A few days ago I posted that Windows Live Expo Jobs Fails to Deliver. I was too tough on the team at Microsoft.
Garry Wiseman, product manager for Expo, posted the following feedback:
“You're right - on the 21st there weren't many CareerBuilder jobs (only a few thousand). The blog entry regarding the CB data went live a bit too soon (it wasn't a press release). If you check the site now and search for "sales" you'll see many more listings in the jobs category and the number will continue to grow.
Regarding being flawless at execution, just like all other software engineers - I suspect that I'll see mistakes made for as long as I work in the field of engineering, no matter how large or small the team I work with.
Our dedicated team of 10 (not all 65,000+ Microsoft employees work on Expo unfortunately!), we will continue to improve the service and strive to meet our customers demands.”
I’ve met Gary, and found him to be talented and a good guy. His response to my post does nothing but reinforce my impression. So, now that I’ve had a chance to think about it, I’d like to offer an apology to Gary and the Expo team. Sorry guys!
If I could go back, this is what I would conclude …
With increased resources come higher customer expectations. Yet at the same time, more resources mean increased bureaucracy, limiting the ability of great people to deliver the products that meet these higher expectations.
So as organizations grow, they lose the ability to exceed expectations; and when organizations become the size of Microsoft or Monster, they often lose the ability to consistently meet, forget exceed, expectations … the beginning of the end for some. It’s the bureaucracy that slowly kills them.
Looking at the big three in the job field … Monster, CareerBuilder and HotJobs … would you describe any of these organizations as innovative? Responsive? Savvy? Exceeding customer expectations?
There’s the rub. We expect a lot from those who have a lot; and yet, these same folks have the least freedom to surprise us with greatness.
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