■比尔·盖茨:
■■如何管理世界上最大的软件公司|
MICROSOFT CORPORATION|
微软公司无疑是世界上聪明人云集的地方.............
那么，比尔·盖茨靠什么对这些员工进行有效的管理呢？
■□答案：？
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About Microsoft Corporation
MS is an American multinational computer technology corporation with 79,000
employees in 102 countries and global annual revenue of US $51.12 billion as of
2007.It develops, manufactures, licenses and supports a wide range of software
products for computing devices.Headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA, its
best selling products are the Microsoft Windows operating system and the
Microsoft Office suite of productivity software. These products have prominent
positions in the desktop computer market,with market share estimates as high as
90% or more as of 2003 for Microsoft Office and 2006 for Microsoft Windows. One
of Bill Gates' key visions is "to get a workstation running our software onto
every desk and eventually in every home".Founded to develop and sell BASIC
interpreters for the Altair 8800, Microsoft rose to dominate the home computer
operating system market with MS-DOS in the mid-1980s. The company released an
initial public offering (IPO) in the stock market, which, due to the ensuing
rise of the stock price, has made four billionaires and an estimated 12,000
millionaires from Microsoft employees.Throughout its history the company has
been the target of criticism for various reasons,including monopolistic business
practices—both the U.S. Justice Department and the European Commission, among
others,brought Microsoft to court for antitrust violations and software bundling.
Microsoft has footholds in other markets besides operating systems and office
suites, with assets such as the MSNBC cable television network, the MSN Internet
portal,and the Microsoft Encarta multimedia encyclopedia. The company also markets
both computer hardware products such as the Microsoft mouse and home entertainment
products such as the Xbox, Xbox 360,Zune and MSN TV.Known for what is generally
described as a developer-centric business culture, Microsoft has historically
given customer support over Usenet newsgroups and the World Wide Web, and awards
Microsoft MVP status to volunteers who are deemed helpful in assisting the
company's customers.The company's official website is one of the most visited on
the Internet, receiving more than 2.4 million unique page views per day according
to Alexa.com, who ranked the site 18th amongst all websites for traffic rank on
September 12, 2007.
Information of Micosoft from website http://en.wikipedia.org/
■□答案：人格化管理。
微软公司的人格化管理
等级隔阂是人与人之间关系难以融洽的一大原因，这种在不同等级间形成的思想隔阂是很难
消除的。它的存在妨碍了人们间的相互沟通，不利于企业职工凝聚力的增强，为共同的事业
齐心努力。因此，在管理工作中，应尽可能地消除由此产生的影响。微软公司在内部人员关
系的处理上正是这样做的。
平等的办公室。只要是微软公司的职工，都有自己的办公室或房间。每个办公室都是相对隔
开的，有自己的门和可以眺望外面的窗户；每个办公室的面积大小都差不多，即使董事长
