The Richest Man in the World - Bill Gates - How He Builds His Brand
By Doug Dvorak
Everybody in America and more than half of the world know who he is. Many admire him and some don't. But the mere mention of his name conjures up words like vast wealth, leading technology, genius, and philanthropy.
The Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim Helu is said to have toppled Bill Gates as the richest person in the world, as reported in the August, 2007 issue of Fortune magazine. But the universally accepted authority on wealth ranking, Forbes magazine, still hasn't accorded the status to the Mexican telecommunications tycoon and ranks him second behind Bill Gates. So he is still the richest person in the world. From 1995-2007 he has been at his peak, unchallenged and undisputed.
Bill Gates made the concepts of "working in a garage" and "dropping out" of college fashionable. When Microsoft became popular and the journey of Bill Gates was talked about excitedly. The young entrepreneur soon surged ahead to become the richest man in the world. That established his brand value at a very exalted level. Even people that had nothing to do with a PC recognized his name.
Curiosity and genius in computers has been the forte of Bill Gates. He and a few of his class mates at his Lakeside school were inseparable from the computer that his school had leased from General Electric. These were the early days of computers. This group of students spent so much time on the computer that their class work got neglected. Soon the bunch of young hackers was able to break security codes, read all the files stored on the computer, and alter the time record to gain more computer time.
Such passion for computers was to be rewarded soon when MITS (Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems), the makers of Altair computers, agreed to use the BASIC program developed by Bill Gates and Paul Allen. Bill Gates was still in college and in a year, realizing the potential for soft ware programs for personal computers, he dropped out of college in 1975 to co-found Microsoft.
Since then through creating new software, aggressive marketing, acquisition, and filing law suits he has dominated the world of computer software and the internet. While he was busy working, the media did the rest - promote his brand relentlessly.
Bill Gates is a visionary and always thinks ahead of his time. He could spot the potential need of PCs and forayed into the market with new software in 1974. He still can spot future needs in the fields of computers. His company encourages innovative ideas and has a "THINK WEEK" ritual twice every year where he reads at least 100 papers from his employees and ponders about the future of Microsoft and that of computer technology. This has been the practice for the last 12 years.
The man himself works with little or no paper and encourages his staff to do so. He truly is the high-tech business guru. The habit of communicating via e-mails (all his employees can reach him through e-mail) and the practice of allowing fresh recruits to work in spacious and independent cubicles in Microsoft fosters a highly productive atmosphere in the field of computers as each year Microsoft applies for a number of software patents. Bill Gates knows that the first rule of branding is to treat the employees well. They are the first line of defense. They are the real brand warriors. If they are treated well they will not give an inch when protecting the reputation of the brand. He ensures that his employees are convinced and enthused about the Microsoft brand first.
Whether it is a response to the number of lawsuits filed against Microsoft and its chairman, especially the anti-trust law suit, or out of pure altruistic motives to share the good fortunes, the establishment of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has definitely taken the brand name of Bill Gates beyond blemish. Hundreds of thousand of lives are being saved in the developing world because of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Doug Dvorak is the CEO of DMG Inc., a worldwide organization that assists clients with productivity training, corporate humor and workshops, as well as other aspects of sales and marketing management. Mr. Dvorak's clients are characterized as Fortune 1000 companies, small to medium businesses, civic organizations and service businesses. Mr. Dvorak has earned an international reputation for his powerful educational methods and motivational techniques, as well as his experience in all levels of business, corporate education and success training - http://www.dougdvorak.com
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