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Responding to Shareholder Concerns on Executive Compensation
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Posted by J. Ritchie
Corporate Vice President of Compensation, Benefits, and Performance Management
J. Ritchie, Corporate Vice President, Worldwide Compensation and Benefits
Since filing our 2009 proxy statement in September, we’ve had a number of discussions about our executive compensation program and other governance matters. By and large, we have received consistent and broad support for the integrity and reasonableness of our approach to executive compensation.
We’ve also received constructive input on areas that certain stakeholders feel we could improve upon. One topic that arose this year is the relocation benefits we offered to several executive officers who moved their homes and families after accepting a job with Microsoft. In a few instances in recent years the company agreed to accept some risk on the re-sale of an executive officer’s former home, but the collapse of the housing market led to unanticipated costs for Microsoft.
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Using Mobile Technology to Extend Health Care’s Reach
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Posted by Kristin Tolle
Director, External Research and Programs 
At Microsoft Research we believe there are abundant opportunities for mobile technologies to improve public health, particularly in underserved communities. In areas short on health care facilities or medical staff, mobile phones have the reach to help diagnose and treat illness. We believe so strongly in this idea, in the fall of 2007 we solicited proposals from academic researchers who shared our vision and began funding projects in early 2008.
Our call for proposals caught the attention of the National Institutes of Health, which shares our interest in the potential health care applications of mobile devices. We decided to work together to organize an event that would build on the momentum created by successful implementations of cellular-based solutions to accelerate improvements in global public health using mobile devices.
Out of those discussions was born the mHealth Summit, which takes place in Washington, D.C., this Thursday and Friday.
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Changing the World and the Changing Role of Business
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Posted by Pamela Passman
Corporate Vice President
Pamela Passman
With the launch of Windows 7 last week, Microsoft also launched a contest, 7 Ways to Change the World, which aims to find and fund innovative ways for technology to achieve social change. The seven people who submit the best ideas will each win a PC running Windows 7. And each winner's chosen community organization will receive a $7,000 grant.
We’re asking everyone to describe their ideas in videos that they post online for everyone else to see. That way, we hope to create something of real value: a library of creative ideas that will help nonprofits find new ways to use technology to be even more effective in delivering services to the most vulnerable in our society.
Last week I had the opportunity to talk a bit about 7 Ways to Change the World at the Business for Social Responsibility (BSR) annual meeting in San Francisco. For over 15 years, BSR has helped lead the private sector to become more involved in addressing social, economic and environmental issues. This year’s meeting, coming 12 months after the onset of the financial crisis, naturally became a forum for some of the world’s leading companies to discuss what went wrong and propose new, more sustainable ways of doing business. This was reflected in the theme, “Reset Economy. Reset World.”
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Microsoft Posts Latest Quarterly Earnings
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Posted by David Bowermaster
Administrator, Microsoft on the Issues
Microsoft this morning reported results for its fiscal first quarter, which concluded September 30. A copy of the earnings release, the detailed financial data and the 10Q we filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission are available on our Investor Relations site. You can also listen to a recording of the earning conference call with investment analysts.
Several news outlets, such as the Wall Street Journal and CNET have reported on the results, and Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Chris Liddell discussed the results with Bloomberg TV, Fox Business News and CNBC:
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Let’s Get Behind Online Citizenship Education to Tackle Cyberbullying and Harrassment
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Posted by Chuck Cosson
Senior Policy Counsel
Cyberbullying was in the news again last week as local authorities try to crack down on the problem. At Microsoft, we believe the best way to prevent cyberbullying is through education. We’d like to see it included in Internet safety curricula in schools.
Cyberbullying methods may be virtual, but the pain is real, especially for young people whose social lives depend heavily on their online connections. Communities are searching for the right boundaries to set when the rough-and-tumble of online discussion turns cruel and even harassing. Context and individual judgment are important in setting limits that protect healthy child development and personal reputations without inhibiting free expression of critical opinion, political and cultural discussion.
Education is not the single solution, but it has proven effective against cyberbullying, it doesn’t impinge on free expression, and it receives broad support around the world as an important and appropriate response. Education was mentioned by nearly all of the witnesses at a recent Congressional hearing on cyberbullying. Reports from safety experts note the importance of education, particularly as part of child development and as a means to more effectively target high-risk situations. Education can help individuals distinguish appropriate social boundaries, identify ways to protect their privacy and reputation, and learn how to be civil while speaking candidly.
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White Spaces: Delivering Broadband to America
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Posted by Paula Boyd
Regulatory Counsel
Earlier today we were pleased to join Rep. Rick Boucher of Virginia, Spectrum Bridge, Dell and the TDF Foundation to mark the launch of a network that leverages vacant channels in the TV broadcasting band (the so-called “TV white spaces”) to provide broadband Internet access to the residents of Claudville, Virginia.
