Wed, May 16, 2012 | 22:31 BST
Ballmer tops Forbes’ “5 CEOs that truly deserve being fired” list
Forbes has named Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer as the number one CEO “that truly deserves being fired.” Ballmer beat out other CEOs such as Walmart’s Mike Duke, the head of Sears and Cisco’s John Chambers.
According to the magazine, Ballmer’s “without a doubt the worst CEO of a large publicly traded American company today.”
“Not only has he singlehandedly steered Microsoft out of some of the fastest growing and most lucrative tech markets (mobile music, handsets and tablets) but in the process he has sacrificed the growth and profits of not only his company but ecosystem companies such as Dell, Hewlett Packard and even Nokia,” said the article.
“The reach of his bad leadership has extended far beyond Microsoft when it comes to destroying shareholder value – and jobs.
The article goes on to mention Microsoft’s stock prices which only recently stepped off the rollar coaster ride the form’s trading has been on since Ballmer took over in 2000. Still, shares in the company are in the low thirties, compared to $60 a share when Ballmer stepped in.
Forbes said the Microsoft Board should have replaced Ballmer years ago with “a CEO that understands the fast pace of technology shifts and would have kept Microsoft current with market trends.”
6 comments
#1
Yoshi
16/05/12, 11:58 pm
Surprised the bellend over at LucasArts isn’t on that list.
#2
sg1974
16/05/12, 11:59 pm
In 1998, just over a year before Ballmer took over, MS was worth $675 billions. That’s a fair bit more than “the world’s most valuable company” Apple is worth today (though none of the over-excitable media outlets and business/tech journalists will remind you of that). Take into account inflation and it’s an awful lot more than Apple is worth today.
MS is now worth around $250 billions – about a 65% drop in real (i.e. inflation-adjusted) terms.
Good job, Steve. And how stupid can an intelligent man like Bill Gates be?
#3
Old MacDonald
17/05/12, 11:56 am
I’m glad he finally gets the recognition he deserves. GG Steve.
#4
Da Man
17/05/12, 12:14 pm
Where the hell is Sonyman in there??
On another note, I’m really glad it isn’t 1998 anymore. Windows brings back memories..
#5
FeaturePreacher
17/05/12, 1:52 pm
Here’s to hoping Bill Gates can unretire. If not, hopefully someone from the Xbox division can take over and get rid of those stupid tiles in windows phone and save Windows 8 before it becomes the next Windows Vista.
#6
Da Man
17/05/12, 2:41 pm
^Lmao. That’s a good one, tiles are all good, there’s another device on the market clearly becoming the new Sega Saturn..