Prediction: Windows Phone 7 Will Do Better than the Kin
The wires are buzzing. Blogs are hopping and Twitter is tweeting the news that Microsoft will give a free Windows Phone 7 Device to all employees on launch.
The news, confirmed by an internal email from Andy Lees, Senior VP of Mobile, show’s just how serious they are to ensure that Windows Phone 7 succeeds.
With all the buzz, a lot of you are asking how you can get your hands on a phone and get more involved. So, I am thrilled to announce that a new Windows Phone 7 will be made available to every Microsoft employee as we launch in each market around the world. The process will vary based on your market, your carrier, and your launch date so stay tuned for more information closer to launch.
By giving a Win Phone 7 device to all employees, (that’s over 90,000 + devices) they certainly make sure that they don’t repeat their recent failure with the Kin, but also appear to be taking some of the important steps in changing the internal culture or atmosphere at Microsoft.
Steven and I have talked on the podcast about the internal bickering at MS and the sense of division between the teams. Competition between teams can be a good thing for fostering innovation and the the urge to “out do” each other, but it also undermines the sense of being one big cohesive family with a common goal.
By giving everyone a Win Phone 7, they are putting one product into the hand of every employee, a product to which Microsofts Mobile future and vision is very closely tied. It makes everyone part of the team, gives everyone a vested interest (even if it is small) in seeing the product succeed (beyond that of my employer sells it) and it turns each and every employee into a potential Win Phone 7 evangelist.
Taking the chance of turning every employee into an evangelist also displays an unusual amount of confidence in a product launch.
Microsoft management are very aware that if Win Phone 7 doesn’t come up to scratch and perform as expected their employees will be among the first to gripe, complain and moan publicly. If the devices are a bust they risk having 90,000 + Microsoft employees running down their companies own product.
It’s a calculated risk that heralds an attitude and confidence I’m happy to see creeping back into the Microsoft psyche.
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