tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post2162998256519836297..comments2024-03-18T12:52:48.117-07:00Comments on Mini-Microsoft: (tap tap tap) Is This Thing On?Who da'Punkhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18205453956191063442noreply@blogger.comBlogger297125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-37514804409477785702008-10-18T00:08:00.000-07:002008-10-18T00:08:00.000-07:00whats up with the hiring freezes?whats up with the hiring freezes?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-1210618820843719372008-09-30T07:28:00.000-07:002008-09-30T07:28:00.000-07:00PMRating : E/20%Level : 64-> 65Promo+Merit : 13...PM<BR/>Rating : E/20%<BR/>Level : 64-> 65<BR/>Promo+Merit : 13% <BR/>Bonus : 14%<BR/>Stock : ~80k (215%+)<BR/><BR/>Gold Star : 50k stockAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-58054607390841939892008-09-26T17:14:00.000-07:002008-09-26T17:14:00.000-07:00I have a challenge for everyone reading this blog....I have a challenge for everyone reading this blog. I see everyone talking about compensation all the time. What about the real work?<BR/><BR/>I challenge anyone to come with the <B>official</B> message from Microsoft on the <B>business value for Enterprise customers</B> of technologies like WPF and Silverlight. <BR/><BR/>Anyone? Someone from D&PE, please?<BR/><BR/>PDC 08 is coming and I see many MS bloggers talking about how the emerging technologies from Microsoft are great, and so on, but WPF is three years old, and I never saw a good deck, paper or site from Microsoft explaining why and how it is a game changer. Or is it not?<BR/><BR/>I am bringing the subject because I left Microsoft three year ago, after two very disappointing years in Redmond. I came from the field, and my impression was that everyone in Redmond was completely out-of-touch with customers. Vista was about to be launched, and some folks, myself included, were very worried that no one was thinking about Enterprise customers when thinking about evangelism and marketing initiatives.<BR/><BR/>I am a Microsoft partner in my home country and, three years later, I am still waiting for messaging for emerging technologies (including the "cloud services") in the same quality level of what the company had for .NET/Web Services/SOAP from 2000 to 2003.<BR/><BR/>What happened? My impression is that Scoble made his mark, and now everyone thinks that the world is made of bloggers, Silicon Valley startups and hardcore developers.<BR/><BR/>Am I missing something? If so, please reply with some pointers. If not, isn't something very wrong?<BR/><BR/>My guess is most of the readers here will think "WTF?" and ask why the hell I an asking stuff without importance. If that's the case, you are really in trouble.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-56977111809251820732008-09-26T09:34:00.000-07:002008-09-26T09:34:00.000-07:00Here are my numbers...L60 (2+ years)Engineering (1...Here are my numbers...<BR/><BR/>L60 (2+ years)<BR/>Engineering (10 months)<BR/><BR/>Rating - Achieved, 10%<BR/>Merit - 3.5%<BR/>Bonus - 6%<BR/>Stock - 25% ($1500)<BR/><BR/>New Base = $83KAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-40883571660720039102008-09-25T12:59:00.000-07:002008-09-25T12:59:00.000-07:00Options:a) Do nothing. Suck it up.b) Talk to more ...<I>Options:<BR/>a) Do nothing. Suck it up.<BR/>b) Talk to more receptive PUM and then possibly talk to HR<BR/>c) Talk to HR</I><BR/><BR/>Definitely do nothing and move on. Rebuttals stay in your review and on your permanent record FOREVER and future managers will look at only the fact that you refuted the comments, not whatever content you include in the rebuttal. You will be labeled a troublemaker (at best) and won't even have the chance to make your case about why your manager said such things about you.<BR/><BR/>Future managers can overlook a negative review as just one of those things, especially if you can explain (WITHOUT putting down your former manager) why those nasty comments ended up there. But much better to explain in person ("We didn't see eye-to-eye about x,y,z") rather than foam at the mouth about how the manager was wrong, you were wronged, nothing is your fault, etc. in writing.