比尔·盖茨的办公室也比别人大不了多少。对自己的办公室，每个人享有绝对的自主权，可
以自己装饰和布置，任何人都无权干涉。至于办公室的位置也不是上面硬性安排的，而是由
职工自己挑选的，如果某一办公室有几个人选择，可通过抽签决定。另外，如果谁对第一次
选择不满意，可以下次再选，直到满意为止。公司为充分尊重每个人的隐私权，每个办公室
都安装了可随手关闭的门。微软公司的这种做法与其他公司不同，它使职工们感到很有意思，
而且工作起来心情舒畅。
无等级划分的停车场。在微软公司，各办公楼前都有停车场，这些停车场是没什么等级划分
的，不管是比尔·盖茨还是一般职工，谁先来谁就先选择地方停车，没有职位高低之分。
但是，即使如此，比尔·盖茨也从未因找不到停车的地方而苦恼过，因为每天他比任何人来
得都早。
没有时钟的办公大楼也是微软公司与众不同的一个特点。微软西雅图市总部办公大楼是用简
易的方法建造的，主要材料是玻璃和钢材。办公大楼的地面上铺着地毯，房顶上散发着柔和
的灯光，但让人奇怪的是整座办公大楼内看不到一个钟表，大家凭良心上下班，加班多少也
是自愿的。美国西雅图市的天气是阴多晴少。只要一出太阳且风和日丽，员工们可自由自在
地在外面散心。
办公楼内到处可见高脚凳。微软公司除为职工免费提供各种饮料之外，在公司内部，可用于
办公的高脚凳到处可见，其目的在于方便公司职工不拘形式地在任何地点办公。当然，这种
考虑也离不开软件产品开发行业的生产特点。
微软公司就是靠别出心裁的人格化管理，吸引了一大批富有创造力的人才到微软公司工作，
并通过营造独特的文化氛围，使这些人才心甘情愿地留在微软。
照片中的建筑物位于微软园区的中间位置，目前，比尔·盖茨就在这个建筑物的顶层办公。
这栋建筑物的右边是SQL Server产品组的楼，前面是Office产品组的楼，左边是Windows产
品组的楼。可以说，微软最赚钱，最核心的几个产品都集中在这周围了。
诺贝尔奖评委：科学家与“比尔.盖茨”同样重要
来华访问的诺贝尔生理和医学奖评审委员贝蒂尔·弗瑞德霍尔姆２４日在京表示：中国需要
能够摘取诺贝尔奖的科学家，也需要“比尔·盖茨”式的优秀企业家。
就在不久前，诺贝尔物理奖获得者杨振宁曾表示：以中国目前的国情来看，最需要的是任天
堂和盖茨这类会赚钱的人才，拿一两个诺贝尔奖并没有什么用处。弗瑞德霍尔姆似乎并不赞
同这种说法，他说：“中国需要‘比尔·盖茨’为国家创造财富，也需要诺贝尔奖科学家引
领国家的科技发展。这二者对于国家的发展同样重要。”
瑞典皇家工学院院长安德斯·弗洛德斯特伦将对科学家和“比尔·盖茨”的比较引申到国家
对基础研究和应用研究的投入问题上。他说，应用研究往往可以直接转化为经济效益，因此
对于国家决策者来说，如何权衡在基础研究和应用研究中的投入是件很头疼的事情，因为能
够投入的资源毕竟是有限的。
“中国政府制定了长期的科技发展规划，并且一直保持稳定的投入，这是十分有益的做法”
他说.中国的“十一五”规划提出要把科技进步和创新作为中国经济社会发展的重要推动力，
努力建设创新型国家，在人才、资金、创新服务方面作出了远景规划。在２００６年，中国
政府将投入７１６亿元力促自主创新，比２００５年增加１１５,２６亿元，增长１９.２％。
弗洛德斯特伦指出,中国政府在保持科技投入持续增长的同时,应重视缩小地区发展的不平衡。
中国的东部发展迅猛,但是西部就和东部仍存在很多差距.西部有很多的资源和人才尚待挖掘。
诺贝尔化学奖评审委员斯文·利丁指出，科学家与企业家并不对立，在一个有着非常多优秀
企业家的国家，同样可以有很好的科学家、诗人和音乐家。诺贝尔本人就是一名企业家，但
这并不妨碍他成为一位为人类社会进步做出重要贡献的伟大的科学家。
“重要的是，”他说：“中国应该在教育中强调对青年求知欲的培养，使他们好学好问，不
循规蹈矩，不断突破前人的成果和发现.” 诺贝尔奖化学奖评审委员斯文·里丁强调，世界
各国都在积极发展以研究为导向的高等教育体系，培养有利于国家发展的青年人才。政府的
钱要用在“刀刃”上，要建设一批知名的大学，鼓励本土人才到海外深造并归国工作，同时
吸引海外人才，这样才能加快知识的流通和更新。
弗洛德斯特伦强调，中国应鼓励青年投入基础科学研究，因为基础科学研究是中国实现建设
创新型国家的根本。他还建议中国大学增设更多基础研究项目，消除老师、学生的等级差别，
鼓励学生直接参与到研究实践中去。
微软的成功的秘密
引言
就像吉姆·柯林斯（Jim Collins）在《基业长青（Built to Last）》里所讲的那样，一家
公司是否能取得成功，最重要的不在于该公司有多少产品或者有多少出色的营销战略，而是
在于该公司是否有可延续的文化。时代在发展，公司的产品、目标乃至使命都会发生变化，
但不应改变的是公司赖以持续发展的企业文化、价值观，是公司重视人才、发掘人才和培养
人才的长远战略——这才是一家公司的成功之道。
几年前，作为微软公司的高级管理人员，我与许多中国企业的管理者做了面对面的交流。在
交流中我发现，不少管理者没有认识到微软公司之所以取得成功的真正原因。他们或者认为
微软是因为开发出了出色的产品而取得了成功，或者认为微软是因为投入了大量的资金，建
设了庞大的研发团队而取得了成功。其实，这些都只是对微软成功原因的片面认识。
为了让更多的人能清楚地了解微软成功背后的真正“秘诀”，为了让更多的中国企业管理者
重视企业文化和人才战略的建设，我特意撰写了这篇长文。正如后来我又针对以Google公司
为代表的互联网企业的创新和文化发表过《GOOGLE的成功之道 ——引领“网络生存”的新
型创新》一文（该文亦被收入本书）那样，写作此类文章的初衷并不是要向世人宣扬某些成
功的公司是如何如何地伟大，或简单地推荐类似的创新模式，而是试图发掘出那些在微软、
Google等企业的成功道路上起过关键作用的，可以为中国企业学习和借鉴的要素来，特别是
那些与企业文化和创新理念相关的思想和方法——因为对于中国高科技企业提高自身实力来
说，这些思想和方法才是最有借鉴意义的。因此,我专门在本文后增加了“寄语中国软件业”
一段，用提纲挈领的方式向中国软件业的同行提出了我自己的想法和建议。
衷心祝愿中国所有的高科技企业能在企业管理、企业文化建设和人才战略上更上一层楼，希
望有越来越多的中国企业可以跻身于世界一流的行列。作为全球最成功的企业之一，微软公
司在过去的二十多年里为全世界数以亿计的用户提供了许多优秀的软件产品，并以自己的实
践经历揭示了软件产业内蕴藏的旺盛生命力和巨大商业价值。微软公司目前的市值是3100亿
美元。在2005财政年度里，微软公司的销售收入将达约400亿美元，实现利润165亿美元。去
