Microsoft's new CIO: A mouse that roars

As we reported on our website this past Friday, Microsoft hired Tony Scott as its new CIO to manage its IT world on a company-wide basis, overseeing its 4,000-person IT organization. His previous CIO post was at Disney, where he handled IT for the entertainment enterprise. It didn't take the company long to fill the essential slot that was vacated by Stuart Scott (no relation to Tony Scott), who was fired in November for undisclosed violations of company policy. It is no surprise that Microsoft went to another big company--Disney--with a worldwide impact to hire Tony Scott, 56, as it looked for someone with a world of experience to fill a very big job.

Scott has many highlights on his resume. Before working for Disney, he was the chief technology officer at General Motors and was vice president of operations at Bristol-Myers Squibb. He will have a number of tough challenges ahead as Bill Gates retires this year from Microsoft and more top executives are being hired from outside the company--moves that could change the face of Microsoft. Although the company has a strong hold on the IT market, the problems with its Vista software and the rocky state of the economy, not to mention IT, could have a big impact on the software giant.

For more on Microsoft's new CIO:
- See Digitaltrends.com article