Microsoft Abandons ‘Stack Ranking’ Employees
Article by Authors, Shira Ovide and Rachel Feintzeig
Abstract
In the article “Microsoft Abandons ‘Stack Ranking’ Employees”. Shira Ovide and Rachel Feintzeig discuss how getting rid of such a system will benefit the company. The authors cite several sources. They don’t go into too deep of detail on why CEO Mr. Ballmer decided to implement the change, only that before he leaves the company for good he wanted to leave his mark on Microsoft with a new ranking system. This article is a description of how the former practice of ‘Stack Ranking’ by Microsoft is on the steady decline throughout business today. The authors describe how the …show more content…
In the technology industry, “some companies have struggled with how to reshape employee-evaluation programs as they grow” (Ovide & Feintzeig, 2013). It states what Microsoft plans to focus on when deciding how to deal with their new HR system. Although Microsoft revised their stack ranking system several times over the decades, they have never been through such a drastic change. According to Ovide and Feintzeig, “Microsoft managers now will give employees more frequent feedback on how they’re performing” (Ovide & Feintzeig, …show more content…
I understand that former CEO Jack Welch was very adamant about the stack ranking model, but how could there not have been someone within the company to bring forth the data on why the company no longer needed to use that model? I’m truly baffled on how long this lasted and also how there weren’t many lawsuits against Microsoft because of being fired. No matter how hard of a worker you may be, there will always be someone on the bottom 10%. Instead of firing them, the company should have counseled them. Let them improve and grow. I’m pleased that such a change has taken affect, but and also saddened by all the employees how lost their careers within Microsoft because of some archaic ranking system. Works Cited
Noe, R. A., Hollenbeck, J. R., Gerhart, B., & Wright, P. M. (2014). In Fundamentals of Human Resource Management (p. 242 and p. 246). New York: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Ovide, S., & Feintzeig, R. (2013, November 12). Microsoft Abandons 'Stack Ranking ' Employees. Retrieved from Wall Street Journal: http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303460004579193951987616572?KEYWORDS=microsoft+abandons+%27stack+ranking%27+of+employees
Satterwhite, S. R. (2013, November 13). Forbes. Retrieved from Here 's To The Death Of Microsoft 's Rank-And-Yank: