Jodi Uecker-Rust: Tough lady point guard in Bill Gates’ Microsoft team
July 13, 2001 | 12:00am
One of America’s top lady corporate leaders is former college varsity basketball team point guard Jodi Uecker-Rust, the chief operating officer (COO) of the North Dakota-based Micosoft Great Plains Business Solutions.When Rust joined Great Plains based in Fargo, North Dakota in 1984, the firm had 55 employees and US$3 million per year in software sales. Today, the company has grown with yearly revenues of US$300 million in the fiscal year ending May 31. She describes employees as "team members," who now total 2,000 worldwide. Great Plains is a part of the world’s biggest software giant Microsoft, where the lady COO has the rank of vice president. As a point guard in basketball before and now in Microsoft, Uecker-Rust sees the floor well, plays hard with a big amount of hustle, is very determined and hates to lose.
Great Plains has since April 5 this year become part of Microsoft, which was recently ranked the world’s second most valuable corporation with a market value of US$369.10 billion by the July 9, 2001 issue of BusinessWeek. Coincidentally, the July 9, 2001 issue of Forbes magazine reports: "Amazing Microsoft. After rallying strongly since the end of 2000, its stock price makes the 45-year-old William Henry Gates III the wealthiest man in the world for the seventh year in a row. He’s down just US$1.3 billion from last year, to US$58.7 billion." Last year amid the bitter antitrust court case of the government against Microsoft, Gates relinquished the title of chief executive officer to Steve Ballmer, and he took on the titles of "Chief Software Architect" and chairman.
When asked to describe her two bosses Bill Gates and Microsoft president Steve Ballmer, Uecker-Rust tells Philippine STAR in an interview: "Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, both are very involved in the business, they have great experiences. What struck me is how involved they are. Both is a good marriage. Steve is really focused, and he came from the sales and marketing side of the business. On the other hand, the founder Bill is a visionary who leads the future direction and the architecture. Steve is full of enthusiasm, he has a loud voice and is full of energy. Bill is a genius, more into the technical aspects. How are they as bosses? They ask very thought-provoking questions. They never cease to provide new challenges."
Although criticized for entering the Internet revolution late, Bill Gates led his Microsoft to aggressively catch up with and even surpass his competitors. Now his Internet Explorer dominates the market for the browser giving access to the World Wide Web. On April 5, Microsoft completed the purchase of Great Plains Business Solutions for US$1.1 billion and absorbed the dynamic software firm as a division that services small and mid-sized companies. Microsoft Great Plains has over 140,000 businesses in 132 countries using its software for financials, distribution, project accounting, electronic commerce and many other activities. Rust tells this writer that talks between Great Plains and Microsoft started in July 2000, an announcement was made in December 2000, but the whole transaction was closed in April.
Says Uecker-Rust: "The purchase will be beneficial for all involved. In fact, we actually described the transaction as we had bought into Microsoft, because it is a world-class company which complements our operations. Strategically, the deal is good for Great Plains and Microsoft. Organizationally, it was also very successful. Financially, it was also very good for shareholders.Right now, overseas sales are only 17 percent of our total revenues, while overseas sales of Microsoft are over 50 percent of total revenues, so when we sell in the international market, most especially the Asia Pacific region, the Microsoft name and experiences can be very valuable. The reach of the Microsoft brand, the awareness, that will be a very big help worldwide."
Always determined not to be outdone by Microsoft, billionaire Larry Ellison of Oracle on June 26 announced a partnership with NetLedger to go after the lucrative small and mid-sized business market, which American Information Industry (IT) analysts agreed was aimed at directly competing with Microsoft Great Plains Software. Ellison himself admitted that the new partnership of the world’s second biggest software giant Oracle with NetLedger was "a direct assault on Microsoft." Under the revenue-sharing deal, NetLedger’s suite of financial, marketing and customer relationship applications will be rebranded as the "Oracle Small Business Suite."