年派发330亿美元的股息后，微软公司仍拥有350亿美元的现金储备。
我认为，微软不断走向成功的原因主要有四点,（1）技术：用创新的精神把握技术发展的脉
搏，以合理的研发体系保证企业的效率，以执著的态度专注于软件业的发展；（2） 领导艺
术：最高决策者拥有卓越的才识、明确的分工和完美的合作.（3）人才：多渠道发现和聘用
人才，有效的人才筛选机制，对人才的持续培养以及知人善用；（4）企业文化：不惧挑战、
自我批评、灵活平等以及对客户负责的态度已经在微软形成了一种传统，并得到了制度化的
保证。下面，我将从这四个方面出发，分别介绍微软公司的运营和管理经验，希望对中国的
高新技术企业有所帮助。
技术：微软的希望之光
--与时俱进，不断创新
三四百年前，知识是在很长的时间里慢慢积累起来的。但自工业革命以来，科技的进步已经
不再是靠历史的积累，而更重要的是靠不断的创新。信息革命后，科技的成长往往会呈现出
指数增长的趋势。在信息技术方面，过去十年中人类获得的知识和经验毫无疑问已远远超过
了过去一百年的积累。
微软公司深深地理解,在这样的大环境中把握技术方向的重要性。当微软公司在早期的Basic
产品中获得成功后，开始投入DOS的研发。DOS成功后，微软立即将资金和人力投入到新技术
的研发中，并成功推出了Office系列软件产品。随后，微软又利用Office等软件获得的积累，
开始了Windows NT、Windows 2000、Windows XP等新一代操作系统的研发。当Internet浪潮
到来时，微软不失时机地跻身网络研发领域，并不断推出新的产品。今天，微软又把大量的
资源投入到“无缝计算”的核心方向，在发展MSN、移动软件、数字电视、XBOX、高可信度
计算、自然用户界面等方面不断创新。
在技术浪潮的推动下，微软公司总是把技术研发摆在关键地位，并将技术看作公司惟一可长
期延续的财富和优势。例如，微软在2005财政年在研发领域投入大约85亿美元，超过其营业
额的五分之一，这个比例在“世界财富500强”的企业中居首位。
--运筹帷幄的“首席架构师”
要重视技术，企业就必须要有一个最高的技术决策者。现在，微软公司的这个决策者就是比
尔.盖茨，微软的“首席架构师”。设立这个特殊职位是因为，无论在微软还是在其他公司，
首席执行官根本没有时间管技术，而很多所谓的“首席技术官”却都是没有实权的科学家，
决定不了技术发展方向。但是，在一个技术主导的行业里，一个企业没有技术方向的最高决
策者是不行的。
作为首席架构师，比尔·盖茨的工作是制定公司的长期技术路线图，并确认公司每一个行政
部门的科研计划是互补而不是重叠的。因此，他要求公司的每一个产品和技术部门都向他做
技术汇报，这些汇报大多是“头脑风暴”式的讨论会议。做这样的汇报，除了可以得到比尔.
盖茨的回馈之外，每个项目团队还可以在准备过程中受益匪浅。因为，项目团队为了准备回
答比尔可能问到的各种问题，必须在报告前彻底调研市场、技术、竞争对手等信息，也因此
避免了闭门造车的风险。
另外，比尔?盖茨每年都会抽两段时间，用“闭关”的方式独自思考问题,这被称为比尔·盖
茨的“思考周”。在“思考周”之前，盖茨会要求各部门精英在他们个人的专长领域给他提
供大量阅读材料和技术建议.在“思考周”里,盖茨通常的工作方式是埋头阅读经过筛选的材
料和技术建议,记下自己的想法,静静思考，最终做出一些对公司技术战略有较大影响的重要
决定。
--不断完善的研发机制
为了更快、更好地将未来的技术变成现实中的软件产品,微软公司不但在技术研发上投入了大
量资源，而且建立了完善的技术管理制度.比尔·盖茨成立了“卓越工程”部门，负责确认公
司的研发机制是有活力的，开发过程是最有效率的，开发出的软件是安全可靠的,并避免不同
部门之间的重叠开发.这个部门具有管理公司工程流程的实权，这样才能带领整个公司走在软
件业的前端。
微软公司对技术研发的投入是坚定不移的.微软很早就创立了它著名的基础研究机构（例如微
软亚洲研究院）,并充分认识到，科学研究和产品开发工作间存在着巨大的差异。研究工作鼓
励冒险不惧怕失败,鼓励研究者拥有长远的目标和规划，做长期投资；而产品开发工作则更多
地考虑眼前的利益,其目的只有一个，就是满足客户的需求。研究机构发展科技，生产部门制
造产品，研究人员通常都是“思想家”,而产品开发人员更多的是“实践家”。这两类工作和
两种技术人员之间的差别非常明显,如果我们希望更好地促进研究成果向实际产品的转移，就
必须在保持它们各自特色的基础上,为它们的协作创造良好的环境和条件。
为了促进研究成果的转移，微软鼓励研究人员充当新技术的推销者,向产品部门推销科技成果，
同时也鼓励产品部门把用户需求和产业发展态势及时反馈给研究部门。比尔'盖茨最近在一次
演讲中说，微软公司要做两类事情，一类是满足用户现在的需求,另外一类是满足用户未来的
需求。这表明，微软公司已经将科研和开发视作了公司发展的两条主线,事实上，微软既为两
类不同的机构制定了共同的目标，建立了沟通渠道,也严格划清了二者的界限，为不同类型的
机构制定了不同的考评制度.同时，微软也允许并鼓励人才在两类机构间转移和流动。现在，
微软研究院每年都会向产品部门输出大量科研成果,这些成果大多都被应用到了微软公司各类
成功的软件产品上。
--专注于最擅长的软件业务
微软公司是一家专注于软件技术和软件产品研发的公司.虽然微软公司也投资于MSN等内容服务
和XBOX等硬件产品，这些产品的最终目的还是推进软件和软件平台.微软公司的主体始终是软
件，微软绝大部分销售收入也是由软件创造的。微软公司对自己的定位是，在信息产业的整个
生态系统中，专注于扮演纯粹的软件提供商的角色.其他的角色由戴尔、HP、Accenture等公司
扮演。只有这样，微软才能把自己的专长做到最好，以保持在软件领域的领先地位。
“专注”对公司很重要，因为一个公司的成功也来源于管理者或领导者的注意力。许多公司的
领导者可能会因为急于发展，带领公司向多个不同的方向发展.比如,某些大型IT企业在积累了
一定财富后就会把资金投入到硬件, 服务,或甚至房地产,传媒等其他行业中。这么做就分散了
公司的注意力,而公司的领导者也不见得有能力或激情来管理这些新开创的企业.但微软公司的
领导层总是把注意力放在七个基础的商业部门的软件业务.这七个部门都以开发软件为己任,以
软件平台为核心,以比尔·盖茨为总架构师。这样，七个部门的领 导者才能有共同的语言、共
同的管理方式,共同对软件的专注与热情,不必分心于自己不擅长或没兴趣的事情，才能如鱼得
水，在微软发挥个人的潜力。
--领导：微软的成功之源
微软公司的成功,在很大程度上得益于微软公司拥有两位杰出的领导人：比尔·盖茨和史蒂夫.
