I just read an impressive story written by Brad Chase, a former Microsoft executive, who led the Windows 95 marketing effort aimed at enhancing consumer demand for personal computers.[1] Central to those endeavors was his negotiations with the Rolling Stones in connection with acquiring rights to Start Me Up, the proposed back-up music and “hook” for a Windows 95 television ad. On May 25, 1995, Brad flew to Amsterdam to meet with the Rolling Stones’ concert promoter and discuss possible deal terms. After the meeting, Brad was invited to attend the Stones’ dress rehearsal concert at the Paradiso, a three-hour performance in which he was one of only two non-Stones personnel in attendance.
The negotiations took place over the next month and were ultimately successful, with Microsoft acquiring the rights to the original version of the song. The ad launch was an immediate sensation; some people think it is one of the most successful television ads in Microsoft history.
It is humbling to compare my resume with Brad’s, given that this story is just a sample of his remarkable career. But upon reflection, Brad’s life and mine have some parallels. For example, like Brad, I have flown coach many times, although to be clear, not while sitting next to Bill Gates as Brad did in the early, frugal Microsoft days. I have had a familial interaction with Bill through my brother who once hit the Big Guy in the face with an errant tennis ball volley while playing on the next court over.
Brad has met many famous people while working at Microsoft. Not to brag, but I have rubbed shoulders with the rich and famous as well. When I was a little girl, my parents took me to the airport to meet Vice-President Hubert Humphrey, who shook my hand and appeared genuinely pleased at the interaction. In the 1970’s, I happened to cross the street with actor Lee Majors of Six Million Dollar Man fame, and I saw the original Colonel Sanders at the Lexington, Kentucky airport. Some years ago, I saw Ken Griffey, Jr. at a Pizza Hut restaurant, and though he declined to give my baseball-obsessed son an autograph, I am sure the chance meeting was meaningful to him. In 2007, I had a significant moment at a social event with a Fortune 100 CEO, where we both commiserated about the recent thrashing of our retirement accounts at the hands of a stock market crash. More recently I saw our veterinarian being interviewed on Good Morning America; even our family dogs include famous folks in their inner circle.
I have some game, too, when it comes to negotiating skills, just like Brad does. In the last several weeks, for example, I have insisted that a doctor’s office remove a $3.88 late fee, required a retailer to accept an expired gift certificate, and demanded a grocer refund me for moldy raspberries. The list of accomplishments goes on and on.
All things considered, I think Brad will be in good company if our paths ever cross in a coffee shop. He will no doubt want to buy me a latte, and I suspect our interaction will be featured in his next book.
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[1] The story is contained in Mr. Chase’s new book, Strategy First – How Businesses Win Big, available for pre-order through Amazon.