<BR/><BR/>If you've already got another job, leave this crappy place behind and be glad you can start fresh! Not all randomly-10%eds are so lucky, not by a long shot. :-(Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-37429746923252037342008-09-24T23:11:00.000-07:002008-09-24T23:11:00.000-07:00Options:a) Do nothing. Suck it up.b) Talk to more ...Options:<BR/>a) Do nothing. Suck it up.<BR/>b) Talk to more receptive PUM and then possibly talk to HR<BR/>c) Talk to HR<BR/><BR/><BR/><BR/>why worryAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-68960086074944284082008-09-24T19:48:00.000-07:002008-09-24T19:48:00.000-07:00Options:a) Do nothing. Suck it up.----move onOptions:<BR/>a) Do nothing. Suck it up.<BR/><BR/><BR/>----<BR/><BR/>move onAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-42363444850542492692008-09-24T01:29:00.000-07:002008-09-24T01:29:00.000-07:00SDET L60merit 2.5%bonus 6.9%stock 50%achieved - 10...SDET L60<BR/>merit 2.5%<BR/>bonus 6.9%<BR/>stock 50%<BR/>achieved - 10% - I got Kimmed. :(<BR/><BR/>Been at my level for a long time and I'm kinda miffed at my 10% score given that I worked my ass off during the last year. I'm more upset about the verbiage of one part of my review (the rest is ok). Unfortunately, I already signed it.<BR/><BR/>At my business unit's geographic area, I probably worked the hardest amongst test whereas much of dev didn't seem to work hard at all during crunch time. My manager seems to care more about the process and random CSP crap than the product.<BR/><BR/>I've left the group anyways (notified I was interviewing after "calibration" but could've gotten screwed afterwards) and gotten another job. Spoke to a SDET colleague who was coincidentally leaving the company and also smacked with a 10%. First, he felt I shouldn't do anything. Once I read the passage to him, he changed his mind, felt I should be furious and had do something (e.g. talk to PUM and/or HR). <BR/><BR/>Problem: I hear my former lead and his manager are both buddies and that if I talk to his manager, nothing will happen. I'd have to go up to the PUM (who I hear is more likely to be receptive and isn't buddy buddy). Given what I've seen here about not talking to HR and/or higher ups, I'm unsure now but I don't really care about burning bridges.<BR/><BR/>Options:<BR/>a) Do nothing. Suck it up.<BR/>b) Talk to more receptive PUM and then possibly talk to HR<BR/>c) Talk to HR<BR/><BR/>I don't have the expectation that my 10% will change but at least I'd like to add a rebuttal to the section in question. FWIW, my unit has always done very badly in MS Poll and has had a LOTS of churn, esp. in test.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-25772355764453236742008-09-22T06:13:00.000-07:002008-09-22T06:13:00.000-07:00>"2) Differentiation is achieved by a plug...>"2) Differentiation is achieved by a plug in flash chips with different amounts of memory (already done by several companies but not executed well)."<BR/><BR/><BR/>Ooops, too late Microsoft. Now you have to copy Sandisk too:<BR/><BR/>http://tech.yahoo.com/blogs/null/105956Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-75911159495217585802008-09-21T16:48:00.000-07:002008-09-21T16:48:00.000-07:00Escalation EngineerL63 -> L64Exceeded, 20%Merit...Escalation Engineer<BR/>L63 -> L64<BR/>Exceeded, 20%<BR/>Merit: 5%<BR/>Promo: 5%<BR/>Bonus: 16%<BR/>Stock: 220%<BR/>Base comp: $122kAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-78052632622359145682008-09-21T16:45:00.000-07:002008-09-21T16:45:00.000-07:00Group: OSGNumbers:Exceeded/70Level: 59 -> 60 Pr...Group: OSG<BR/><BR/>Numbers:<BR/>Exceeded/70<BR/>Level: 59 -> 60 Program Manager<BR/>Merit: 3%<BR/>Promo: 3%<BR/>Bonus: 12%<BR/>Stock: 150%<BR/><BR/>I really feel for those of you stuck in crummy groups. I was in one myself until about mid-year. Fortunately I seem to be in one of the (rare) good ones... and am not considering leaving any time soon (unless we get re-org'd....)