Executive's departure may be good for Microsoft's cloud strategy

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

The retirement of Microsoft's Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie came as a surprise to many industry observers. But, as Computerworld recently reported, some analysts think Ozzie's exit is a good sign for Microsoft's cloud strategy.

Ozzie was the Microsoft executive who is largely credited for the company's shifted focus toward the cloud. In 2005, he penned his Internet Services Disruption memo, in which he called for the company to make a push toward the then-infantile, service-based cloud computing. Resulting from Ozzie's influence were such products as Windows Live service, online versions of Exchange and SharePoint, Office Web Apps and Windows Azure platform-as-a-service.

Despite Ozzie's influence, Wes Miller, vice president at independent research firm Directions on Microsoft, told Computerworld Ozzie's departure is a sign that Microsoft believes its Windows Azure and other cloud services can thrive without him.

"I think Ozzie and Microsoft are making a statement that the company is moving forward into the cloud platform realm, and have built a strong offering in Azure," Miller said. "So as far as cloud technology innovation, I don't think Ozzie's exit will have a negative effect."

Microsoft's CEO Steve Ballmer last week announced Ozzie's retirement after four years as the company's chief software architect. According to a company email, Microsoft does not intend to replace Ozzie, calling his position a unique one.