Alan Mulally is a savvy manager and a smart engineer. But Microsoft's big problem is vision, and that's where Mulally falls short.



From Computerworld:

Mulally certainly has plenty of pluses. He's an engineer who rose through the ranks at Boeing to become president and CEO of the Boeing Commercial Airplanes division. In 2006, he took over as CEO at struggling carmaker Ford, restructuring it and turning it around. Between the time he took over the company and the end of September of this year, Ford stock was up 103%.

He also appears to have the "soft skills" that have been sometimes lacking at Microsoft. Forrester Research analyst David Johnson told Computerworld: "Mulally has a long track record of building company cultures with a positive outlook and trust, infusing the organization with confidence and energy. He's seen as a cheerleader and advocate for employees -- an essential quality for turnarounds."

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