鲍尔默。在2000年之前，微软惟一的领导者是比尔。2000年1月,为了更好地把握技术方向，比
尔把首席执行官的工作交给了史蒂夫，自己做“董事长兼首席架构师”。后来，史蒂夫又把公
司分为七大商业部门，每一个部门负责一系列的产品和用户（例如：大企业部门负责Windows、
SQL Server等服务器软件和工具；家庭娱乐部门负责XBOX、电视软件平台和游戏软件等）。从
2000年以来，比尔和史蒂夫成为最佳搭档，两人带领七个部门在经济风暴中稳定成长，堪称公
司成功最大的理由之一。
(1)首席架构师比尔·盖茨
比尔·盖茨是微软公司的技术带头人。他善于通过自己的远见卓识,在技术上把握公司的发展方向，
不断为公司的新产品研发制定战略目标。通过前面介绍的“思考周”、“头脑风暴会议”等形式，
比尔·盖茨在全公司范围内集思广益，收集最新的信息，以保证技术决策的正确性和前瞻性。
比尔的另一项工作是协调公司软件的投资，并避免七大商业部门的重叠投资。他会深入了解每一项
重要技术，把开发任务交给某一个部门，并要求该部门把另外六个部门当做重要客户，同时也要求
其他六个部门不要重叠投资。例如，虽然七个部门都需要语音技术，但是比尔却该技术的开发任务
交给了我的部门。这样的安排让我不用担心公司内部的竞争，而且，我所在团队里的员工也会因为
自己的产品能影响到其他各部门的产品而更有成就感。
比尔·盖茨还要负责决定全公司七大商业部门在各个研发方向上的技术资源分配情况。大多数公司
可能会把最多的资源分配在最赚钱的部门里。但微软并不是这样做的。例如，微软公司负责Office
产品研发的部门人数并不很多，相反，服务器和工具部门却拥有最多的技术员工。这主要是因为，
微软在后台服务领域面临着更加激烈的市场竞争，需要投入更多的资源，以尽快开发出领先于IBM、
Sun等竞争对手的重量级产品。微软公司在移动产品部门投入大量资源，也是因为比尔·盖茨看好
移动通信领域的巨大市场前景。因为微软公司内的七大商业部门并不是完全独立的，比尔·盖茨就
可以根据自己对技术方向的判断，把有限的资源调配给最具有发展潜力或竞争最激烈的技术领域。
(2)首席执行官史蒂夫·鲍尔默
史蒂夫.鲍尔默是微软公司的头号啦啦队长。他是一个非常有激情的人，说话声音很大，非常有力量，
而且很感性，很有穿透力。他是一个全能领导者，既有商业头脑，又有战略眼光，能鼓舞士气，还
富有激情，精通技术。微软公司的人常说，史蒂夫给下级做考评的时候，就像在“奥数班”一样，
要求甚高而不允犯错。当下级把总结报告提交上去后，史蒂夫只看一眼，就可以从中挑出几个乃至
十几个不恰当的地方。通过这样的考评,下级员工可以收获到非常多的经验和知识，可以在以后的工
作中做得更好。
当微软把全公司整合成七大商业部门之后，史蒂夫.鲍尔默适时地由前台退到了后台。他不再做具体
的管理者，而是转变成了七大部门主管的背后支持者。他不再做每件大事的最后决定人，而是支持
着七个部门主管的成长。他不再做一个最有煽动力的啦啦队长，而成为一个幕后的教练。史蒂夫支
持七大部门的主管放手施展自己的管理才华，而他自己则把更多的时间花在了公司的价值观和人才
建设上。
(3)最佳搭档
比尔·盖茨和史蒂夫.鲍尔默是微软公司最重要的两个人。在我所经历过的高科技公司里，员工总是
喜爱抱怨公司的最上层领导，但是在微软，几乎所有员工都对比尔和史蒂夫无比钦佩。和他们共事
多年，我认为他们两个人都是非常有才华，能够集谦虚、勇敢和毅力于一身，勇于从失败中吸取教
训。他们二人最特别的三个优点是：
* 勇于改变、适应力强：比尔和史蒂夫都是适应能力很强的人，能够根据情况的变化及时调整自己的
工作角色和工作方式。他们两个人都在不断地学习，不断改进自己的工作。例如，比尔在演讲失败后，
勇于拜师学习演讲技巧；2000年时，为了企业更好地发展，比尔将首席执行官一职交给史蒂夫；设立
七大商业部门后，史蒂夫从啦啦队长转型成为幕后的教练……这些都是微软员工津津乐道的例子。
* 对公司充满热爱和激情：比尔和史蒂夫早已不是为了赚钱而工作，而是为了公司，为了用户，为了
享受激情和快乐而工作。他们很多年没有拿股票和认股权，把上亿的财富让给了员工。正因为他们对
公司的热情感染了所有的员工，微软才能汇集全公司所有人的智慧，共同为公司创造最大的价值。
* 彼此信任、相互支持：对微软来说最难得的是，比尔和史蒂夫两人百分之百地彼此信任，共同推动
微软公司向前发展，共同完成了2000年到今天完美的职位交接，共同负责创造公司的未来。他们之间
从未发生权力斗争、政治纠纷一类的问题。这在今天这个现实、自私的社会中是最难能可贵的事，也
是微软公司成功路上的佳话。
虽然比尔和史蒂夫都还年轻，精力旺盛，离退休的时间还早，但他们已经开始了接班人的培养工作。
这样，即使到了他们退休之后，微软公司也能延续他们的管理风格和管理理念，并不断取得成功。
人才：微软的立业之本
微软公司把重视人才的管理理念视为公司的核心财富。在信息时代里，人才的价值尤为重要。在工业
时代里，一个优秀技工和一个普通技工的效率差异可能是30%，但在信息时代里，一个高级程序员和
一个普通程序员的效率差异可能高达10倍以上。例如，微软公司有一位编程高手，一次，他对一位经
理说，你们的产品里还缺少一种重要的功能。那位经理说，我也想做这个功能，但至少要50个人半年
时间，现在已经来不及了。编程高手什么也没说就走了，第二个星期开会时，他对那位经理说，你要
的功能我已经帮你做完了。因为这样一位编程高手可能知道很多其他程序员所不知道的解决问题的捷
径，他在一个星期里就能做完50个人半年的工作。可见，这样的人才对公司来讲是有特殊意义的，公
司必须善于追踪、挖掘、面试、聘请、评估、培养、重视和留住这样的人才，而且要把人才相关的工
