Microsoft has replaced Windows Division President, Steven Sinofsky, with Julie Larson-Green, one of the vice-presidents of the department, who will take over all the coordination of all software and hardware operations related to the development of operating system, according to Bloomberg.
Management changes are effective immediately, according to a press release issued Monday by Microsoft. The company was concerned about how Sinofsky was getting along with other executives, including CEO Steve Ballmer told Bloomberg a source close to the situation. Thus, shortly after the release of Windows 8, Ballmer is preparing a new team to develop the next version, added the same source.
“It’s a little surprising to witnessing the departure of an executive at this level, responsible for so many products, in a rushed manner, without a transitional period,” comments Michael Gartenberg, an analyst at market research company Gartner.
Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) shares closed Monday at New York down 2.1%, but advanced by 8.7% from the beginning of the year. The stock dropped another 2% to $27 during the Tuesday session.
Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft, Steve Ballmer, has described as “modest” the way the company managed the distribution of Surface RT tablet, according to a statement recounting some statements made by the CEO in an interview with Le Parisien. Information previously published in the international press would have indicated that Ballmer told the Le Parisien that tablet sales were modest at their market debut.
Sinofsky has been working for 23 years at Microsoft and leaves the company in less than a month after the launch of Windows 8, the most radical development of the Windows operating system. With Windows 8, the Surface tablet was launched, the first such product ever released by the company in Redmond.
The source cited by Bloomberg said that the decision to change the Windows team has nothing to do with the quality of the products recently launched or with their success on the market.
Sinofsky spent 17 years in the development of Office business software suite, moving to Windows in 2006. He was responsible for stabilizing the Windows division after Vista version, which was not well received by the market.
Previously considered a possible successor to Ballmer, Sinofsky failed to improve the consumer trend of getting away from PCs to new gadgets such as tablets.
Windows Division revenue was below analysts’ estimates in six of the last eight consecutive quarters due to lower demand for PCs in parallel with the rise of powerful mobile devices with Internet access, as well as smartphones and tablets.
Julie Larson-Green worked at Microsoft since 1993 and has moved from the Office Division to Windows department together with Sinofsky. She led the team that handled the new Windows 8 design, replacing the traditional look desktop – taskbar – start button with the new interface optimized for touchscreen displays, a feature of smartphones and tablets and also found on Windows Phone. Larson-Green was also responsible for major design changes in Office in recent years, and the international versions of Windows 8.
Reply