Tom Keane, Microsoft’s Corporate VP and Head of Product and Engineering for its Strategic Missions and Technologies (SMT) team, has left the company after 21 years, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The SMT team, which Microsoft created in November 2021, groups together several cloud units including Microsoft's U.S Federal business, Azure Space and Mission Engineering, Azure for Operators and Azure Quantum.
Before his time in Microsoft’s SMT group, Keane was the Corporate VP and Head of Global Infrastructure, Industry Clouds and Digital Sovereignty for Azure, the company’s cloud unit.
Keane’s departure from Microsoft after more than two decades follows a report by Insider that uncovered allegations that he was verbally abusive towards staff. Over the span of his career at Microsoft, Keane was instrumental in the company’s cloud effort but reportedly picked up the moniker “King Tom” for his commanding management style and was allegedly known to tear employees down, even reducing some to tears, according to the Insider report.
On Linkedin, Keane painted the picture of his departure differently and wrote, “Today I am excited to share that I am leaving Microsoft and taking the next step in my career to build on the world’s computer. I could not be prouder of the last 21 years, and equally excited for my next journey to begin.”
Keane’s exit mirrors the departure of Alex Kipman, the executive responsible for Microsoft’s HoloLens augmented reality (AR) headset, whose alleged workplace behavior was also featured in Insider’s exposé.
The duo’s departures from the tech titan following public allegations of workplace misbehavior come, as Chariman and CEO Satya Nadella has promised to end Microsoft's tolerance for so-called "talented jerks." So far Nadella seems to be fulfilling his promise, meaning more heads could roll at the Seattle, Washington-based tech giant in the coming weeks and months.
Sign up now: Stay up to date, level up and hire better with our behind the scenes newsletters at the world’s top startups.
