14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft is considered one of the best companies in the world to work for, pretty much because you get the chance to work together with Bill Gates and other big names in the IT industry on products that would be then used by millions of people across the planet.
Fable creator Peter Molyneux has talked about this tenure at Microsoft in an interview with Gamasutra, explaining that he decided to leave the Redmond-based tech giant because he couldn’t express his creativity. He called Microsoft “a big supertanker of safety” and explained that he decided to leave to work on projects where creativity is much more appreciated.
“And pushing yourself is a lot easier to do if you're in a life raft that has a big hole in the side, and that's what I think indie development is. You're paddling desperately to get where you want to go to, but you're also bailing out,” he explained.
“Whereas if you're in a big supertanker of safety, which Microsoft was, then that safety is like an anesthetic. It's like taking antidepressants. The world just feels too comfortable.”
This analogy sure sounds interesting, but former Microsoft executive Joachim Kempin says that working for the software giant is a lot more stressful than most people think. Kempin, who made several negative remarks about his former employer, said that Ballmer used to bring a baseball bat into meetings, as a way to make sure that everybody gets his point.
“Steve sometimes walks down the hallways bouncing a basketball. Or if he’s having a really good day he’s swinging a baseball bat. Do you think that sends a signal? Sometimes he brings it with him into the conference room. Is it symbolic? Maybe. I don’t know. I would never do that. For me it doesn’t send the right message. The man has some nervous energy and that’s how he gets rid of it. Have I heard him yelling? Yeah, I have,” he said.
Well, Steve Ballmer is no longer Microsoft’s CEO and Satya Nadella clearly seems to be the kind of guy that’s really listening to what you’re saying, so baseball bats aren’t definitely included in his arsenal.
If you’re wondering, Microsoft has more than 90,000 employees worldwide and each and every one of them receives a free Surface tablet and a Windows Phone to try out the company’s latest offering in the tablet and mobile phone markets.