A published report said that the head of Microsoft's server business
could be an early front-runner to eventually run the world's No. 1
software company, although current leadership has given no indication they
are anywhere close to leaving the company.
The New York Times reported Wednesday that Eric Rudder, 38, a senior
vice president at the software company, is being seen as a leading
candidate among Microsoft executives. Microsoft Chairman and co-founder
Bill Gates and CEO Steve Ballmer are both only 49 and not likely to leave
the company any time soon, the newspaper said.
Rudder's group has grown at 15 to 20 percent annually for the last few
years, reaching $10 billion a year in sales. He's also seen as a leader in
making an outreach
effort to Microsoft customers, moving away from the
company's corporate headquarters near Seattle to its office in Paris to be
closer to its full range of global customers.
Before he took over the server business two years ago, Rudder served as
Gates' technical assistant for four years, which the newspaper reports was
seen as a sign he was being groomed . That tenure is the longest that
anyone has served in that position.
The newspaper lists some other top executives who could also be
candidates to eventually succeed Gates and Ballmer. They include Steven
Sinofsky, a senior vice president leading the Office business; Chris
Jones, a vice president guiding Windows development; Yusuf Mehdi, a senior
vice president in charge of MSN; and J Allard, a vice president who heads
the Xbox team.
(Agencies) |