We commend Rep. Boucher for his leadership in promoting broadband connectivity, and applaud Spectrum Bridge for its hard work developing and installing a wireless network that uses the available TV white spaces in Claudville to enable the small, rural town’s roughly 1,000 residents to have much greater access to information and services.
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Bridging the Standardization Divide
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Posted by Nasser Kettani
Regional Standards Officer, Middle East and Africa
This year’s celebration of World Standards Day (October 14) helped draw attention to the role that standards play in creating economic value and advancing innovation, but it also is a moment to reflect on the importance of ensuring that international standards are truly global.
Developing countries have long contributed to standards in many fields, but just a few have been actively involved in standards development for Information and Communications Technology (ICT). The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) defines this as the “Standardization Gap,” or “disparities in the ability of developing countries, relative to developed ones, to access, implement, contribute to and influence international ICT standards.” I would call it the Standardization Divide – part of the digital divide between information haves and the have nots – which ultimately hinders innovation.
At Microsoft, we believe all communities affected by standards should have a voice in the direction of standards development, their design and deployment, which is why we’re excited to participate in two important initiatives to bridge the Standardization Divide.
We support the Internet Society’s (ISOC) efforts to increase participation in Internet standards development by our technical colleagues from developing communities. We’ve contributed to the ISOC Fellowship to the IETF, which enables talented individuals in developing nations to attend meetings of the Internet Engineering Task Force.
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Businesses Should Take the Lead on Corporate Governance
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Posted by John Seethoff
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel
Last month Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith and I blogged about the decision by Microsoft’s board of directors to adopt a new “Say-on-Pay” policy. Recently Brad authored a column for InsideCounsel magazine entitled, The Buck Starts Here: GCs should be advocates for good corporate governance. The article urges the business community to address corporate governance issues quickly and proactively to help restore public confidence and solidify the foundation for economic recovery.
For additional information about corporate governance at Microsoft, please click here.
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Empowering Families in the Digital Age
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Posted by Steve Crown
Deputy General Counsel and Vice President, Entertainment & Devices
I recently spent time in Washington, D.C., meeting with leading child safety experts who focus on addressing technology’s impact on kids. I was eager to gain new insights as we build out our Get Game Smart public education initiative, which we launched in January. I also wanted to hear these experts’ thoughts on ways we can improve Microsoft products and platforms to better meet parents’ needs, a topic I spoke about at a panel hosted by the Progress and Freedom Foundation during my visit (you can listen to it here).
These child safety leaders gave me a great level-set about the challenges we’re all working to address. They confirmed that while parents want their families to embrace the digital age and all the advantages it can bring, many remain uncertain how to do it safely and appropriately. Whether it’s a lack of awareness, our busy lifestyles or the intimidation of new technology, too many parents are not taking advantage of parental controls that can help prevent kids from interacting with strangers online or viewing inappropriate content.
With the rise of handheld devices and increased access to the Internet, it’s harder than ever for parents to monitor what their children see and who they talk to online. It’s no longer enough to keep the PC in the family room. “Sexting,” cyber-bullying and “digital reputations” have come to the fore as some of the toughest issues to manage. As a result, child safety experts are turning their focus to helping kids deal with each other.
We talked about ways to ensure that kids understand that the information they share, the pictures they post and the messages they leave on social networks have a long shelf-life. Inappropriate use of social networks can harm young adults’ social standing, their experiences in college and even their chances in the job market. There is no single response to these challenges. I shared some of the ways we at Microsoft are trying to reach families through our Get Game Smart site, in schools, via retailers, and by engaging with community organizations and social networks.
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The Road to Successful Health Reform
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Posted by Peter Neupert
Corporate Vice President, Health Solutions Group
From time to time over the last few months, the Washington Post has asked me to reply to questions posed by the Post’s Health Care Rx blog, which is tracking developments in the health care reform debate on Capitol Hill.
This week’s question was a natural: “The Senate Finance Committee passed a bill containing its version of the health care overhaul. Are you satisfied with this bill? What does it miss?”
My short answer, as the Post’s headline put it, is “Personal Accountability.” We can’t forget the role all of us play in the care of our health and that of our families. My longer answer is on the Health Care Rx blog, but I wanted to share my thoughts here as well:
There's a long road ahead for health care reform -- five bills to be merged and countless hours of debate still to come. A lot could change over the course of the next few months, and the content of the final reform bill is likely to vary from any of these individual bills. The question we need to keep asking ourselves is whether reform will drive the kind of wholesale transformation needed for the industry and consumers -- the kind we've seen in banking, travel and other service industries. Ten years ago, we wouldn't have imagined that people would do so many things themselves. Technology and business model innovation enabled new types of services -- putting consumers in charge, dramatically changing engagement and economics. Imagine the possibilities for new services in health.
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