作视为公司最重要的任务之一。
(1)求贤若渴：追踪和挖掘人才
重视人才的一个最直接的体现就是管理者要善于雇佣高水平的人才，而微软公司的各级管理者都非常
善于发现和雇佣人才，无论对方是大师级的人才，还是应届大学毕业生或已离开公司的人。
例如，微软公司最重要的领导和大师 Jim Allchin目前在微软公司负责平台产品研发。当年，比尔·
盖茨想请他加入微软的时候，通过朋友多次联系他，Jim Allchin都置之不理。后来，经过比尔再三
邀请，Jim终于答应来面试。结果，Jim一见到比尔就直接了当地说，微软的软件是世界最烂的，实在
不懂比尔请他来做什么。比尔·盖茨不但不介意，反而对他说，正是因为微软的软件存在各种缺陷，
微软才需要你这样的人才。比尔·盖茨的虚怀若谷感动了Jim Allchin，终于把他请到了微软公司。
再例如，IBM著名的深蓝计算机的设计者许峰雄博士此前也加盟了微软公司。许峰雄博士是我的好朋友，
我追踪他至少五年了。逢年过节时，我总会给许峰雄博士打电话，聊一聊他的近况，探听一下他的想
法。年复一年，我终于打动了许峰雄博士，有幸邀请他到微软来工作。虽然他最后加入的不是我的团
队，但是我一样引以为豪。在微软，许多人都像我一样主动从事发现人才、跟踪人才和吸引人才的工
作。
除了努力挖掘、追踪许峰雄、Jim Allchin这样的大师之外，微软也非常善于直接从学校雇佣刚毕业的
大学生。每年我都会去两三个大学亲自面试最优秀的应届毕业生。我们曾经做过一个统计，直接从学
校雇佣的人才，在总体表现上要优于从社会雇佣的更有经验的人才。我们也发现，今天微软大部分的
副总裁都是在大学毕业后直接进入微软公司的。直接从学校雇佣和培养人才有很多好处：人才可塑性
强，对公司忠诚度更高，最愿意全力以赴地办事，不怕风险，愿意积累多部门的经验。
此外，微软公司一直追踪着离开公司的优秀员工。我们并不认为员工跳槽是一件坏事。对于离开公司
的优秀员工，微软会认真分析该员工离开公司的原因，以便进一步改进工作。同时，微软也会对他们
离职后的工作情况进行追踪，准备在合适的时间再把他们请回微软。这种鼓励人才流动的机制可以更
好地激发人才的积极性，可以真正得到员工的信任和支持。
(2)任人唯贤：面试和聘请人才
微软的面试机制是众所周知的。微软对于面试采取了严谨的态度，采用精心设计的面试流程。每一个
申请者的面试都有多位微软员工参加，每一位参加面试的员工都事先分配好面试时的任务。除了确认
专业知识和经验之外，我们也会出很多题目来测试申请者的独立思考能力及面对难关时的表现。我们
不只要雇佣那些技术上的专家，还应当雇佣聪明、学习能力强、有团队精神的人。所以，面试时对这
些方面也要深入地询问。每一次面试后，面试者都会把他的意见和下面应该考核的问题交给后续的面
试者。最后，只有得到绝大多数参与面试者的同意，并在明察暗访所得的结果令我们满意时，微软才
会聘用该申请者。
任人唯贤是微软公司一贯遵循的用人理念。我们深信两句话：（1）一流的人雇佣一流的人，二流的人
雇佣三流的人。因此，当一个队伍雇用第一个二流的人的时候，就是它走下坡路的时候。（2）雇佣人
才应以提高组织当前的整体素质为标准。我们必须要求每一个新雇员的素质都超过整个团队的平均水
平，以此来提升团队的平均素质，而不是降低团队的素质。所以，微软公司的管理者总是希望雇佣到
比自己强的人才。如果你雇佣的人才最终能成为你的上司，你不但不应当感到羞愧，而应该感到无比
的自豪。
(3)人尽其才：评估和培养人才
雇用员工之后，公司会定期对人才状况进行评估和分析。每年，史蒂夫?鲍尔默都会要求七大商业部门
的管理者把本部门最杰出的50到150位人才的详细情况报告上来，史蒂夫把总共约600人的资料装订成
一本独特的《人才报告》，然后花上整整两星期的时间来评估这些人才的发展前景，每天还会邀请这
些人中的20位共进晚餐，以进一步了解这些人才。这样的工作可以为高级人才在公司内的发展设计最
好的路径，也可以在公司有空缺职位的时候迅速找到合适的人选。史蒂夫期望自己认识这600人中的每
一位。他把这本书放在他床前，每晚睡前都会认真地读几页这本书。
微软深信“人尽其才”，所以设计了“双轨道”机制，既允许优秀员工在管理轨道上发展，也允许他
们根据自己的意愿，在技术轨道上发展。在每个轨道上，微软为员工提供的机会是平等的，员工并不
一定非要做管理工作才能促进个人事业的发展。在微软，一个最高级别的工程师可能比副总裁还要资
深。这样的“双轨道”政策从制度上保证了人才发展道路的多样性，有利于吸引人才和留住人才。
微软公司鼓励公司内部人才的流动和发展。各级管理者都遵循人尽其材的方式给每一个优秀的人才发
展的空间。各级管理者也深深理解“最优秀的人不属于我，而属于公司”，他们不会把人才据为己有，
而是给最优秀的人才更好的发展机会，无论这个机会是不是由自己所管理的机构提供的。在这样的制
度下，优秀的人才大多能找到适合自己的发展道路。
图为微软未来之家的娱乐厅，主控电脑能够与主人对话，按照主人的需要自动调整灯光和音响，在电
子墙面上播放选择的节目。微软未来之家位于美国华盛顿州雷德蒙市微软公司总部园区内，是微软公
司专门展示信息技术发展概念的展览馆。它以一个虚拟的家庭为背景，展示未来5到10年后的信息化
生活方式。未来之家内的门厅、会客室、厨房、睡室等每个房间都在主控电脑的控制之下，嵌入了最
新的、甚至是还处于雏形状态的下一代人机界面、三维图像等技术。
Bill Gates Speech at Harvard
Text of the speech given by Microsoft chairman Bill Gates at Harvard University on June
