Managing Innovation at Microsoft Research Roy Levin April 8, 2010.

Managing Innovationat Microsoft Research

Roy LevinApril 8, 2010

Outline

• The “what” and “why” of computing science research

• Microsoft Research: “why” and “how”

• Some research successes

http://research.microsoft.com2

What is (Computing) Research?

• “Basic” vs. “Applied”?• “Relevant” vs. “Blue-sky”?• “Short-term” vs. “Long-term”?• “Practical” vs. “Theoretical”?

There’s no simple definition!

http://research.microsoft.com3

Research: Reward/Risk

• Researchers (and their management) must answer these questions:– How likely is it to succeed? [Risk] – If it does, will it have value for my organization?

[Reward] • How?• How much?• When?

http://research.microsoft.com4

University Research

http://research.microsoft.com

Focus: Broad, government-supported, public-domain Determined by faculty/funding agency interest Education vehicle for students (perpetuate system)

Success metric (reward): Publications Faculty reputation (tenure track decision)

Needs in order to succeed: Funding agency approval

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Small company research

http://research.microsoft.com

Focus: Short-term; bounded risk. Advanced development

Success metric (reward): Artifacts transferred to product organizations

Needs in order to succeed: Medium-term management support Close co-operation with receiving organizations

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Big company research

http://research.microsoft.com

Focus: Long-term; varying breadth. Riskier than small company research. Costlier than university research.

Success metric (reward): Enhance existing businesses; create new ones.

Needs in order to succeed: Highly creative people Long-term management support Organizational stability

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Challenges for Research (big company)

• Focus– long-term but relevant

• Payoff– big gains come infrequently and unpredictably

• IP: a two-edged sword– protective but can induce isolation

• Management commitment in hard times

http://research.microsoft.com8

Challenges Managing Research

• Staying ahead (keeping enough risk)– the comfort zone– the competition

• Technology transfer (getting reward)– hazards are well known (Christensen; Moore)– eternal vigilance and creativity

• Metrics– Patents? Publications? Profit?

http://research.microsoft.com9

Outline

• The “what” and “why” of computing science research

• Microsoft Research: “why” and “how”

• Some research successes

http://research.microsoft.com10

MSR Labs at a Glance

Lab Location Founded Researchers

Redmond 1991 250

Cambridge (UK) 1998 125

Asia (Beijing) 1999 220

Silicon Valley 2001 70

India (Bangalore) 2005 50

New England 2008 10

http://research.microsoft.com

Omits other research-related groups totaling about 400 people and over 1000 interns.

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Where We Sit

http://research.microsoft.com

Steve BallmerCEO

Steven SinofskyWindows and Windows Live

Division

Bob MugliaServer and Tools

DIvision

Stephen ElopMS Business Division

Robbie BachEntertainment

and Devices Division

Qi LuOnline Services

Division

Craig MundieChief Research

and Strategy Officer

Rick RashidSVP MSR

Sales, marketing, and corporate functions (HR, Finance, Legal, etc.) are omitted.

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Research Areas

• Broad spectrum, 50+ areas (see web site)– speech recognition, user interface research, programming tools

and methodologies, distributed systems and networking, graphics, natural language processing, robotics, machine learning, databases, search , web interaction, search intent, security, information retrieval, …

• Driven by technology, not specific business needs– long-term and uncertain relevance, e.g., sensor nets, quantum

computing, computing theory

http://research.microsoft.com13

Research Areas

• Broad spectrum, 50+ areas (see web site)– speech recognition, user interface research, programming tools and

methodologies, distributed systems and networking, graphics, natural language processing, robotics, machine learning, databases, search, web interaction, search intent, information retrieval, …

• Driven by technology, not specific business needs– short-term targets of opportunity, e.g., file systems for flash memory– long-term and uncertain relevance, e.g., sensor nets, quantum

computing, computing theory

Our Mission (unchanged since 1991)

• Advance the state of the art.

• Bring advances quickly to Microsoft products and services.

• Ensure Microsoft products and services have a future.

http://research.microsoft.com15

Why World-Wide?

• Talent availability

• University connections

• Geographically flavored work– natural language processing (Asia, Redmond)– networking (Asia, India)

• The next billion users

http://research.microsoft.com16

Microsoft Research Norms

• Bottom-up– researchers create projects, not management

• Collaborative– within and across groups and labs, and externally

• Flat management structure– as much as possible, given lab sizes

• Open– most work presented publicly

• IP-based– patent protection routinely sought

• Publish “at the right time”

http://research.microsoft.com17

Relationship to MS Businesses

• Historically, technology transfer is the research’s toughest problem.

• MSR-PM (program management)– The “connector-facilitators”

• A contact sport– geography can pose challenges– development in Redmond, SVC, Beijing, Hyderabad

• Tech Fest• Building on past success

– Most MS products affected• Incubation• IP Licensing

http://research.microsoft.com18

More on Research Management

http://research.microsoft.com

Paper:

A Perspective on Computing Research Management

Available at http://research.microsoft.com/users/roylevin

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Outline

• The “what” and “why” of computing science research

• Microsoft Research: “why” and “how”

• Some research successes

http://research.microsoft.com20

Selected Technology Transfers

• Natural language processing– Office help system– Knowledge base automated

translation• Graphics

– Windows Media– DirectX/Direct3D– Numerous effect technologies

(Xbox)• Web search

– MSN core engine– Relevance ranking– Spam reduction– Intention/Tasks– Maps (routing)

• Large-scale spatial databases– Virtual Earth (Bing Maps)

• Machine learning– Drivatar (Forza Motorsport)– Filters in Outlook/Exchange (spam

reduction)• Software development tools

– PREfix/PREfast (find security holes)– Static driver verifier

• New user interface paradigms– Microsoft Surface

• Data centers & cloud computing– Dryad/DryadLINQ massively data-parallel

application paradigm– Storage infrastructure for Hotmail

http://research.microsoft.com21

http://research.microsoft.com

Focus Areas for MSR Silicon Valley

• Distributed Systems – e.g., Dryad

• Security and Privacy – e.g., differential privacy

• Web Search – e.g., Web spam

• Computer System Architecture – e.g., Beehive

• Computing Theory – e.g., shortest path routes

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http://research.microsoft.com