Steve Ballmer On a Big Vision — To Help People Realize Their Full Potential

Note: This article is updated at Steve Ballmer on a Big Vision.

I think “to help people realize their full potential” and “to change the world” is why a lot of Softies come together.

It’s the life-blood that flows through our veins.

Softies come from all walks of life.  But there seems to be a common bond when it comes to sharing the Microsoft vision, the mission, and the values, especially personal excellence, and continuous self-improvement.

In Steve Ballmer’s email, he set the stage for our “One Strategy, One Microsoft.”  Here’s my favorite part:

“This company has always had a big vision — to help people realize their full potential. In the earliest days, it was by putting a PC on every desk and in every home. We’ve come farther than we could have imagined. The impact we have collectively made on the world is undeniable, and I am inspired when talented new hires say they chose Microsoft because they want to change the world — that’s what we do today, and that’s what we’ll do tomorrow.”

I like the whole services + devices story for individuals + businesses for work + life, and it’s all about empowering people around the world for the activities they value the most.

Value is the key word, and I’m a fan of empowerment.

I’m a fan of helping people realize their full potential (and then some.)

I also liked this part of Steve Ballmer’s email, especially on integration:

“We will reshape how we interact with our customers, developers and key innovation partners, delivering a more coherent message and family of product offerings. The evangelism and business development team will drive partners across our integrated strategy and its execution. Our marketing, advertising and all our customer interaction will be designed to reflect one company with integrated approaches to our consumer and business marketplaces.”

It smells like team spirit, with a shared goal, and it’s got a nice air of agility.

Speaking of agility, over the past year, I’ve been asked to do a lot more talks and coaching for individuals, teams, and leaders on how to go agile, whether it’s for improving execution, improving creating and flowing value, or developing more agile strategies to win in our ever-changing world.

It’s refreshing and I see the results.   I see more customer-connected development, more Kanbans on walls, more pairing up on problems, more focus on scenarios, and, most importantly, the embracing of change.

I also see people and teams growing their capabilities, learning execution excellence, and flowing and accelerating business value.

It’s powerful stuff.

It’s Microsoft … the Agile Way.

You Might Also Like

10 Big Ideas from Getting Results the Agile Way The Microsoft Story The Mission of Microsoft Enterprise Services Microsoft Secret Stuff Agile Results: It Works for Teams and Leaders Too

Comments

• Anonymous
  July 11, 2013
  Empowered, agile, exciting... sounds great. While I love the changes, and it addresses some big issues in the org, it doesn't address the big one:  Are we going the right direction?  Fixing how fast we get there is great, but not if we go to the wrong destination.