Microsoft CEO Ballmer charms sell-out crowd at Broad Executive Forum

Eli Broad Professor of Management John R. Hollenbeck (standing) demonstrates the Dynamic Distributed Decision-making (DDD) simulation to Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer after the Broad Executive Forum in December. The simulation is used at the Broad School for teaching team and leadership skills, and for researching the psychological issues related to how people perform in teams.

More than 400 Southeast Michigan businesspeople, Broad School students and alumni packed the MSU Management Education Center in Troy, Mich., in early December to hear Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer's "Customer-focused innovation." And judging by the laughter and applause, no one was disappointed.

The full transcript of Ballmer's speech is available on the Microsoft website.

A video of the speech is available for download here.

Read the Ballmer interview with Detroit Free Press reporter Mike Wendland is available on the Detroit Free Press website.

Earlier in the daylong event, marketing experts discussed how companies win new customers and keep them loyal. The panel moderator was Doron Levin of Bloomberg News, and panel members included:

• Steve Goodall, president and CEO, J.D. Power and Associates (Click here for slide presentation)
• Greg Haller, regional president, Verizon Wireless (Click here for slide presentation)
• Gilbert Harrell, professor of marketing, Eli Broad Graduate School of Management
• Steve Liguori, global retail marketing officer, Morgan Stanley (Click here for slide presentation)
• Jay Spenchian, director of marketing, Cadillac Division, General Motors (Click here for slide presentation)

The event, which is sponsored and organized by Broad School alumni, began with a faculty-led workshop conducted by associate professor of information technology Cheri Speier. For more information about the Broad Executive Forum, click here.

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