On February 4th, 2014, Microsoft found its new CEO in the cloud– Azure employer Satya Nadella took the top job, Steve Ballmer retired, and Bill Gates stepped down as chairman. Now, after growing Microsoft to turn into one of the most valuable business on the planet yet once again, Nadella has now been all chosen chairman of the Microsoft board.
Its the first time in 20 years that Microsofts chairman will also be its CEO, after Bill Gates initially stepped down as CEO in 2000 (Gates left the Microsoft board completely in 2020), and its a testament to how much Nadella is now relied on to lead the business forward. When Gates stepped down as chairman in 2014, the board chose independent chairman John Thompson, who had actually formerly been CEO and chairman of Symantec and wholl stay an independent director on the Microsoft board.
We spoke with Nadella in 2018 about how he was altering Microsoft, and how Windows wasnt the future of the company, however rather cloud services. Windows 10 was imagined as an ongoing service, too, but PC sales turned around in 2020 after Microsoft ended assistance for Windows 7, and started to see big growth in 2021. It sure looks like the company now believes in distinct versions once again: Windows 11 is coming quickly.