd]

And if they each made their own chairs...

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[vingt]

"French" and "Fries" worked together? Who knew?

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[cashman73]

Two important facts stand against you
1) Balmer is not related to you

Steve Ballmer is my father's brother's nephew's cousin's former roommate, you insensitive clod!

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[try_anything]

In this sense, I replace myself every eighteen months or so. Sometimes faster.

Re:Stop cowering before managment...

[dcollins]

Don't just quietly leave, explain clearly why you are leaving. You like the job and the pay is fine, but there is too much internal bullshit to make the job worthwhile. When Billg says "That's the dumbest idea I've heard ..." respond by saying "You are wrong, it is an excellent idea. Your criticism is niether constructive, nor professional. I will be taking my ideas elsewhere." Then immediately leave the room, perhaps the building. So before you present your idea to Billg you should look for a new job.

That's the dumbest fucking idea I've heard since I've been on Slashdot.

Re:Champoined Needed - Sounds Good To Me

[drsmithy]

Yeah, that's pretty much what I told her. Also what I believe, and how I live, and how I succeed in the world.

Bloody hell, be careful. Swinging irony like that around could take someone's eye out.

Re:Untouchable crap

[Hal_Porter]

He has no honour. A true Klingon programmer would have killed the upstart where he stood.