Thanks Microsoft, yet bye!

Dec 3, 2017 13 Comments

Generation Y was still attracted to Microsoft. I grew up on Windows and played Xbox. Great signing bonus and a good first manager helped, and first year was amazing.

Yet, leaving the company this last Friday I reflected on the second year, and what happened, and what could make the company better, and will try to summarize on 3 things.

1) It is the manager! My first manager: 15 years veteran. The guy could code. Had interest in my career. I longed for the 1:1s! When the guy talked about old times, you learned from those stories. The guy knew his stuff, and yet was humble. Every 1:1 finished with him asking "Do you have feedback for me?" And when he left my team and later Microsoft, in just 1 year I experienced 3 terrible managers. Non-technical, wanting status reports all the time, always talking about themselves. Now, I dreaded the 1:1s.

2) Besides the managers, you want great peers. My first manager not only assembled a great team by hiring well and making everyone accountable: he actively removed the bad apples. After he left, team members were spread over bad managers, and we could all see how much he shielded us from non-sense. Now, we all saw incompetent people doing nothing, producing status reports that didn't match reality, and getting rewarded for that.

3) Leadership is not repeating catchphrases. I never saw another CEO besides Satya. Yet, my first manager would tell stories of how they had a founders's mentality, and passion. Meanwhile, Satya has no passion. The town hall meetings are pathetic. He clearly gets annoyed answering questions that don't come from Yammer. And who makes those Yammer questions?

I loved my project, and could see a lot of other interesting projects st Microsoft. Yet, the review system doesn't help: after my initial bonus I never got a review reward even close. The market is hot now, and I got far better offers outside. Not being stuck due to visas or family issues, I see no reason to stay at Microsoft under such bad managers. Don't want to learn what brought them up. Don't want to become them. Don't want to get people like my first manager out of the company. By the way: I saw he posted a position in the new company, applied and got in! Thanks Microsoft: I learned why people follow great managers!

comments

Want to comment? LOG IN or SIGN UP
TOP 13 Comments
  • Amazon
    Pinkpanthe

    Go to company page Amazon

    Pinkpanthe
    Can you summarize all this it's too long
    Dec 3, 2017 5
    • Well it's only about 70% of the reason people leave so yes there are obviously other reasons.
      Dec 4, 2017
    • Twitch
      EPBQ13

      Go to company page Twitch

      EPBQ13
      Once you've had good and bad managers it's very tough and scary to roll the dice when you like your current manage, even when the company sucks or your package needs an increase
      Dec 4, 2017
  • Expedia
    pfender

    Go to company page Expedia

    pfender
    I left my manager at Microsoft. He thought MS was the only company that matters to the world (i guess when undeserving people get good jobs that's what happens). He wanted all the engineers to be a microsoft engineer. According to him there are two types of engineers in the world, normal engineers and microsoft engineers.
    A year after i left, he too left and went to amazon. Wondering what his engineer theory is now a days.
    Dec 4, 2017 1
  • People leave managers! But if your company promotes incompetent managers then it ends up being that people are leaving the company. That is the Microsoft story.All the great caliber have left, leaving the company in the hands of really bad managers and devs who are constantly dick wresling by using office politics and by screwing over others. What you get is 1. Bad products that no one likes or wants to use. 2. More talent leaving the company.
    Dec 4, 2017 0
  • Amazon / Eng
    orNk12

    Go to company page Amazon Eng

    orNk12
    Totally agree. I am gonna leave AWS within several weeks also because of the bad manager! A bad manager can ruin 10 people.
    Dec 4, 2017 0
  • Microsoft / Product
    Karsa

    Go to company page Microsoft Product

    PRE
    startups
    Karsa
    /wave bye bye Felicia
    Dec 3, 2017 0