7, 2007.President Bok, former President Rudenstine, incoming President Faust, members of
the Harvard Corporation and the Board of Overseers, members of the faculty, parents, and
especially, the graduates:I've been waiting more than 30 years to say this: "Dad,
I always told you I'd come back and get my degree." I want to thank Harvard for this
timely honour. I'll be changing my job next year ... and it will be nice to finally have
a college degree on my resume.
I applaud the graduates today for taking a much more direct route to your degrees. For my
part, I'm just happy that the Crimson has called me "Harvard's most successful dropout."
I guess that makes me valedictorian of my own special class ... I did the best of everyone
who failed.But I also want to be recognised as the guy who got Steve Ballmer to drop out
of business school. I'm a bad influence. That's why I was invited to speak at your
graduation. If I had spoken at your orientation, fewer of you might be here today.
Harvard was just a phenomenal experience for me. Academic life was fascinating. I used to
sit in on lots of classes I hadn't even signed up for. And dorm life was terrific. I lived
up at Radcliffe, in Currier House. There were always lots of people in my dorm room late
at night discussing things, because everyone knew I didn't worry about getting up in the
morning. That's how I came to be the leader of the anti-social group. We clung to each
other as a way of validating our rejection of all those social people.Radcliffe was a
great place to live. There were more women up there, and most of the guys were
science-math types. That combination offered me the best odds, if you know what I mean.
This is where I learned the sad lesson that improving your odds doesn't guarantee success.
One of my biggest memories of Harvard came in January 1975, when I made a call from
Currier House to a company in Albuquerque that had begun making the world's first personal
computers. I offered to sell them software.I worried that they would realise I was just a
student in a dorm and hang up on me. Instead they said: "We're not quite ready, come see
us in a month," which was a good thing, because we hadn't written the software yet. From
that moment, I worked day and night on this little extra credit project that marked the
end of my college education and the beginning of a remarkable journey with Microsoft.
