How To Succeed In Business

Without Really Being Satya Nadella

As if you hadn’t heard, some guy named Satya Nadella just became Microsoft’s CEO.
He’s 46. He’s never run a company before. Yet he beat every other candidate to run one of the world’s largest companies.

How did he do that?

In researching the man, and how he rose to the top, I’ve come to the conclusion that he was picked for general qualities that every business person should try hard to excel at. Nadella excelled at all the universal qualities of “business virtue” (for lack of a better term).
Here are the eight ways that helped him get to the top:
1. Over-Educate Yourself
Nadella earned a bachelor’s degree in electronics and communication engineering at India’s Manipal University. In the U.S., he got a master’s degree in computer science from the University of Wisconsin, then an MBA from the University of Chicago.
Most people educate themselves to get their first job. Nadella’s education appears to be preparation for his ultimate job.
2. Be Loyal
Much is made about the fact that Nadella was a “22-year veteran” of Microsoft. But think about it.
That’s a long time for a rising, ambitious star with highly marketable skills and a gazillion industry connections to stick around. The only explanation is: loyalty. Nadella chose Microsoft and stuck it out through the good times and bad.
When it came time to pick a CEO, Microsoft went with a guy who has proven that he’s truly committed to the company.
3. Master The Technical Details
Numerous interviews with insiders who worked with Nadella tell us he worked hard to truly understand the technical details of the products and services he was in charge of.
The deeper you understand the core realities of any product, the better your decisions can be. Good decisions can translate to success and promotion.
4. Master The Business Details
Insiders also like to point out that Nadella truly understood the markets, customers and businesses that he targeted.
If you do this, you’ll make better decisions and be more successful.
5. Be The Golden Goose
Nadella ran Microsoft’s Cloud and Enterprise Group, which brought in $20.3 billion in revenue and $8.2 billion in operating income last year.
Business is about making money. So if your department, group, division or even you all by yourself consistently make more profits and revenues than the company is expecting, that creates a halo effect. The higher-ups will want to put you in charge of more stuff, because you’ve proved that you’re a money-maker.
6. Be Nice
Nice guys finish last, right? Wrong!
Nadella is a super-nice guy, yet he’s never stopped succeeding in his career.
Over the years of working within a company or industry, needless slights, insults, rudeness, dismissiveness, or carelessness with the feelings of others will mount up. They leave behind a trail of bad-mouthing, back-stabbing and, ultimately, career sabotage.
Always be nice.
7. Be Tough
Being nice doesn’t mean making the easy decisions that make everyone feel good. It simply means that you take the feelings of others seriously, and try not to trample on those feelings.
You can’t really succeed in any business unless you’re willing to make the right choices that also happen to be hard, unpopular and painful.
8. Change Everything, While Respecting Your Predecessors
One of the most interesting and unusual details about Nadella’s contract negotiations is that he reportedly told the search committee that he could not succeed without the dedicated advice of Microsoft co-founder, former CEO and now former Chairman Bill Gates.
This from a guy who doesn’t even mention the “S word” (software) in his list of Microsoft priorities—he says the future of Microsoft is services and devices. But he’s an innovator, who always wants to change everything—specifically, everything his predecessors did.
Driving change should never mean that you disrespect the people who built what you’re changing. Because those are often the people who decide on the promotions.
The Bottom Line
We’re not all going to run one of the largest companies in the world. But each of us can maximize our chances of success by cultivating these eight business virtues that got Satya Nadella to the very top.
Any tips to add? Weigh in with a comment below, and follow Mike Elgan (Google+) @MikeElgan (Twitter).

Image credit: Le Web (cc:by)