Steve Ballmer’s Legacy: 10 Factors, Events That Have Marked His Career

by John Pallatto

Steve Ballmer had no easy task taking over Microsoft. Its renowned co-founder Bill Gates, who was a lightning rod of controversy in the technology industry, previously ran the company. After taking over as CEO in 2000, Ballmer acknowledged that he was in his predecessor’s shadow, but before long, he broke out. And now, Ballmer will have his own shadow to cast on whoever comes next.

Who can forget some of Ballmer’s finest moments on stage? From the time he yelled “developers” over and over again to the moment when he ran on stage screaming like a mad man, Ballmer was fun to watch. Sometimes, that behavior helped improve morale within Microsoft. Other times, it made the company a running joke. But if nothing else, Steve Ballmer is who he is.

No discussion on Steve Ballmer could be complete without mentioning one of his worst decisions ever: pushing Windows Vista on the world. That operating system was not ready for prime time when it launched, and Microsoft’s attempt to force it on the enterprise and consumers was a bad move. Vista was the start of Apple’s PC expansion and made at least some people question whether Microsoft could stay dominant over the long haul.

The Xbox totally changed the way consumers viewed Microsoft. When the game console launched more than a decade ago, Microsoft was viewed solely as a software company. But since the Xbox’s launch, Ballmer was able to make his company look like a credible hardware maker as well as a producer of consumer products and software. It was a fascinating move, and one that’s still positively impacting his company.

The mobile market was a conundrum for Ballmer, and his company’s current, single-digit market share seems to prove that. When the iPhone launched, Ballmer laughed at it. When Android came out, he thought it wouldn’t work. Now, Windows Phone is far behind iOS and Android, and Ballmer is being blamed for that. Quite honestly, he should be blamed.

Windows 8 has been nothing short of an epic failure. And Ballmer, along with his executives, believed that the operating system would be a hit. Windows 8 was widely believed to be Ballmer’s last chance to show his worth, and he failed miserably. Windows 8 is dead in the water. And Ballmer is to blame for that.

Although he’s had his missteps, Ballmer has also presided over an immense expansion of Microsoft’s wealth. During his tenure, profits have soared by billions of dollars, and the company’s revenue figures have far eclipsed anything it was generating in the late-1990s when it was firing on all cylinders. If financial performance was Ballmer’s only measure, he’d be doing quite well.

Ballmer didn’t make too many bad investments. In fact, his company invested heavily in Yahoo, which has turned out to benefit his search platform. And when Ballmer decided to take a small share in Facebook that eventually turned into a nice profit, he was heralded as a genius. Even Microsoft’s Skype investment was a good one. As of late, Ballmer’s made some smart investments.

Shareholders really, really, really don’t like Steve Ballmer. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the reaction they had after his retirement announcement. Soon after he said he’d be retiring, Microsoft’s shares jump by more than 8 percent. And looking ahead, many analysts believe the shares will remain strong, due in large part to concern over Ballmer’s stewardship.

It wouldn’t be possible to evaluate Steve Ballmer without acknowledging the rapid decline of the PC market. Ballmer was supposed to be the gatekeeper for the PC industry, a market that keeps its core businesses afloat. Instead, he presided over the decline of PCs, as tablets—and not the Surface—took hold. Microsoft needs someone who can improve the company’s PC initiative. And unfortunately, Ballmer isn’t that person.