What I remember above all about Harvard was being in the midst of so much energy and
intelligence. It could be exhilarating, intimidating, sometimes even discouraging, but
always challenging. It was an amazing privilege - and though I left early,
I was transformed by my years at Harvard, the friendships I made, and the ideas I
worked on.
But taking a serious look back ... I do have one big regret.I left Harvard with no real
awareness of the awful inequities in the world - the appalling disparities of health, and
wealth, and opportunity that condemn millions of people to lives of despair.I learned a
lot here at Harvard about new ideas in economics and politics. I got great exposure to
the advances being made in the sciences.
But humanity's greatest advances are not in its discoveries - but in how those discoveries
are applied to reduce inequity. Whether through democracy, strong public education,
quality health care, or broad economic opportunity - reducing inequity is the highest
human achievement.
I left campus knowing little about the millions of young people cheated out of educational
opportunities here in this country. And I knew nothing about the millions of people living
in unspeakable poverty and disease in developing countries.
It took me decades to find out.You graduates came to Harvard at a different time. You know
more about the world's inequities than the classes that came before. In your years here, I
hope you've had a chance to think about how - in this age of accelerating technology - we
can finally take on these inequities, and we can solve them.Imagine, just for the sake of
discussion, that you had a few hours a week and a few dollars a month to donate to a cause
- and you wanted to spend that time and money where it would have the greatest impact in
saving and improving lives. Where would you spend it?
For Melinda and for me, the challenge is the same: how can we do the most good for the
greatest number with the resources we have.During our discussions on this question, Melinda
and I read an article about the millions of children who were dying every year in poor
countries from diseases that we had long ago made harmless in this country. Measles, malaria,
pneumonia, hepatitis B, yellow fever. One disease I had never even heard of, rotavirus, was
killing half a million kids each year - none of them in the United States.
We were shocked. We had just assumed that if millions of children were dying and they could
be saved, the world would make it a priority to discover and deliver the medicines to save
them. But it did not. For under a dollar, there were interventions that could save lives
that just weren't being delivered.If you believe that every life has equal value, it's
revolting to learn that some lives are seen as worth saving and others are not. We said to
ourselves: "This can't be true. But if it is true, it deserves to be the priority of our
giving."
So we began our work in the same way anyone here would begin it. We asked: "How could the
world let these children die?"The answer is simple, and harsh. The market did not reward
saving the lives of these children, and governments did not subsidise it. So the children
died because their mothers and their fathers had no power in the market and no voice in the
system.But you and I have both.We can make market forces work better for the poor if we can
develop a more creative capitalism - if we can stretch the reach of market forces so that
more people can make a profit, or at least make a living, serving people who are suffering
from the worst inequities. We also can press governments around the world to spend taxpayer
money in ways that better reflect the values of the people who pay the taxes.
If we can find approaches that meet the needs of the poor in ways that generate profits for
business and votes for politicians, we will have found a sustainable way to reduce inequity
in the world. This task is open-ended. It can never be finished. But a conscious effort to
answer this challenge will change the world.
I am optimistic that we can do this, but I talk to skeptics who claim there is no hope.
They say: "Inequity has been with us since the beginning, and will be with us till the
end - because people just ... don't ... care." I completely disagree.
I believe we have more caring than we know what to do with.All of us here in this Yard, at
one time or another, have seen human tragedies that broke our hearts, and yet we did
nothing - not because we didn't care, but because we didn't know what to do. If we had
known how to help, we would have acted.
The barrier to change is not too little caring; it is too much complexity.To turn caring
into action, we need to see a problem, see a solution, and see the impact. But complexity
blocks all three steps.Even with the advent of the Internet and 24-hour news, it is still
a complex enterprise to get people to truly see the problems. When an airplane crashes,
officials immediately call a press conference. They promise to investigate, determine the
cause, and prevent similar crashes in the future.But if the officials were brutally honest,
they would say: "Of all the people in the world who died today from preventable causes,
one half of one percent of them were on this plane. We're determined to do everything
possible to solve the problem that took the lives of the one half of one percent."
The bigger problem is not the plane crash, but the millions of preventable deaths.We don't
read much about these deaths. The media covers what's new - and millions of people dying
is nothing new. So it stays in the background, where it's easier to ignore. But even when
we do see it or read about it, it's difficult to keep our eyes on the problem. It's hard to
look at suffering if the situation is so complex that we don't know how to help. And so we
look away.
If we can really see a problem, which is the first step, we come to the second step:
cutting through the complexity to find a solution.Finding solutions is essential if we want
to make the most of our caring.If we have clear and proven answers anytime an organization
or individual asks "How can I help?," then we can get action - and we can make sure that
none of the caring in the world is wasted. But complexity makes it hard to mark a path of
action for everyone who cares - and that makes it hard for their caring to matter.Cutting
through complexity to find a solution runs through four predictable stages: determine a
goal, find the highest-leverage approach, discover the ideal technology for that approach,
and in the meantime, make the smartest application of the technology that you already
have - whether it's something sophisticated, like a drug, or something simpler, like a bed
net.
The AIDS epidemic offers an example. The broad goal, of course, is to end the disease. The
highest-leverage approach is prevention. The ideal technology would be a vaccine that gives
lifetime immunity with a single dose. So governments, drug companies, and foundations fund
vaccine research. But their work is likely to take more than a decade, so in the meantime,
we have to work with what we have in hand - and the best prevention approach we have now
is getting people to avoid risky behaviour.
