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The “worst CEO” label was Adam Hartung’s opinion, published as a Forbes contributor in 2012—not an official Forbes ranking or an established industry award. His case against Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer centered on the company’s slow response to the shift toward phones and tablets, with Vista, Zune and delayed launches as examples. The verdict is more complicated when weighed against Microsoft’s enterprise businesses, Xbox and profit growth.
What did the “worst CEO” claim actually mean?
In May 2012, Forbes contributor Adam Hartung argued that Ballmer was the worst CEO of a large publicly traded American company. Computerworld reproduced his statement: “Without a doubt, Mr. Ballmer is the worst CEO of a large publicly traded American company today.” That was Hartung’s judgment, not a formal Forbes designation or an objective award. Computerworld’s May 14, 2012 coverage reports the argument and its context.
Why Hartung criticized Ballmer’s leadership
Microsoft struggled to keep pace in consumer technology
Hartung’s central complaint was that Microsoft did not adapt quickly enough as consumer computing shifted toward mobile devices. He pointed to Microsoft’s weaker position in mobile and argued that the company had failed to capitalize on fast-growing technology markets, particularly mobile music, handsets and tablets.
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He cited Vista, Zune and delayed launches
The examples in Hartung’s critique included Windows Vista, the Zune music player and products he saw as arriving too late. The underlying criticism was not simply that individual products disappointed; it was that Microsoft’s decisions and timing left it poorly positioned as users moved to new kinds of devices.
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He saw consequences beyond Microsoft
Hartung also argued that Microsoft’s choices hurt companies in its wider ecosystem, including Dell, Hewlett-Packard and Nokia. That was part of his assessment of the stakes: missed opportunities could affect partners as well as Microsoft itself. Computerworld’s report attributes these points to Hartung’s argument.
What complicates the verdict
A 2013 Forbes retrospective presented a mixed picture: Microsoft’s profits grew substantially during Ballmer’s tenure, and businesses such as Xbox and Azure were credited as successes, even as the company missed opportunities in consumer devices. Computerworld’s account also identifies SharePoint, Office, SQL Server, Windows Server and Xbox as successes from the Ballmer era. These results make it difficult to reduce his record to either mobile missteps or business growth alone. Forbes contributor Tristan Louis’s 2013 retrospective and Computerworld’s 2012 coverage offer these contrasting measures.
How the historical figures should be read
The figures cited in coverage of Ballmer’s tenure describe different time periods and measures. They are historical snapshots, not current values, and share performance alone cannot establish whether a CEO was effective.
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|---|---|
| Share price and market capitalization | Forbes contributor Tristan Louis’s 2013 retrospective cited a Microsoft share price of $58.719 at the record high on December 23, 1999, and $33.27 at the close of the week discussed in September 2013. It gave market capitalizations of $616.3 billion and $277.14 billion, respectively. These are dated comparison points, not a current quote or a like-for-like evaluation of the whole CEO tenure. |
| Annualized yearly profits | Louis’s 2013 retrospective calculated that annualized yearly profits rose from roughly $25 billion to around $70 billion during Ballmer’s tenure. |
| Surface write-down | Louis reported a $900 million write-down following weak Surface computer sales in 2013. |
| Stock decline during tenure | Forbes’ 2013 year-end list said Microsoft stock fell 36% during Ballmer’s CEO tenure. This is that article’s figure; it should not be combined uncritically with Louis’s differently dated share-price comparison. |
The figures come from two Forbes articles with different dates and calculations: Louis’s 2013 retrospective and Forbes’ 2013 year-end list. They do not provide a single common method for reconciling every comparison.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.A fair way to judge Ballmer’s tenure
- Assess Microsoft’s response to the rise of phones and tablets separately from the performance of its enterprise products and services.
- Distinguish Hartung’s contemporary 2012 criticism from Forbes’ more retrospective 2013 account.
- Consider market value, operating results and product or business successes as separate evidence; none alone settles the question of leadership quality.
For context on Ballmer’s tenure, Forbes’ current profile identifies him as Microsoft’s former CEO from 2000 to 2014. The criticism and historical measures discussed here are drawn from the dated accounts above, not from a definitive independent ranking.
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