<BR/><BR/>For what it's worth... after getting my review numbers, I went back to my manager and expressed dissatisfaction (good thing I didn't see this blog first or I might not have!) She went to bat for me and came back with a secondary raise on top of the merit good for an extra 10% or so (so there ARE good managers out there!!!)<BR/><BR/>As for the aQuantive merger and the big dollars... well, that explains a lot, and it's unfortunate. I have to work with a few of these people and, well, aside from a few good gems, there's definitely a lot of 10%-ers there. At least one guy that we acquired WAS a former FTE with MSFT on my old team, didn't last a year before going on a PIP. He quit right before his review and found a job at aQuantive. 3 months later, we acquired them and... he's back! *sigh*<BR/><BR/>At any rate, I'm still happy to work for Microsoft. I get direct input into the bottom line (for my team, anyways), am valued, and overall very happy. My peers are all very bright, share a great work ethic, and all despise politics as much as I (and seemingly the rest of you) do. The only thing I'd say I *don't* like is having to deal with other teams who ARE stuck in the political mess I hear so much about. There definitely needs to be more "just get it done" attitude around here.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-21754150700593667492008-09-20T07:28:00.000-07:002008-09-20T07:28:00.000-07:00Here are my stats (CRM Online - principal SDE mana...<I>Here are my stats (CRM Online - principal SDE manager).<BR/><BR/>...<BR/><BR/>Way better than the folks reporting to me, as it should be (I manage quite a few semi-competent, junior SDEs).</I><BR/><BR/>wrong! you manage semi-competent, junior SDEs, you are a limited 10% manager until said employees become competent. sheesh!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-64426126932289802102008-09-19T17:37:00.000-07:002008-09-19T17:37:00.000-07:00SDE L62 (5yrs@msft, 1yr@L62)Exceeded/20%Promotion:...SDE L62 (5yrs@msft, 1yr@L62)<BR/>Exceeded/20%<BR/>Promotion: None<BR/>Merit:4.5%<BR/>Bonus:14.5%<BR/>Stock:170% (31k)<BR/>Gold Star: 6.5k cash, no stock<BR/>New salary: 105kAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-43252339660423328882008-09-19T01:26:00.000-07:002008-09-19T01:26:00.000-07:00Level 60 Operations Engineer III Windows Live Iden...Level 60 <BR/>Operations Engineer III <BR/>Windows Live Identity Services (Passport)<BR/><BR/>FY08 Planned and rebuilt WLIDS login service on new network architecture, moved to new department during FY08 review period.<BR/><BR/>RESULTS:<BR/><BR/>Achieved - Limited<BR/>Merit 2.4%<BR/>Bonus $5000<BR/>Stock %20Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-39458333238657778352008-09-18T19:32:00.000-07:002008-09-18T19:32:00.000-07:00>> not be able to pay your mortgage/rentI re...>> not be able to pay your mortgage/rent<BR/><BR/>I rent. Rents have not increased much. And for those coming out of foreclosure, rent is much cheaper. I just don't see why everyone is so worried. Let me 'splain to you what happened using shorter words. <BR/><BR/>Joe could not afford a house. So he rented. A banker gave Joe a loan. Joe moved into the house and lived in it for a few years, descending deeper into debt. Joe could not make his mortgage payments anymore, so he got kicked out of "his" house. Joe now rents again.<BR/><BR/>WTF has changed? He didn't have any savings to begin with. He doesn't have them now. He didn't own a house, and he doesn't now.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-83505535199618186672008-09-18T16:12:00.000-07:002008-09-18T16:12:00.000-07:00Microsoft is posting double digit revenue gains ev...<I>Microsoft is posting double digit revenue gains every year. So do Google, Apple, HP, Amazon and almost every other large tech company out there. They aren't banks. They don't finance mortgage loans or trade collateralized debt obligations. They have nothing whatsoever to be afraid of, long term.