Jodi Uecker-Rust is the primemover behind the phenomenal success of Great Plains in e-business solutions and in becoming repeatedly cited by Fortune magazine as among the "100 Best Companies to Work for in America." She is also chairman for North Dakota’s Workforce Development Council and a commissioner of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools.
She also served as a key adviser to North Dakota state’s newly-elected Republican Governor John Hoeven, especially in his choice of Cabinet officials. A devoted mother in a state known for rugged individualism and old-fashioned values, Uecker-Rust studied industrial engineering and management.
Since 1994, Great Plains has repeatedly been cited as among the 100 best firms to work in in the US. She explains: "This does not happen by default. The Great Plains chief executive officer years ago had a very strong vision. We have become an organization that is always committed to creating a working environment where people are committed to their goals, they all feel that what they are doing has a sense of purpose. Our mission statement is to improve the lives and business success of partners and customers. We want to build a community within Microsoft Great Plains. We find that our team members feel like they are working for something more and it tends to make their lives more successful. New hires go through a process called Share the Vision.We are a company with a strong sense of values, it is the glue that keeps us together. We have a trust-based management style. We recruit the most talented people, we aspire for high performance, remove obstacles to performance. There’s no looking over people’s shoulders. We really focus on hiring good people. We focus on goals."
Great Plains runs many different community-building events throughout the year. This year, on June 26 to 27, it had its Asia Pacific celebration of "Pioneer Days" in the Philippines, holding this annual corporate tradition for the first time outside Fargo, North Dakota. The event was really meant to share plans and statetegies for next year, a time when employees have fun, interact and build team spirit. Employees in the corporation usually wear plain casual clothes, with Uecker-Rust joking that if you see people walking in the halls wearing a suit or a tie at Great Plains, they are "either going to a funeral or looking for a job somewhere else. We’re not even preppie-casual, we’re just plain casual."
Mother to two daughters and a devoted wife, she keeps fit by playing golf, tennis and skiing with her family, but her passion for basketball remains. What has she learned from her years as a college basketball point guard which is now useful in her corporate career? Uecker-Rust said: "In basketball, I admire Jerry West of the 1960s to 1970s and of course, Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball player that has ever played the game. I was a point guard in basketball, and a big part of being a point guard is to help make the team work. Frequently, everyone in the floor is better than you are, but you have to make the team work. In business, we want to get a lot of talented leaders together to aspire for shared goals. In sports, I learned that hard work is always important. I learned to be competitive. In basketball, you also learn how to celebrate victories. It’s an important thing, we do that a lot in Microsoft Great Plains, and I believe it’s important for all organizations."
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Great Plains has since April 5 this year become part of Microsoft, which was recently ranked the world’s second most valuable corporation with a market value of US$369.10 billion by the July 9, 2001 issue of BusinessWeek. Coincidentally, the July 9, 2001 issue of Forbes magazine reports: "Amazing Microsoft. After rallying strongly since the end of 2000, its stock price makes the 45-year-old William Henry Gates III the wealthiest man in the world for the seventh year in a row. He’s down just US$1.3 billion from last year, to US$58.7 billion." Last year amid the bitter antitrust court case of the government against Microsoft, Gates relinquished the title of chief executive officer to Steve Ballmer, and he took on the titles of "Chief Software Architect" and chairman.
When asked to describe her two bosses Bill Gates and Microsoft president Steve Ballmer, Uecker-Rust tells Philippine STAR in an interview: "Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, both are very involved in the business, they have great experiences. What struck me is how involved they are. Both is a good marriage. Steve is really focused, and he came from the sales and marketing side of the business. On the other hand, the founder Bill is a visionary who leads the future direction and the architecture. Steve is full of enthusiasm, he has a loud voice and is full of energy. Bill is a genius, more into the technical aspects. How are they as bosses? They ask very thought-provoking questions. They never cease to provide new challenges."
