a

Leadership Lessons Bill Gates

 “Its’ fine to celebrate success but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure”

Bill Gates

Early Life

  • KBorn on October 28th 1955 in Seattle, Washington, America
  • K1967: Bill Gates had a normal schooling at the Lakeside private school
  • K1973: He entered Harvard University but dropped out in 1975 for the sake of building up the Software empire

Love for computer technology

  • K Wrote his first computer program for playing tic tac toe at the age of 13
  • K Developed a version of BASIC programming language for the MITS Altair computer
  • K Launched Microsoft with his childhood friend Paul Allen

Beginning of Microsoft

  • KFounded April 4th 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen
  • KThey developed a language for the Altair 8800, called Altair BASIC
  • K The code was distributed with the Altair 8800 system, making it Microsoft's first distributed code in companies such as Commodore, Texas Instruments, etc.

IBM Partnership

  • EIBM approached Microsoft in July 1980 regarding its upcoming personal computer.
  • EGates referred them to Digital Research (DRI) for the OS needed by IBM.
  • E IBM's discussions with Digital Research went poorly, and they did not reach a licensing agreement
  • E A few weeks later Gates proposed using 86- DOS (QDOS), an operating system similar to CP/M that Tim Paterson of Seattle Computer Products (SCP) had made for hardware similar to the PC.
  • E Microsoft made a deal with SCP to become the exclusive licensing agent, and later the full owner, of 86-DOS. After adapting the operating system for the PC, Microsoft delivered it to IBM as PC DOS in exchange for a one-time fee of $50,000.

Bill Gate’s Key Factors of being a leader

1. Competitive Strategy

  • E “BUY IT or BURY IT” Competition with Intuit which makes Quicken and Quickbooks.
  • E Netscape V/S Microsoft
  • E Real Networks V/S Microsoft
  • E Google V/S Microsoft

2. Agility & Ability

  • EFAST LEARNER: Developed his first software at the age of 13

3. Risk Bearer

  • E Gates signed an agreement to write software in BASIC and other languages for IBM PC.

4. Visioner

  • E He had a vision: Gates learned to treat software as a business with a claim " A computer on every desk, and in every home"

5. Master Mind

  • E Before IBM PC was launched, Microsoft acquired the operating system renaming it 86- OS from Seattle computers.

6. Long-term Approach

  • E Gates was quick to understand the new market conditions and the impact of the Internet on Microsoft.

7. Great Convincioner

  • E Gates explained his perspective at the Internet World Conference. He convinced, ‘The internet phenomenon is unbelievable. It’s the most fascinating thing to happen in the world of computing.’

8. Intelligent & Agressive

  • E Microsoft bundled the Explorer browser with its Windows operating system. This was an aggressive move by Gates to counter the business benefit of becoming a market leader.

9. Innovator

  • E Microsoft adapted to the existing products and developed new products centered on the Internet. It deployed productivity software as well as authoring tools.

10.Accepted Criticism

  • E Microsoft was found guilty of anti-competitive practices and ‘predatory monopoly’ in 2000

11. Philantropist – Gates & Melinda Foundations

Mission of foundation is to create a world where every person has the opportunity to live a healthy, productive life.

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest private foundation in the world, founded by Bill and Melinda Gates in 1994. It is “driven by the interests and passions of the Gates family” and is a Private Grantmaking Foundations.

$29 billion endowment, gives more than $1 billion to improve global health & learning.

  • Funds for minority college students, AIDS, Polio and other diseases.

  • Global Polio Eradication pledge $720 million dollars shortfall.

  • Pledge by Warren Buffer & Mark Zukerberg to give half of their wealth towards charity.