Best Advice & Life Lessons with Bob Davis (Microsoft 365)
Sep 22, 2021
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Bob Davis, Corporate Vice President Growth & Experience at Microsoft, shares his best advice and key lessons on building and running Microsoft 365, putting things in perspective during crisis, making new mistakes, listening to customers, and prioritizing. He also discusses the importance of detailed planning, leaving things better than you found them, and showing the world who you are.
Customer engagement and empathy are key factors in Microsoft's success.
Recognizing opportunities and aligning strengths with industry needs is crucial for personal and professional growth.
Deep dives
The Importance of Customer Engagement and Empathy
Bob Davis emphasizes the significance of customer engagement and empathy, which he believes are key factors in Microsoft's success. He highlights the importance of listening to customers and understanding their needs in order to provide better services. This customer-focused approach has been a central part of Microsoft's culture, especially under the leadership of Satya Nadella.
Making Decisions Based on Where the Action Is
Bob Davis discusses the importance of making decisions based on where the action is and playing to one's strengths. He refers to his decision to join the team working on B-POS, which eventually evolved into Office 365. Although the success of this venture was uncertain at the time, he recognized the potential and focused on leveraging his understanding of enterprise IT to contribute effectively. This highlights the significance of recognizing opportunities and aligning one's strengths with the evolving needs of the industry.
Maintaining Calm and Progress in High-Pressure Situations
One of Bob Davis's superpowers is his ability to remain calm and make progress in high-pressure situations. He acknowledges the importance of staying composed and working through problems rather than panicking. This characteristic has proven valuable in crisis management and customer engagements, helping to build trust and navigate challenging situations effectively.
Keeping First Things First and Leaving a Positive Impact
Bob Davis shares the advice he received about keeping first things first. This advice guides him in prioritizing tasks and focusing on what is most important. Additionally, he emphasizes the importance of leaving things better than they were found, both in professional and personal life. By striving to make a positive impact, Bob has worked towards continuous improvement and growth throughout his career.
This podcast episode of On the BALL (Best Advice & Life Lessons) hosted by Srini Raghavan, features Bob Davis. Bob is the Corporate Vice President Growth & Experience at Microsoft. He is a founding member of what became Office 365 and has occupied leadership positions since its inception to becoming a fast-growing multi-billion-dollar business, perhaps the biggest enterprise SaaS business - with millions of customers and hundreds of millions of users.. You don't want to miss this.
His best advice and key lessons from the episode:
Building and running multibillion dollar enterprise SaaS (Office 365) from scratch
Taking a step back, putting things in perspective during crisis
Making new mistakes, not make the same mistake twice
First things first, getting the priorities right
It's all about listening to customers. Really listening.
Not letting things fester when it comes to people decisions
As an introvert, detailed planning & preparation is key
Leaving things better than you found it
"Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
We have two lives and the second begins and we realize we have only one
Show the world with presence, actions and the way you lead your life, who you are
and more.
On the BALL is a podcast show where I focus on extracting best advice and lessons from world-class performers & leaders from various fields, by deconstructing and teasing out their routines, success habits, tactics, techniques, hacks, tricks, secrets and the best advice or life lesson they've ever received.
If you enjoyed the podcast, please hit subscribe. @SriniRaghavan
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