Microsoft: Competing on Talent Case Study

Questions for Case Study

1. How did early recruiting and hiring practices and techniques accomplish Bill Gates' belief that Microsoft should focus on hiring superior talent?
2. How did Microsoft's early emphasis on hiring candidates straight from elite colleges and universities versus from industry competitors reinforce the company's culture?
3. What were some of the challenges posed by the fact that Microsoft hired mostly young technical experts impact Microsoft's employee development needs, and how did the company go about developing their employees to meet these needs?
4. How did Microsoft's compensation and rewards programs support their philosophy of hiring and keeping only the best employees?
5. What does the data in Exhibit 1 suggest to you about what might be causing senior level attrition?
6. Look at Exhibit 13, which contains a portion of the Competency Toolkit which was developed in the 1990's. Would the interviewing practices utilized by Microsoft in the early 1980's still be an effective way of evaluating candidates for hire? Why or why not?