2. Bill Gates
Visionary, entrepreneur, philanthropist, are some of
the words that come to mind when we think of Bill
Gates.
Gates is undoubtedly one of the most influential
technological titans of the 20th and 21st century.
Although initially known as the forward-thinking
genius behind Microsoft’s rise to dominance, Gates
has since proven himself to be just as savvy in his
humanitarian endeavors as he is in business matters.
3. Born on October 28, 1955, in Seattle, Washington,
famed entrepreneur.
Education : Harvard College, Lakeside School
Parent(s) : William H. Gates, Sr.
Mary Maxwell Gates
Spouse(s) : Melinda Gates
Bill Gates began to show an interest in computer
programming at age 13.
4. Through technological innovation, keen
business strategy and aggressive business
tactics, he and partner Paul Allen built the
world's largest software business, Microsoft.
In the process, Gates became one of the richest
men in the world.
5. After reading the January 1975 issue of Popular
Electronics, that demonstrated the Altair 8800.
Gates contacted Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry
Systems (MITS), In reality, Gates and Allen did not have an
Altair and had not written code for it; they merely wanted to
gauge MITS's interest.
MITS president Ed Roberts agreed to meet them for a
demo, and over the course of a few weeks they developed
an Altair emulator that ran on a minicomputer, and then the
BASIC interpreter.
6. The demonstration, held at MITS's offices in Albuquerque,
was a success and resulted in a deal with MITS to distribute
the interpreter as Altair BASIC.
Paul Allen was hired into MITS, and Gates took a leave of
absence from Harvard to work with Allen at MITS in
Albuquerque in November 1975.
They named their partnership "Micro-Soft" and had their
first office located in Albuquerque
7. 1. Create the correct culture
2. Develop a clear vision–and Stick to It
3. Hire action-oriented employees
4. Image is everything
5. Successful innovation success may be built on
failure
6. Relax and feel at home
7. ‘Stop’ the ‘mad bureaucracy’
8. Be smart and keep the team on toes
8. ‘John Battelle co-founded Wired Magazine. He says
Microsoft was the pioneer of the new-age
workplace, making work as comfortable, inspiring
and fun as possible so workers would spend lots of
time there.
Bill Gates didn’t even finish college, but the office
culture he created at Microsoft is now being taught
at the country’s top business schools.
9. From the beginning, he dreamed of developing
Microsoft into a corporate giant. For CIOs this is one of
the most important traits that MUST be part of the
toolbox.
CIOs need to clearly identify to themselves and
communicate to the environment that they work in ‘the
vision’ that they have set out to achieve. They then need
to have the confidence to deliver that vision.
10. CIOs usually have exposure to many different
environments and come across many employees.
Some will be better than others, while some will be
outstanding. Gates has always hired the smartest
people who can ‘get the job done.’
Hire your friends and past colleagues, as they will
have loyalty to you and you personally know whether
they have what it takes to realize your ‘vision.’
11. Gates has successfully changed his image over the
years from a geek to corporate leader and
philanthropist.
CIOs need to change their image from just being
technology leader to leaders who understand
business and can apply their strategic IT and
business skills to the wider business.
12. Microsoft has proved that failure can lead to
success and continues to innovate by investing
in many technologies. Some will inevitably fail
while others maybe huge successes. Many
businesses lack of innovation is due to their fear
of failures.
13. Microsoft has a simple way of maximizing its
employees’ productivity: It allows each individual’s
office to be as individualized as one desires.
That means making the office more like home.
Everything from real offices (not cubicles) to windows
in most offices, from free soft drinks to no dress code,
from an open supply room to anything-goes work
hours. Quite simply, these policies improve employee
morale, and thus increase overall productivity.’
14. Unlike most companies, Microsoft actually assumes its
employees are smart.
Rules at Microsoft are few and far between, and the ones
that exist tend to make sense. Having only a few
important, logical rules means that employees actually
remember and follow them.
15. Gate’s, is known for his sharp cross examination of employees
who present new ideas, innovations etc.
He analyses information quite quickly and gets to the bottom
of the matter at a rapid pace. Employees have criticized this
approach and associated quick, sharp, snappy analysis that at
times is uncomfortable (in employee’s views).
These qualities of Gate’s have enabled Microsoft to dominate
personal computers (PCs). CIOs need to understand employee
perspectives and ‘effectively quiz’ their teams on solutions
being proposed.
16. 1. Becoming the wealthiest man in the world
2. Hacking computers
3. Windows
4. Microsoft
5. Being a generous philanthropist
17. Later in his career Gates pursued a number of
philanthropic endeavors, donating large amounts of
money to various charitable organizations and scientific
research programs through the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation, established in 2000.
In June 2006, Gates announced that he would be
transitioning from full-time work at Microsoft to part-time
work, and full-time work at the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation.
18. The foundation is organized into four program areas:
Global Development Division, Global Health Division,
United States Division, and Global Policy & Advocacy
Division.
Bill and Melinda Gates were the second-most generous
philanthropists in America, having given over $28
billion to charity the couple plan to eventually donate
95 percent of their wealth to charity