Although criticized for entering the Internet revolution late, Bill Gates led his Microsoft to aggressively catch up with and even surpass his competitors. Now his Internet Explorer dominates the market for the browser giving access to the World Wide Web. On April 5, Microsoft completed the purchase of Great Plains Business Solutions for US$1.1 billion and absorbed the dynamic software firm as a division that services small and mid-sized companies. Microsoft Great Plains has over 140,000 businesses in 132 countries using its software for financials, distribution, project accounting, electronic commerce and many other activities. Rust tells this writer that talks between Great Plains and Microsoft started in July 2000, an announcement was made in December 2000, but the whole transaction was closed in April.
Says Uecker-Rust: "The purchase will be beneficial for all involved. In fact, we actually described the transaction as we had bought into Microsoft, because it is a world-class company which complements our operations. Strategically, the deal is good for Great Plains and Microsoft. Organizationally, it was also very successful. Financially, it was also very good for shareholders.Right now, overseas sales are only 17 percent of our total revenues, while overseas sales of Microsoft are over 50 percent of total revenues, so when we sell in the international market, most especially the Asia Pacific region, the Microsoft name and experiences can be very valuable. The reach of the Microsoft brand, the awareness, that will be a very big help worldwide."
Always determined not to be outdone by Microsoft, billionaire Larry Ellison of Oracle on June 26 announced a partnership with NetLedger to go after the lucrative small and mid-sized business market, which American Information Industry (IT) analysts agreed was aimed at directly competing with Microsoft Great Plains Software. Ellison himself admitted that the new partnership of the world’s second biggest software giant Oracle with NetLedger was "a direct assault on Microsoft." Under the revenue-sharing deal, NetLedger’s suite of financial, marketing and customer relationship applications will be rebranded as the "Oracle Small Business Suite."
She also served as a key adviser to North Dakota state’s newly-elected Republican Governor John Hoeven, especially in his choice of Cabinet officials. A devoted mother in a state known for rugged individualism and old-fashioned values, Uecker-Rust studied industrial engineering and management.
Since 1994, Great Plains has repeatedly been cited as among the 100 best firms to work in in the US. She explains: "This does not happen by default. The Great Plains chief executive officer years ago had a very strong vision. We have become an organization that is always committed to creating a working environment where people are committed to their goals, they all feel that what they are doing has a sense of purpose. Our mission statement is to improve the lives and business success of partners and customers. We want to build a community within Microsoft Great Plains. We find that our team members feel like they are working for something more and it tends to make their lives more successful. New hires go through a process called Share the Vision.We are a company with a strong sense of values, it is the glue that keeps us together. We have a trust-based management style. We recruit the most talented people, we aspire for high performance, remove obstacles to performance. There’s no looking over people’s shoulders. We really focus on hiring good people. We focus on goals."
Great Plains runs many different community-building events throughout the year. This year, on June 26 to 27, it had its Asia Pacific celebration of "Pioneer Days" in the Philippines, holding this annual corporate tradition for the first time outside Fargo, North Dakota. The event was really meant to share plans and statetegies for next year, a time when employees have fun, interact and build team spirit. Employees in the corporation usually wear plain casual clothes, with Uecker-Rust joking that if you see people walking in the halls wearing a suit or a tie at Great Plains, they are "either going to a funeral or looking for a job somewhere else. We’re not even preppie-casual, we’re just plain casual."
Mother to two daughters and a devoted wife, she keeps fit by playing golf, tennis and skiing with her family, but her passion for basketball remains. What has she learned from her years as a college basketball point guard which is now useful in her corporate career? Uecker-Rust said: "In basketball, I admire Jerry West of the 1960s to 1970s and of course, Michael Jordan, the greatest basketball player that has ever played the game. I was a point guard in basketball, and a big part of being a point guard is to help make the team work. Frequently, everyone in the floor is better than you are, but you have to make the team work. In business, we want to get a lot of talented leaders together to aspire for shared goals. In sports, I learned that hard work is always important. I learned to be competitive. In basketball, you also learn how to celebrate victories. It’s an important thing, we do that a lot in Microsoft Great Plains, and I believe it’s important for all organizations."
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