For a few years running, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer made an appearance at the start of every calendar year to provide Wall Street analysts with a “Strategic Update” on Microsoft. He didn’t do so this year, but he covered some of the same territory during his keynote address during Microsoft’s annual CEO Summit on May 19.

No press were allowed to attend this year’s Summit, but Ballmer’s keynote (minus the Q&A with the 125 or so CEOs in attendance) was webcast. The title of his talk was “Seizing the Opportunity in the Cloud.” But Ballmer didn’t reveal anything new about Microsoft’s cloud strategy or positioning during his 30-plus-minute talk.

Instead, what I found more interesting was the list Ballmer shared with attendees about “the five things that matter” to him as a CEO of a major tech company. The five (as listed on this slide he showed):





1. Attracting talented employees
2. Making balanced investments
3. Innovating in the right areas
4. Maintaining a positive product flow
5. Making the right future bets (like the cloud)

Source -
Microsoft's Ballmer shares his 'five things that matter' | ZDNet

Posted By: JMH
20 May 2010