We should move away from that devices and services approach, Nadella says

Jul 10, 2014 17:17 GMT  ·  By

Satya Nadella replaced Steve Ballmer at the helm of Microsoft this year in February, and the new CEO seems ready to push the Redmond-based tech giant towards a completely new approach that puts the customer at the core of everything.

In a letter sent to employees this morning, Satya emphasizes that Microsoft has evolved from a company that wanted to bring a computer on every desk and in every home to a devices and services firm, but it's now moving to the concept of a productivity and platform company for the mobile-first and cloud-first world.

The devices and services idea was first launched by former CEO Steve Ballmer, but Satya Nadella says in the letter that the company needs more than that in order to achieve its goals.

“More recently, we have described ourselves as a ‘devices and services’ company. While the devices and services description was helpful in starting our transformation, we now need to hone in on our unique strategy,” he explains.

Nadella says it loud and clear that the customer would be at the core of everything, planning to make all the company's products better address people's needs and help them get things done faster and easier.

He wants Microsoft to be obsessed over customers and explains that the company is about to become the best place for smart, curious, and ambitious people to do their best work.

“Obsessing over our customers is everybody's job. I'm looking to the engineering teams to build the experiences our customers love. I'm looking to the sales and marketing organizations to showcase our unique value propositions and drive customer usage first and foremost,” Nadella adds.

He also talks about some of the company's hardware products, putting an end to rumors that Microsoft might be considering a potential sale of the Xbox or Surface divisions.

“We are fortunate to have Xbox in our family to go after this opportunity with unique and bold innovation. Microsoft will continue to vigorously innovate and delight gamers with Xbox. Xbox is one of the most-revered consumer brands, with a growing online community and service, and a raving fan base,” he points out.

At the same time, he emphasizes that Windows is set to deliver new experiences in the coming years, as the company tries to make the most of the growing IT world that brings more devices of various form factors and sizes.

Could this be a sign that Windows could soon be installed on smaller devices such as smartwatches? It could be, but Nadella says that it all comes down to the devices capable of running Windows, which could only help expand the overall ecosystem.

He points at the Surface Pro 3 as living proof that devices built by Microsoft have terrific potential:

“Our first-party devices will light up digital work and life. Surface Pro 3 is a great example – it is the world's best productivity tablet. In addition, we will build first-party hardware to stimulate more demand for the entire Windows ecosystem. That means at times we'll develop new categories like we did with Surface,” he concludes.

As you can see, Nadella seems to give Microsoft a completely new face, which not only could refresh the company's business, but it might also significantly improve its relationship with customers.

You can find Nadella's entire letter after the jump, and we can truly promise you that it's a great read.

Satya Nadella's Letter