</I><BR/><BR/>Disagree. Some of those companies that are in trouble (in whatever sector) are our EA customers. Considering how much the EA program and volume licensing in general contributes to our revenue, I am at least a little concerned.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-53291098405538621992008-09-18T16:05:00.000-07:002008-09-18T16:05:00.000-07:00Pdt MgmtExceeded/20%L61->L63 (new salary $131K)...Pdt Mgmt<BR/>Exceeded/20%<BR/>L61->L63 (new salary $131K)<BR/>Salary change 17%<BR/>Bonus $20K<BR/>Stock 220% ($48K)<BR/><BR/>I had a great manager who recognized that I was performing at a level way beyond what was expected at my level, and fought to change it.<BR/><BR/>Microsoft, deep down, is a meritocratic company. The key is to make sure you have a sensible manager who is willing to do the right thing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-64836313198974143532008-09-18T13:17:00.000-07:002008-09-18T13:17:00.000-07:00>"but it seems there is nothing in the mix...>"but it seems there is nothing in the mix that is good for the consumer and everything in the mix designed to corral customers into cattle pens of forced loyalty."<BR/><BR/>So does that make Bill Gates a Virtual Robber Baron? It has been about a hundred years since the SO Western antitrust actions that broke up many of the large monopolies at the turn of the 19th century.<BR/><BR/>Is this the only way Microsoft can make money, i.e., force people to buy their products if they want any products at all? We all know how dismal Microsoft is at actually competing on an equal basis with others.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-41854956139539544252008-09-18T10:13:00.000-07:002008-09-18T10:13:00.000-07:00>"Oh, please. Recession-schmecession."...>"Oh, please. Recession-schmecession."<BR/><BR/>You must be brain dead. Par for the course for the overpaid softie who has no effing clue as to what it means to not be able to pay your mortgage/rent, buy food yada yada.<BR/><BR/>EVERYBODY I know how has their own business is seeing at least a 50% drop in sales/business.<BR/><BR/>Maybe, just maybe, pray tell, Mini's dream of a major RIF will finally be forced on the richest man in the world.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-30399780709824327532008-09-18T02:02:00.000-07:002008-09-18T02:02:00.000-07:00Jeez, I’m not saying HR are your friend, that they...Jeez, I’m not saying HR are your friend, that they will believe everything you say or that they will even fix your problem. What I am saying is voice your concern in such a way as to put them on the back foot. You can blog away all you want and it won’t change anything. Let your manager know that the next time he or she talks to you in a review they better have this stuff nailed down.<BR/><BR/>For a start I would complain directly to HR if any of the following occurred during this review process,<BR/>• No direct meeting to discuss the review.<BR/>• No commitments to be reviewed against.<BR/>• No comments or direction added to your review.<BR/>• Any promises of future Gold-Star awards to make up for a bad rating.<BR/>• Any promises of promotion.<BR/>• So and so on the team was a low level so we had to use the budget to rank them up, it’s your turn next year.<BR/><BR/>Emails from your manager with information of this nature will go a very long way to getting that manager on the HR radar.<BR/>There is much talk on this thread around getting a better deal outside Microsoft. It may or may not be true and I am not interested in the comparisons. What I am interested in seeing is a Microsoft employee that talks about these comparisons and complains about their reviews actually doing something about it. <BR/><BR/>What can you lose, you already went through a mediocre review process, your manager is a waste of space, and there are better opportunities outside Microsoft. <BR/>Give HR something to do apart from your EXIT interview which goes nowhere and achieves nothing.<BR/><BR/>I’m off to setup the AAM group alias for all those achievers out there.