Microsoft’s personnel officer, Doug McKenna, explains that “we count on them [temps]
to do a lot of important work for us. We use them to provide us with flexibility and to
deal with uncertainty.”11 This flexibility, in turn, adds to Microsoft’s capability to
compete effectively, and under extreme conditions, to maintaining its value as a going concern.
Referring to the temporary workers, Microsoft’s director of contingent staffing,
Sharon Decker, says that “we want to be very flexible as a company, to be able to react to
competitive challenges and react quickly.”12 Without such flexibility, a bad turn of events
could create uncertainty about Microsoft’s competitive ascendancy and its ability to
continue setting the industry standards. This uncertainty alone might lead Microsoft’s
customers, suppliers, or employees to alter their behavior, worsening the impact of the
initial negative shock. If this shock is big enough, customers may begin to defect, as they
question Microsoft’s ability to provide future service and upgrades.