Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who took over in 2014 after more than two decades at the company, admits he stayed silent in a review around 2008–2009 called by then-chairman Bill Gates on a potential acquisition of a parallel data warehousing team. Then leading the search engine team, he thought the deal was architecturally misguided but did not challenge it, a decision that still haunts him. A later conversation with then-CEO Steve Ballmer shaped his view that employees should take an 'owner mindset' and consider what is best for the whole company. Nadella says the key is pushing for the right outcome without putting colleagues on the defensive, and building a culture where employees consistently speak up remains a challenge as he leads the $4 trillion company.
Summary written by Upside AI from the original article. Read the source for full details.
Original headline: Microsoft’s CEO is still haunted by staying silent in a meeting with Bill Gates—years later, his boss Steve Ballmer taught him how to speak up
Read the original on Yahoo Finance ↗
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