Dear Mr. Ballmer,

I’ve been a mobile device enthusiast since 1997.  My first device was a Palm Sized PC from Casio – The E10.  It was a QVGA, 4 grey scale device.  The full specs can be seen here. (And was I surprised to find that Casio still has the tech spec info on their web site..? uh-huh. Oh yes I was…)

Interestingly enough, the Palm Sized PC was a me-too response to the(I think it was actually 3COM back then…someone correct me in the comments if I’m wrong…) Palm Pilot.  From 1997 until 2010, I’ve been a Windows Mobile enthusiast.  I know I’ve been nominated for Mobile Devices MVP at least twice during that time. Unfortunately, I was never awarded the honor.

Regardless of that, this open letter is being written and posted to speak to one specific subject -

Microsoft can’t afford to let Windows Phone 7 Series suck.

Please, PLEASE don’t suck…

Over the past 13 years, Microsoft’s Mobile Strategy and operating system have been a response to other market innovators.  First it was 3COM/Palm, then RIM and their Blackberry devices then the iPhone and then a myriad number of Android devices.  Unfortunately, Microsoft has never truly been a market leader, a market innovator in this sector. This needs to change, and change NOW, if Microsoft is going to survive in the mobile computing space.

With the recent demise of the Microsoft KIN, additional scrutiny is being placed on the, now utterly late to market, Windows Phone 7 Series OS. According to one InfoWorld article, Microsoft seems to be copying the implementation of the original iPhone – a device that’s now 4 years old, and 4 revisions back. That device with those capabilities at this point in time, sucks. This seems to be additional me too work from Microsoft, and is destined to failure if it doesn’t get things right.

So, how can Microsoft turn this ship around?  Its simple really.  Do the right thing.

1. Dump Entrenched Management, Strategy and Visions – They OBVIOUSLY don’t have a clue.  After 15 years of playing catch-up, isn’t it time to look at this from a different angle? Sometimes, going back to formula is just what is needed.Maybe, Steve… maybe… the answer doesn’t lie with a Harvard graduate with an MBA and a doctorate in mobile technology.  Maybe the answer lies with the mobile community you’ve had at your fingertips for the last 10-15 years. They think outside the box all the time. Its time to do that or pack it up and go home. Tap your MVP’s.  Tap Mobius… hell, tap ME; but tap someone who understands mobile computing, what it needs and what it doesn’t and LISTEN TO THEM. 

   Empower them to develop your strategy and vision. Empower them to develop the road map; and then LET THEM do it, or get out of mobile devices entirely. 

   Windows Mobile has been a second rate, second best OS for far too long. Its got TONS of potential and users wanting, begging for the right direction, vision, strategy to compete with others like Apple and RIM; but up to now, you haven’t come close, and OBVIOUSLY, it has everything to do with the leadership, their vision and their strategy for the platform.  Workers follow the beat of the drum.  When it doesn’t have a good beat and isn’t easy to dance to, people get lost and don’t know what to do.

2. Determine your Audience – Consumers or Business, not both.  Apple’s iPhone is a consumer device trying to live in the enterprise.  RIM’s Blackberry <pick a model> is an enterprise device trying to compete in the consumer space.  The iPhone is a winner in the consumer market because it knows what it wants to do in that space and gives consumers what it wants.  The same with RIM in the Enterprise market.  Microsoft can compete in either space, but I think both Apple and RIM have demonstrated that their devices don’t work and play well in the OPPOSITE space.  They can’t seem to get it right; and Microsoft shouldn’t gamble at this point.  They need to get a solid device out in the market and then build on the success.  Building an ok device that straddles the line between both consumer and enterprise spaces is going to flop. Pick one or the other and then hit that strategy with everything you’ve got.
3. Develop the Vision– I noted back in May how Google could Trump the iPad/iPhone/iPod. I also noted in the article that the only other company with the resources to make a bid for that move was Microsoft. While I think that MS really shouldn’t chase after that right now, the principles are the same.
   1. Make the Choice (consumer space or enterprise space/ in or out)
   2. Develop the strategy (Who will you partner with? How will you get there? What will it look like?)
   3. Create the Eco-System
4. Commit the Resources – If you’re going to do this, then do it. Set this up right. Give the management team the authority they need to get the job done. Give them access to the tools and resources they need to support the strategy and vision. Give them the programming teams they need. If you’re not going to really commit to this, don’t waste everyone’s time.  Don’t get the consumer and/or retail markets interested in something that isn’t really going to happen. If you’re not really going to commit to this, then say so and just bow out.
5. Hit it; and Hit it Hard – If the project is a go, then go, gO, GO! You’re really about 4 years behind at this point. You need an OS that’s going to run on existing WM compatible hardware; and we need to get something to market inside of 9 months, or else this is never going to be successful. People, customers, companies, bloggers/journalists, etc., will have moved on. Working with a partner to develop new hardware needs to wait until after the new OS is established, has a supportive enthusiast base and paying customers.  There’s enough hardware out there now from HTC and other OEM’s that run Windows Mobile that you should be able to target an existing device with an OS update that gets the job done.You don’t have the luxury of waiting on a hardware development lifecycle to finish.

I saw another article today that spoke to the feature set that is clearly unfinished; but again, its working against a three and a half year old paradigm, which clearly isn’t going to distinguish Microsoft in this space in any way, shape or form.

Mr. Ballmer, recent developments with Apple’s iPhone 4 (Antenna-gate, supplier problems with the white iPhone 4, and a reported increase in bricking due to flashing problems) and the fragmentation of Google’s Android OS (there are still actively sold devices on the shelves with Android 1.5 or 1.6, even after Android 2.2 has been pushed to their Nexus One on T-Mobile and AT&T in the US) is creating a unique opportunity for Microsoft to make a change in the mobile devices marketplace.  Anything else other than a solid win here could be problematic for mobile computing and for mobile computing at Microsoft.

Please Mr. Ballmer… Do the right thing.  I’ll support you in ANY way I can (as I know many Windows Mobile enthusiasts will); but please… Do the right thing for your customers, the industry, and most importantly Microsoft and its shareholders.

Kindest Regards,

Christopher Spera
Team Member, Just Another Mobile Monday