The state of affairs of the product development of Windows and Services is abysmal. —“Observations, Aspirations, and Directions for Windows and Windows Live” memo introduction
I've been enjoying the series (and catching up) thus far. I'd love to see more written about the emotions that the author and other subjects were experiencing and how that influenced their decision-making. You describe the list as "brutal;" what did it feel like compiling it? Were you anxious sending it to BillG and others? How did other people respond?
Don't be afraid to share the very real feelings you experienced in the middle of the maelstrom. It will make the reading more compelling and much more informative.
Jun 14, 2022·edited Jun 14, 2022Liked by Steven Sinofsky
Excellent.
Until this post, you've not been super-critical of anything. Now, you're jumping right into it. I now understand what you were trying to do during WIn8. and now realize why taking the role I took when I joined was a career error. Around the end of my first 90 days, I could tell that PUM model had run its course and didn't make sense to me. I was grossly overpaid for the tiny role I took. Consider that I went from being an exec with 1,200 people at one company, came to MSFT and had 64, and was paid 4-5x what I was before, with RSUs now worth 8 figures. It seemed insane to me, but I wasn't complaining w.r.t. comp. That said, after sufficient vesting, the challenges became more interesting.
A question: did you run drafts of your memo by anyone before you "did your Jerry Macguire" (that's what my colleagues and I used to call memos like yours)? And how did you choose the people to disclose, if in fact you did?
I know where this is going, and I think you did the right thing.
I am enjoying this book so much, thank you! As a total outsider looking at this from South America, the insides of what was going on are super entertaining, and the thinking and management opinions are terribly informative.
I kind of get that you don't like what are called "agile" methodologies, or at least the religious version of them, and you mention that most successful examples of companies adopting them have imploded. I really don't know who you are referring to, and I am really curious to understand what is the current perspective in the industry.
To actually say something in this comment, my feeling is that right now everyone is using or claiming to use some version of agile/lean, even asking for experience on them in job offers. They do not seem gone or under revision, but instead are more popular than ever. But I am not in Silicon Valley so maybe this something that became a worldwide myth and will slowly fade away as the facts percolate. Or, which is what I end up seeing a lot, everyone claims to but in reality no one does them by the book, they just pick and choose or simply rename things.
I've been enjoying the series (and catching up) thus far. I'd love to see more written about the emotions that the author and other subjects were experiencing and how that influenced their decision-making. You describe the list as "brutal;" what did it feel like compiling it? Were you anxious sending it to BillG and others? How did other people respond?
Don't be afraid to share the very real feelings you experienced in the middle of the maelstrom. It will make the reading more compelling and much more informative.
Excellent.
Until this post, you've not been super-critical of anything. Now, you're jumping right into it. I now understand what you were trying to do during WIn8. and now realize why taking the role I took when I joined was a career error. Around the end of my first 90 days, I could tell that PUM model had run its course and didn't make sense to me. I was grossly overpaid for the tiny role I took. Consider that I went from being an exec with 1,200 people at one company, came to MSFT and had 64, and was paid 4-5x what I was before, with RSUs now worth 8 figures. It seemed insane to me, but I wasn't complaining w.r.t. comp. That said, after sufficient vesting, the challenges became more interesting.
A question: did you run drafts of your memo by anyone before you "did your Jerry Macguire" (that's what my colleagues and I used to call memos like yours)? And how did you choose the people to disclose, if in fact you did?
I know where this is going, and I think you did the right thing.
I am enjoying this book so much, thank you! As a total outsider looking at this from South America, the insides of what was going on are super entertaining, and the thinking and management opinions are terribly informative.
I kind of get that you don't like what are called "agile" methodologies, or at least the religious version of them, and you mention that most successful examples of companies adopting them have imploded. I really don't know who you are referring to, and I am really curious to understand what is the current perspective in the industry.
To actually say something in this comment, my feeling is that right now everyone is using or claiming to use some version of agile/lean, even asking for experience on them in job offers. They do not seem gone or under revision, but instead are more popular than ever. But I am not in Silicon Valley so maybe this something that became a worldwide myth and will slowly fade away as the facts percolate. Or, which is what I end up seeing a lot, everyone claims to but in reality no one does them by the book, they just pick and choose or simply rename things.