Bill Gates begins last week at Microsoft
WinInfo | at | by Mike
He is the cofounder of Microsoft, a Harvard drop-out, one of the world's richest men, and arguably the greatest philanthropist in history, but this week William H. Gates III--that's Bill Gates to you and I--will step away from full-time employment and enter a new phase of life. He's not retiring completely--Gates will continue advising Microsoft in a part-time capacity and will dedicate more time than ever to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which seeks to improve healthcare and reduce poverty around the globe.
How important is Bill Gates to Microsoft? Look at it this way: The company has essentially appointed three people to handle the jobs Gates used to fill by himself: Steve Ballmer as CEO, Ray Ozzie as chief software architect, and Craig Mundie as chief research and strategy officer. But none of these otherwise estimable men can really fill Gates' shoes, and its unclear how well Microsoft will perform in the months and years ahead without him.