American businessman and investor (born 1956)
Steve Ballmer
Ballmer in 2014
Born Steven Anthony Ballmer
(1956-03-24 ) March 24, 1956 (age 68) Education Occupations Known for Former CEO of Microsoft Co-founder of Ballmer Group Owner of the Los Angeles Clippers Spouse
Connie Snyder
(
m. 1990)
Children 3
Steven Anthony Ballmer (; March 24, 1956) is an American businessman and investor who was the chief executive officer of Microsoft from 2000 to 2014.[ 1] He is the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is a co-founder of Ballmer Group , a philanthropic investment company.[ 2]
As of June 2024, Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimates his personal wealth at around $147 billion, making him the seventh-richest person in the world .[ 3] At the same time Forbes ranks him as the tenth-richest person with a net worth of $125 billion.[ 4]
Ballmer was hired by Bill Gates at Microsoft in 1980, and subsequently left the MBA program at Stanford University . He eventually became president in 1998, and replaced Gates as CEO on January 13, 2000.[ 5] [ 6] On February 4, 2014, Ballmer retired as CEO and was replaced by Satya Nadella ; Ballmer remained on Microsoft's board of directors until August 19, 2014.[ 7] [ 8]
Under Ballmer's leadership, the company tripled sales and doubled profits, but lost its market dominance and missed out on 21st-century technology trends such as the ascendance of smartphones in the forms of iPhone and Android .[ 9] [ 10] [ 11]
Players and sportswriters generally consider Ballmer's ownership of the Clippers as an improvement over previous owner Donald Sterling , citing his willingness to acquire superstar players and finance the construction of Intuit Dome .[ 12] [ 13]
^ "Steve Ballmer Fast Facts" . CNN . March 11, 2015. Archived from the original on February 6, 2016. Retrieved January 28, 2016 .
^ Greif, Andrew (July 8, 2020). "Steve Ballmer is putting his billions behind bigger causes in L.A. than the Clippers" . Los Angeles Times . Archived from the original on November 18, 2023. Retrieved November 18, 2023 .
^ "Bloomberg Billionaires Index: Steve Ballmer" . Bloomberg.com . Bloomberg L.P. Archived from the original on April 30, 2022. Retrieved November 5, 2023 .
^ "The world's real-time billionares" . Forbes . Retrieved March 14, 2024 .
^ "Steve Ballmer: Chief Executive Officer" . Microsoft. March 1, 2005. Archived from the original on February 3, 2008.
^ Cite error: The named reference :0
was invoked but never defined (see the help page ).
^ "Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to retire within 12 months" . Microsoft. August 23, 2013. Archived from the original on August 24, 2013.
^ "Microsoft Board names Satya Nadella as CEO" . Microsoft. February 4, 2014. Archived from the original on February 4, 2014.
^ "Why Tim Cook is Steve Ballmer" . October 26, 2016. Archived from the original on November 13, 2017. Retrieved November 12, 2017 .
^ Eichenwald, Kurt (July 24, 2012). "How Microsoft Lost Its Mojo: Steve Ballmer and Corporate America's Most Spectacular Decline" . The Hive . Archived from the original on November 13, 2017. Retrieved November 12, 2017 .
^ Rigby, Bill (August 23, 2013). "Steve Ballmer ends run as Microsoft's relentless salesman" . Reuters . Archived from the original on November 13, 2017. Retrieved November 12, 2017 .
^ Vorkunov, Mike. "Ranking NBA's best and worst owners: Why Steve Ballmer went No. 1" . Archived from the original on December 17, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2021 .
^ "The Boss | by Blake Griffin" . October 17, 2014.