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-69037733457534001112008-09-18T00:27:00.000-07:002008-09-18T00:27:00.000-07:00You are a newbie even though you have been here fo...<I><BR/>You are a newbie even though you have been here for 3 years. The review budgets are based on the following chunks:<BR/>L59 and below<BR/>L60-L62<BR/>L63-L64<BR/>L65+ and so on.<BR/><BR/>So your budget for a L59 band does not affect the budget for the person moving 64->65. Stop whining about every other person who gets a promo just because you did not get one. If you are 3 years and STILL at L59 - that should have given you a hint on what your value in your team is. Either switch teams or find another company.<BR/></I><BR/><BR/>Sorry, you've got it wrong. There are separate budget for stock at those levels, but not promotions. There is only one budget for promotions at ALL levels. Did your GM not explain this all to you in an all-hands in August? Mine did. <BR/><BR/>However I agree on the advice to the OP: 3 years at 59 means your team thinks you are failing... if you are not, get out as fast as you can. The cost of a 59->60 promotion is tiny and there is practically no chance that budget was a factor. The fact that they are lying to you and telling you it is should tell you something.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-11331813540409241062008-09-17T23:37:00.000-07:002008-09-17T23:37:00.000-07:00Somewhere in MS.L64->L64Merit: 4.02%Stock: 210%...Somewhere in MS.<BR/>L64->L64<BR/>Merit: 4.02%<BR/>Stock: 210%<BR/>Bonus: 12%<BR/>Exceeded/20%<BR/><BR/>I'm fairly happy with my package at MS - that includes the benefits, health coverage etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-54808062550144539552008-09-17T23:34:00.000-07:002008-09-17T23:34:00.000-07:00"Strangely, the only promotion in our team wa..."Strangely, the only promotion in our team was the Senior PM going up to Principle, and the rest of us were told "we're doing great, we just didn't have budget".<BR/><BR/>What crap. (and I don't feel I got screwed on this, other than being on YEAR 3 at L59 doing work that a L62 couldn't)"<BR/><BR/>---<BR/><BR/>You are a newbie even though you have been here for 3 years. The review budgets are based on the following chunks:<BR/>L59 and below<BR/>L60-L62<BR/>L63-L64<BR/>L65+ and so on.<BR/><BR/>So your budget for a L59 band does not affect the budget for the person moving 64->65. Stop whining about every other person who gets a promo just because you did not get one. If you are 3 years and STILL at L59 - that should have given you a hint on what your value in your team is. Either switch teams or find another company.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-25268341773997987352008-09-17T22:24:00.000-07:002008-09-17T22:24:00.000-07:00"Windows 7 needs to be delayed until after the rec..."Windows 7 needs to be delayed until after the recession is over (estimates between 3 and 10 years?)."<BR/><BR/>That's about the dumbest thing I've read in a very long time - which is saying something after the 'go to HR - they're your friend' posts.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7555958.post-76792101977297278792008-09-17T22:18:00.000-07:002008-09-17T22:18:00.000-07:00The first is the Wayport agreement with Microsoft ...The first is the Wayport agreement with Microsoft to serve songs at McDonalds hotspots. (McDonalds is trying to buzz up their business by competing with the Starbucks model but in a more limiting way that uses songs as a replacement to the trinkets kids buy at McDonalds).<BR/><BR/>'Mcdonalds and Zune Don't Mix, "<BR/>http://blogs.pcworld.com/staffblog/archives/007756.html<BR/><BR/>-----------<BR/><BR/>MSN internet folks tried this a few years ago ... went pretty bad ... people who "shop at mcdonalds" are not really the IW folk you expect to be there .. not at the volumes ROI can be successful. <BR/><BR/>Maybe an RFID play for little jimmy and his NIKE+ location awareness (wheres my kid) finderAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com