Pursuing that goal starts the four-step cycle again. This is the pattern. The crucial thing
is to never stop thinking and working - and never do what we did with malaria and
tuberculosis in the 20th century - which is to surrender to complexity and quit.The final
step - after seeing the problem and finding an approach - is to measure the impact of your
work and share your successes and failures so that others learn from your efforts.You have
to have the statistics,of course. You have to be able to show that a program is vaccinating
millions more children. You have to be able to show a decline in the number of children
dying from these diseases. This is essential not just to improve the program, but also to
help draw more investment from business and government.
But if you want to inspire people to participate, you have to show more than numbers; you
have to convey the human impact of the work - so people can feel what saving a life means
to the families affected.I remember going to Davos some years back and sitting on a global
health panel that was discussing ways to save millions of lives. Millions! Think of the
thrill of saving just one person's life - then multiply that by millions. ... Yet this was
the most boring panel I've ever been on - ever. So boring even I couldn't bear it.What made
that experience especially striking was that I had just come from an event where we were
introducing version 13 of some piece of software, and we had people jumping and shouting
with excitement. I love getting people excited about software - but why can't we generate
even more excitement for saving lives?
You can't get people excited unless you can help them see and feel the impact. And how you
do that - is a complex question.Still, I'm optimistic. Yes, inequity has been with us
forever, but the new tools we have to cut through complexity have not been with us forever.
They are new - they can help us make the most of our caring - and that's why the future
can be different from the past.The defining and ongoing innovations of this age -
biotechnology, the computer, the Internet - give us a chance we've never had before to end
extreme poverty and end death from preventable disease.
Sixty years ago, George Marshall came to this commencement and announced a plan to assist
the nations of post-war Europe. He said: "I think one difficulty is that the problem is
one of such enormous complexity that the very mass of facts presented to the public by
press and radio make it exceedingly difficult for the man in the street to reach a clear
appraisement of the situation. It is virtually impossible at this distance to grasp at all
the real significance of the situation."
Thirty years after Marshall made his address, as my class graduated without me, technology
was emerging that would make the world smaller, more open, more visible, less distant.The
emergence of low-cost personal computers gave rise to a powerful network that has
transformed opportunities for learning and communicating.The magical thing about this
network is not just that it collapses distance and makes everyone your neighbor. It also
dramatically increases the number of brilliant minds we can have working together on the
same problem - and that scales up the rate of innovation to a staggering degree.At the same
time, for every person in the world who has access to this technology, five people don't.
That means many creative minds are left out of this discussion -- smart people with
practical intelligence and relevant experience who don't have the technology to hone their
talents or contribute their ideas to the world.
We need as many people as possible to have access to this technology, because these
advances are triggering a revolution in what human beings can do for one another. They are
making it possible not just for national governments, but for universities, corporations,
smaller organisation, and even individuals to see problems, see approaches, and measure
the impact of their efforts to address the hunger, poverty, and desperation George Marshall
spoke of 60 years ago.Members of the Harvard Family: Here in the Yard is one of the great
collections of intellectual talent in the world.What for? There is no question that the
faculty, the alumni, the students, and the benefactors of Harvard have used their power to
improve the lives of people here and around the world. But can we do more? Can Harvard
dedicate its intellect to improving the lives of people who will never even hear its name?
Let me make a request of the deans and the professors - the intellectual leaders here at
Harvard: As you hire new faculty, award tenure, review curriculum, and determine degree
requirements, please ask yourselves:Should our best minds be dedicated to solving our
biggest problems?Should Harvard encourage its faculty to take on the world's worst
inequities? Should Harvard students learn about the depth of global poverty ... the
prevalence of world hunger ... the scarcity of clean water ...the girls kept out of school
... the children who die from diseases we can cure?Should the world's most privileged
people learn about the lives of the world's least privileged?These are not rhetorical
questions - you will answer with your policies.My mother, who was filled with pride the
day I was admitted here - never stopped pressing me to do more for others. A few days
before my wedding, she hosted a bridal event, at which she read aloud a letter about
marriage that she had written to Melinda. My mother was very ill with cancer at the time,
but she saw one more opportunity to deliver her message, and at the close of the letter
she said: "From those to whom much is given, much is expected."
When you consider what those of us here in this Yard have been given - in talent, privilege,
and opportunity - there is almost no limit to what the world has a right to expect from us.
In line with the promise of this age, I want to exhort each of the graduates here to take
on an issue - a complex problem, a deep inequity, and become a specialist on it. If you
make it the focus of your career, that would be phenomenal. But you don't have to do that
to make an impact. For a few hours every week, you can use the growing power of the
Internet to get informed, find others with the same interests, see the barriers, and find
ways to cut through them.
Don't let complexity stop you. Be activists. Take on the big inequities. It will be one of
the great experiences of your lives.You graduates are coming of age in an amazing time. As
you leave Harvard, you have technology that members of my class never had. You have
awareness of global inequity, which we did not have. And with that awareness, you likely
also have an informed conscience that will torment you if you abandon these people whose
lives you could change with very little effort. You have more than we had; you must start
sooner, and carry on longer.
Knowing what you know, how could you not?
And I hope you will come back here to Harvard 30 years from now and reflect on what you
have done with your talent and your energy. I hope you will judge yourselves not on your
professional accomplishments alone, but also on how well you have addressed the world's
deepest inequities ... on how well you treated people a world away who have nothing in
common with you but their humanity.Good luck.
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