14 DAY TRIAL // Former Windows boss Steven Sinofsky has recently posted a tweet from an iPhone and even though he said he was just trying to evaluate competition, many have criticized him for his attempt to dump Microsoft’s products.
Sinofsky has written a new blog post to explain his decision to use an iPhone every once in a while, emphasizing that it all comes down to staying connected to the technology world and the devices all companies on the market are working on.
“There’s an actual reason for using technology products and services other than the ones you make (or happen to be made by the company where you work/ed). I think everyone knows that, even a thousand tweets later,” Sinofsky explained in the blog post.
“The approach in many industries to downplay or even become hostile to the competition are well-documented and studied, and generally conclude that experiencing the competition is a good thing.”
While several former Microsoft employees have also admitted that they had switched from Microsoft products to devices created by rival companies, at least for a while, Sinofsky said that this was quite a common practice.
And honestly, you shouldn’t be surprised if someone still working for Microsoft is currently using Apple devices. Competition needs to be closely analyzed and trying out their products is the best way to do it.
“Studying your competitor, well, gives you a chance to evaluate your choices in an entirely different context. When you make a product choice you are making it in the context of your company, strategy, business model, and people/talents. What if you change some of those? That is what knowing the competition allows you to do, and basically for free (no consultants or top secret research),” Sinofsky continued.
Leaving the iPhone saga aside, Sinofsky is one of the executives that embraced the Surface RT tablet, Microsoft’s first such device in history that was released on October 26 when he was still working for the Redmond-based giant.