An open letter to Steve Balmer
Dear Steve,
It’s been over a month since you talked at me during the keynote at SharePoint Conference 2009. I’ve been meaning to write, but have been bogged down evangelizing SharePoint for you. Which brings me to my point: I was disconcerted by your performance that day, Steve. The maniac we’ve come to know and love, the quintessential showman that can bring the masses to its knees, didn’t show up.
For me, it all started during your interview by Michael Arrington for TechCrunch that preceded the conference. I gave you the benefit of the doubt since it sounded as if you had a head cold but it was still odd to see you sit back, answering questions without any excitement in your voice, any real passion for the platform. I wrote that off as just having a bad day, doing a one-on-one interview, even though you had a nasty head cold. We’ve all been there… no problem.
But at the opening keynote for SPC09, you sauntered on stage as if you were walking onto a fashion runway, not as if you were running to embrace 7000 raving SharePoint fans. No under the arm sweat stains? No prancing the stage like a caged tiger? No screaming “SHAREPOINT!” while pointing to the high heavens with your tongue lolling out of your mouth?
Not that I expected the Monkey Dance, or you leading a geek flash mob screaming “SharePoint, SharePoint, SharePoint”, but I did expect some kind of enthusiasm, some kind of evangelism, some kind of over the top “GET ON YOUR FEET, SharePoint lovers! GET UP!”
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What we got was a milquetoast overview of a product that we already knew about. We didn’t come to the keynote to hear about the product, Steve. We knew we were going to get that over the next four days. We came to hear about the passion you personally have for SharePoint, and that was sorely missing.
It’s not just at the keynote either. Every time I’ve seen you speak about SharePoint in the news, it’s in terms of “functionality”, “what it’s going to be able to do”, the “cool new features”. Hell, I can get that from a Microsoft rep, Steve. I came to the keynote to see spit flying, to see the first fifteen rows dodging the spraying sweat, to see 7000 people completely engaged because your personal passion for SharePoint was undeniable.
What happened? Where’s the Steve we know and love? Is the SharePoint platform just another part of the Microsoft business model with no particular passion for you? Is SharePoint the Jennie Sanford of your business, the obligation you’ve committed to, or is it the Argentine mistress that puts a fire in your belly?
I want to see you jumping up and down, pounding your fist, screaming in people’s faces, “I…. LOVE…. SHAREPOINT!”
It’s what we, your SharePoint evangelists, do every single day. We’re looking to you, Steve, for your enthusiasm, for the PASSION you’ve shown for other products and ideas. I’ll take the fire and brimstone any day over what’s been shown so far.
I want to know that you believe in this product. I want to know that what I’m working on gets you excited. I want to hear from you that your love and passion for SharePoint is unwavering, unrelenting. I want to know that what I am doing is important and of value.
In short, I want the Steve Balmer that’s fearless while shouting his convictions that SharePoint is the best damn product this company has ever delivered and those that don’t believe it better get the hell out of the way.
Put the blue collar back on, Steve, and leave the Armani in the closet. The SharePoint Community misses you VERY much.
Sincerely,
Mark
Mark Miller, Founder and Editor
EndUserSharePoint.com
Now that you point it out Mark, I am disappointed in the lack of enthusiasm, too. Was what we were missing was Dux asking him a question that really got him going? Office web apps versus Google Docs or something like that might have fired up some passion for our chosen technology.
I’m kinda glad the raving baboon ballmer doesn’t show up when he talks about SharePoint.
Joe,
I disagree with your sentiments on two fronts. One, the “baboon” image is one that is used as an extreme form of marketing. Think about how much play those YouTube videos have gotten. Think about the people that were there being able to say, “Yes, I was there. I saw him do it!” Think about the buzz it causes when someone in his position can’t contain their excitement and just HAVE to let it out.
Second, SPC09 could have used some of that excitement. The vendors on the floor were awesome. The presenters during the sessions put their heart into it. I just felt the keynote fell flat because it came across as a marketing pitch instead of the tent revival I was looking for.
Mark
Yes, it does create excitement.
It’s kinda scary too though. That time he went off on one about ‘Developers, Developers, Developers’ I thought he might take to a heart attack. :/
The aftermath I’m not so sure about. People look at the vids for the spectacle but after looking does anyone (other than us enthusiasts) actually remember what product he was getting excited about?
You wrote what I thought from the instant I saw that keynote. I was flabbergasted at the nonchalant manner the difference in attendance from last year to this year was described (more than doubled, right?)
Yes, we “enthusiasts” DO remember what product he was getting excited about…since we are excited too and oh by the way, this is how we earn a living too. It was “enthusiasts” that paid to attend, so yes, I would have appreciated Steve paying attention to the “enthusiasts” with some ENTHUSIASM.
Thanks for penning the open letter Mark.
Tent revival? Sharepoint is a software product not a religious cult. It’s also a VERY expensive product to buy, install and maintain. Having a nut-job rant on stage like a lunatic does not help me make a case to upper management for spending a crapload of cash upgrading to SP 2010. However, a thoughtful, logical talk followed by a detailed demo does. I think the keynote was perfect.
> “Sharepoint is a software product not a religious cult.”
Some of the Apple fanboiz will beg to differ, but your point is noted.