What happens when a large, well-established, global corporation finds its market leadership position threated by seismic changes taking place in its industry? Microsoft recently undertook the largest and most significant transformation in its 42-year history, one that impacted every one of its 120,000 employees in more than 200 locations worldwide.

On October 19, AmCham Taipei invited Andrew Pickup, Senior Director of Communications from Microsoft Asia, to give a presentation on “Making Corporate Transformation Happen.” The session was held at the Shangri-la’s Far Eastern Plaza.

From left to right: AmCham Secretary Vincent, Assistant General Counsel, GM, Corporate, External & Legal Affairs at Microsoft Taiwan Corp.; AmCham President Andrea Wu; Speaker Andrew Pickup, Senior Director of Communications at Microsoft Asia AmCham; and AmCham Supervisor Nadia Chen, Country Executive, The Bank of New York Mellon Taipei Branch

Pickup shared with the audience the challenges (and opportunities) Microsoft saw as worldwide PC shipments and sales figures continued to decline over the last decade. In transforming the business to deal with that trend, he said, Microsoft focused on the following priorities:

Organizational Design–ensuring that business units, including engineering teams, are fully aligned with business outcomes.
Outcomes and Incentives – making sure desired outcomes are clearly communicated and understood, and that a reward system is in place to provide incentives.
Training and Readiness – providing guidance so that employees feel fully confident and supported throughout the transformation process.
Culture and Values – making sure employees understand the behaviors expected from them so that there is a shared sense of responsibility.

While it can be a challenge to get employees excited and working together in support of a transformational strategy, Pickup stressed that it can lead to positive outcomes for long-term success.

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