While at Microsoft , I had five personal encounters with Satya Nadella: 1) I accidentally ran into his office during a call with Wall Street analysts 2) Three months later, in an elevator, where he asked me if I was the person that ran in his office. He simply asked if it was important and whether I still needed his help 3) When I "mistakenly" parked in the Microsoft Giving Campaign spot that he bought for charity :) 4) At a HiPo luncheon, where we chatted for 30 minutes about an initiative I was leading 5) Tuesday, February 4, 2014 at 10:46 AM, the day he became CEO of Microsoft. I sent him a congratulatory email that, among other things, had this direct ask: “Empower the engineers, enable us to deliver faster and better, break down the bureaucratic barriers that keep us from executing” On quite possibly the most consequential day of his professional life, Satya responded, a mere *six minutes later*: "Thank you…… and thanks for the feedback…. Also I would ask you to give yourself permission to lead/push as well…. thanks" Are leading with empathy/focusing on employee psychological safety effective? Look at Microsoft's stock price (congratulations on a stellar quarter!), innovation, and employee morale since Satya became CEO. The results speak for themselves #leadership
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#leadership