Pursue Software Services for Consumers: Microsoft PLC - Assignment Example

Pursue Software Services for Consumers: Microsoft PLC Microsoft Corporation, an international computer technology company, is known for developing, producing, supporting and even licensing a broad range of software products predominantly for computers. One of the most notable products of the company is its best selling software pertained to as the Microsoft Windows operating system as well as the Microsoft Office suite of productivity software. Initially founded to build up and market BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800, Microsoft blossomed into a giant in the home computer operating system market though the MS-DOS during the mid-1980s. After the initial success of the MS-DOS, the company released its Windows line of operating systems. The company’s products have all accomplished near-ubiquity in the market for desktop computers. Apart from this, it has been noted that Microsoft has footholds in other markets, possessing assets such as the MSN Internet portal, MSNBC cable television network, as well as the Microsoft Encarta, which is essentially a multimedia encyclopedia. The company also sells both computer hardware merchandises like that of the Microsoft mouse and even home recreational products like that of the Xbox. The company published an initial public offering (IPO) in the stock market, which, particularly because of the resultant increase of the stock price, has resulted to four billionaires and a projected 12,000 millionaires from Microsoft employees. Microsoft 2 Tracing Microsoft’s history, the company has been the up against a lot of criticism, particularly accusations of having a monopolistic business practices and even anti-competitive business methods which involves the company’s rejection to deal and tying. The U.S. Justice Department together with the European Commission has charged Microsoft for a range of antitrust infringements (US Department of Justice, 2007). Recognized for what is in general defined as a developer-centric business nature, the company has in history provided customer support over Usenet newsgroups and the World Wide Web. Microsoft’s Economic Position Even though, the company has been well acknowledge for leading the industry they are currently in, the company is also faced a with a number of economic burdens particularly in their economic position. Financial statements of the company have also revealed details determining the company’s economic position. The company has been faced with many ups and downs through the years although in some cases it was still able to manage the total return towards the end of the year. During the year 2006, the company’s total operating expenses has increased immensely with a 10.23% change (Behera, 2007). On the other hand, the company’s revenue during the same year increased from $39788 million to $44282 million. The company also rendered an Absolute change amounting to $4494 million, with a change of 11.29%. The drawback now comes in the recorded net income of the company from all sources. Microsoft 3 The net income of the company for the same year only amounted to $345 million. In all the other major ratio analysis records of the company, it has been noted that Microsoft has immensely increased the per capita income of the company from the year 2006 amounting to about $12599 million which rendered a net increase of $345 million. However with such a case, the company’s investment income has been significantly decreased having a net fall of almost 13.4” from the year 2005. It has been noted that from the manner in which the ratios of the company has been recorded, it is essential for Microsoft to uphold and present a positive figure towards the direction of the investment income through securing the invested amount in the appropriate manner. There company should direct more attention into its short term investments as well as securities. Recently, the company undertook a lot of employee layoffs, even with such a case the software maker it seems that isn't dismissing any major products as part of its cost-cutting moves. At present, the company itself recognized it does not possess the leading position in a number of its budding businesses. The company generates a great deal of its money from Windows and Office. Aside from this, it also has a server software business that is lucrative and fast-growing. On the other hand, the software maker has exerted a great deal of effort to accomplish profitability when it comes to its entertainment component. Microsoft 4 Refining Microsoft’s Organizational Structure As part of its efforts to further strengthen and boost the company, the company has exerted efforts in retuning the company’s organizational structure. The company has noted that the goal of retuning has been to guarantee that Microsofts flagship products, Windows and Office, carry on to offer value and importance to customers, as well as in such case that Microsoft creates a software services platform that Microsoft and other developers could make use of to offer vital value-added services business use and other customers (Microsoft, 2001). Some of the changes that the company made were: The same top employees were assigned to supervise Microsofts business operations, which involves sales and marketing, MSN and development of the Xbox game console, and business development. Another change that has been done by the company is the creation of a unified services infrastructure group. This group provided the company as well as the developers with a single, reliable set of back-end tools that offer interoperability throughout the services as well as the Web sites. The group also guaranteed that consumers have a reliable experience when stirring amid products and services, in spite of of whether they are supplied by Microsoft or by other parties. Microsoft 5 Microsoft and its employees Aside from making organizational changes, the company also has dealt with issues concerning the employees of the company. The growing dissatisfaction and other related issues are inevitable and Microsoft has taken steps into addressing these issues. The company veered away from a pay system that provided riches on an age band of entrepreneurs and engineers in countless technology companies. Instead the company no longer granted stock options and it has depended instead on controlled awards of stock to assist pay to its more than 50,000 employees. The shift emphasized Microsoft's attempt to construct the transition from a fast growth-oriented technology company extensively recognized as one of the most attractive places to work, to a more full-grown company that should struggle to maintain talented employees lured by the riches that they could find at a start-up venture. The switch to shares of stock, as compared to options, enabled the employees to generate money on their stock-based pay despite the even that Microsoft's shares are not rising. In the case of such companies, one of the more important types of communication that the company should instigate is that of a participative and consultative one. Having the people of the organization to interactively participate in the dealings of the company could even provide more knowledge as to how run and manage such a corporation. Deciding with the contribution of everyone else in the company could even further generate great benefits for the company since these people in the different components of the company are guaranteed experts in their own fields of work. References: Behera, R. “Financial Statement Analysis of Microsoft.” College, Puri, 2007. Microsoft. “Microsoft Fine-Tunes Organizational Structure to Pursue Software Services for Consumers and Business Users.” 2001. US Department of Justice. “"United States v. Microsoft.” 2007. Read More