RESHAPE MICROSOFT

STEVE BALLMER IS TRYING TO RESHAPE MICROSOFT

The sudden departure of powerful Windows boss Steven Sinofsky this week is the first step in a plan by CEO Steve Ballmer to remodel Microsoft as a much more integrated operation in an attempt to take on Apple and Google at their own game.After nearly 13 years at the helm of the world's largest software maker, which just launched its first own-brand computer, sources inside the company say Sinofsky's departure signals Ballmer's new-found focus on co-operation between its self-sufficient - and sometimes warring - units.What I'm hearing over and over is collaboration and horizontal integration is the new mantra," said one Microsoft insider, who asked not to be named. "They (top management) understand that, if they don't move to a model where devices and software are more integrated across the entire Microsoft system, they are in a weak position." After floundering for most of the last decade, Microsoft is trying emulate the way Apple's software and hardware - such as iTunes and the iPhone - work perfectly together; or how Google's online suite from Web search to YouTube and Gmail are seamlessly joined.

Microsoft - which Ballmer rechristened as a "devices and services company" last month - has all the parts, analysts say, but has failed to put them together. Now Ballmer looks set to reshape the company to try to make that a reality.I certainly expect the org chart to look a lot different six months from now," said Brad Silverberg, who ran the Windows unit during its massive growth spurt in the 1990s. "There will be attrition from Steven's (Sinofsky's) people and Steve Ballmer will have a chance to create a more harmonious organisation.Ballmer replaced Sinofsky with two executives with a reputation for co-operation. The move marks the third time in the last few years that Ballmer has replaced a single unit head with two leaders sharing responsibilities.Sinofsky really centralised all the power under himself. We'll see how it shakes out from here," said one manager in the Windows unit. More fundamental organizational shifts could be in the cards.A lot of things are up for grabs," said David Smith at tech research firm Gartner. "How the management is structured - there could be more changes.