Also ex-employee of Microsoft -- used to work in SQL Server (very traditional, old-Microsoft group). Jobs people had in my group: (1) Developer: Write code. (2

Also ex-employee of Microsoft -- used to work in SQL Server (very traditional, old-Microsoft group). Jobs people had in my group: (1) Developer: Write code. (2) Test: Write automation to test the code developers write. (3) Program manager: Make sure everyone is coordinated and that there's a reliable, up-to-date spec for the product. Microsoft doesn't have a strong tradition of product management or design, and I'd argue those are the two areas where they're weakest as a company. Is there someone who works at Microsoft with the title "Product Manager"? I know there were "product planners", and "program managers", but not PM in the Silicon Valley sense of the term. They're especially good at partner management though, and I don't think they get enough credit for that.