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Steve Ballmer Net Worth

Business / By / February 28, 2023

Steve Ballmer was the CEO of Microsoft between 2000 and 2014 when he replaced Bill Gates. Ballmer had joined Microsoft in the 1980s, rising to the role of president by 1998 before becoming CEO. Before he stepped down as CEO in 2014, he owned 4% of Microsoft stock, which at today’s market value are worth $83 billion.

History of Steve Ballmer at Microsoft

While Steve Ballmer is known for his crazy appearances on stage, which have deserved him a place as a tech meme.

And one of the worst prediciton in the business world, when he laughed about the iPhone.

In reality, Steve Ballmer has been with Microsoft since the very early days, rising from assistant to Bill Gates to CEO of the company.

As he highlighted in a Bloomberg Interview, Steve Ballmer really started by doing any tasks required at Microsoft, in the early days, from accounting to sales, until he became more and more valuable within the company, taking more critical roles.

As Bill Gates stepped down as CEO, he picked Ballmer as his successor. Ballmer would be the CEO of Microsoft between 2000-14 when he was succeeded by Satya Nadella.

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Bill Gates’s Net Worth

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Bill Gates was the co-founder and former CEO of Microsoft until 2000, and he was on the board of Microsoft until 2020. However, over the years, Gates sold various stakes in Microsoft and diversified away from it. As of 2019, Gates had a 1.34% stake in Microsoft, which he might still own, valued at about $25 billion.

Who Owns Microsoft

who-owns-microsoft
Major shareholders comprise co-founder Bill Gates, who stepped down from the company’s board in 2020, which is why these shares are no longer publicly reported. In 2019, Gates still owned a stake of 103 million stocks, which accounted for 1.34% of the company’s ownership (worth over $23 billion in January 2023). Other individual shareholders comprise Satya Nadella, the company’s CEO, Brad Smith (former president), Jean-Philippe Courtois (EVP), and Amy Hood (former CFO).

Microsoft Acquisitions

microsoft-acquisitions
Microsoft’s first acquisition in 1987, Forethought, was the developer of a presentation program that would later become PowerPoint. Since then, the company has made an average of six purchases every year, with fourteen of those exceeding the $1 billion mark. Today’s Microsoft business model spans various segments thanks to an acquisition strategy, which saw Microsoft involved in multiple acquisitions.

Microsoft Mission Statement

microsoft-mission-statement
Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. With over $110 billion in revenues in 2018, Office Products and Windows are still the main products. Yet the company also operates in Gaming (Xbox), Search Advertising (Bing), Hardware, LinkedIn, Cloud, and more.

Microsoft Business Model

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Microsoft has a diversified business model, spanning from Office to gaming (with Xbox), LinkedIn, search (with Bing), and enterprise services (with GitHub). In 2021, Microsoft made over $168 billion in revenues, of which over $52 billion came from Server products and cloud services, and $39.8 billion came from Office products and cloud services. Windows generated over $23 billion, Gaming generated over $15 billion, LinkedIn over $10 billion, and search advertising (through Bing) over $8.5 billion. 

Microsoft Revenue Per Employee

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In 2022, Microsoft generated $928,663 in revenue per employee post-mass layoffs, vs. $939,668 in 2021.

Microsoft SWOT Analysis

microsoft-swot-analysis
Founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Microsoft is a revolutionary company in the world of personal computing. The company designs and manufactures software, hardware, operating systems, apps, and devices. Indeed, Windows and Microsoft Office are staples in billions of homes worldwide.

Microsoft Organizational Structure

microsoft-organizational-structure
Microsoft has a product-type divisional organizational structure based on functions and engineering groups. As the company scaled over time, it also became more hierarchical while maintaining its hybrid approach between functions, engineering groups, and management.

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About The Author

Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
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