Microsoft executives accused of abuse and misconduct by staff

Technology corporation Microsoft is the subject of allegations regarding misconduct and abuse from current and former employees.

The allegations: A report from Insider states that a number of leaders at the company have acted inappropriately.

• The claims date back as far as when the company was still under the control of Bill Gates (who stepped down as CEO in 2008) and Steve Ballmer (who left in 2014).
• Alex Kipman, Technical Fellow for Cloud and AI at Microsoft, is one of the top brass at the company to receive allegations. One claim is that he watched pornography in virtual reality during a meeting. The report states that a group of employees submitted dozens of complaints about him but there were never ever consequences.
• Tom Keane, Head of Product and Engineering and Corporate Vice President at Microsoft, was described as somebody who would "cut people down to pieces" and reduced people to tears. Two sources claim that he's internally named "King Tom" as he expects employees to be at his "beck and call" or they would "suffer his wrath."
• Terry Myerson, former Executive Vice President at Microsoft, also faces allegations. The report cites sources that state he was known for "abusing, berating, and belittling" employees throughout his 21-year tenure at the company.
• Read the report for more in-depth allegations.

Further context: While Microsoft certainly isn't the only major tech company to be on the receiving end of such allegations, it

• Microsoft is currently in the process of acquiring games giant Activision Blizzard for $68.7B. The gaming company is currently embroiled in multiple lawsuits for allegations of workplace misconduct.
• Just one day after the above allegations surfaced, it was reported that the tech company's Head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, said that the company would recognize Raven Software's union — a move that indeed provided a lot of positive public sentiment.
• In November 2021, Microsoft's shareholders approved a proposal that would stop the company from concealing any workplace allegations. Almost 78% of voters were in favor of the proposal, despite the board's recommendation to vote against it.