Kellie Green

As 2026 begins, I find myself reflecting on 2025—a significant milestone marking 20 years at Microsoft. This isn't an ending or a moment of arrival; rather, a reminder of how much is still evolving—especially right now. 2025 highlighted a generational shift in how we build, lead, and grow Engineering talent. While AI is accelerating many aspects, the true transformation lies in how we redesign work, decision-making, and leadership in a world where talent is constantly in motion. Here are a few lessons that shape my leadership approach: 🔹 Skills > labels: Focusing on what people can do leads to better decisions, rather than just their titles. 🔹 AI elevates leaders; it doesn’t replace judgment: The real value lies in clarity, signal, and speed where human decisions are still essential. 🔹 Mobility is a growth engine: Visibility and a stigma-free environment fuel retention and innovation. 🔹 Psychological safety is performance infrastructure: Clear ownership, honest escalation, and role clarity unlock scalability. Two decades have not brought certainty but rather perspective. Each major inflection point has required as much unlearning as learning, and this one is no different. Looking ahead to 2026, I am energized by the work before us: advancing a skills-first, growth-first talent model, scaling internal mobility effectively for Engineering, and strengthening leadership readiness for future challenges. I am grateful for the partners, leaders, and teams who sought clarity, embraced experimentation, and raised the bar in 2025. The journey continues, and I am more motivated than ever by the path ahead.

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Insecurity in leadership doesn't just show up as individual hesitation. It also affects how teams communicate, make decisions and sustain momentum. When leaders default to micromanaging, seek reassurance or resist candid feedback, the unintended effect is often confusion, slowed execution and a heavier load on the very people expected to drive results. Great leadership requires grounding decision making in trust, supporting psychological safety and shaping an environment where people feel empowered to bring their best without fear. #TeamPerformance #OrganizationalGrowth

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[#25x25Leadership 9/25] 💬 “You’re Too Emotional” - and Why That Was Never the Problem "You are too emotional." That is the feedback a leader gave me years ago. Even though I thought I was prepared for critique, those four words stung. They lingered in my head for a long time. For the first part of my career, I tried to fix it. I watched my male colleagues. I studied how they took up space. I tried to emulate their executive presence. But the more I tried to act like them, the more I felt like a fraud. Eventually, I stopped caring about fitting in... And started caring about connecting. And looking back now, that shift was critical. The world has changed. The isolation of the pandemic and the weight of global uncertainty have weighed heavily on us all. In those moments, "checking your emotions at the door" wasn't just impossible, it was unhelpful. We didn't need stoic robots. We needed human and real connection. I found that sharing my feelings in meetings didn't make me weak. It created an inclusive space. It gave others permission to not be okay. It made the work bearable. Empathy isn't a liability. It is a leadership asset. If you are a leader reading this: Please, respect the emotions of your team. We are humans first, employees second. I’m curious: What is a piece of "constructive criticism" you received early in your career that you now completely disagree with? 👇 Let’s discuss in the comments.

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If you missed MCPconference NYC last week — the energy was something else. What started as an attempt to bring a real conversation around AI context to the East Coast turned into people flying in from all over the world for a single-day event. 🌏 That alone tells you something. The community is real, and folks are eager to learn from each other. Huge thanks to Paul H., Daniel Beamon, Tess Dingwall Fridrici, Daggi B., and Romy Weiss - I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

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Last night over dinner, my daughter—currently in 10th grade—hit me with one of those big questions only Gen Z dares to ask: “Dad, does it make sense to pursue engineering anymore? Tech giants everywhere are laying off thousands. Is AI going to wipe out opportunities? What’s your honest advice for my generation?” As a parent and an AI strategist, my answer was simple, yet decisive: This is Gen Z’s moment. AI isn’t here to take away dreams—it’s here to expand them. Sure, the headlines speak of automation and disruption, but beneath that is a wave of new opportunity. Today’s engineers aren’t just builders; they’re architects of entire worlds—powering everything from health-tech breakthroughs and climate innovations, to next-gen robotics, ethical AI systems, and creative arts we can barely imagine yet. Gen Z has a superpower: a digital-first mindset, a hunger for independence, and a knack for pushing boundaries. With AI as their toolkit, they can launch ventures from their living rooms, pivot ideas at lightning speed, and solve problems at a global scale. The career paths ahead aren’t a narrow road—they’re a vast possibility space. You could become a: Machine learning scientist shaping intelligent products Robotics engineer revolutionizing manufacturing & medicine Data storyteller driving better decisions for enterprises Ethical technologist safeguarding digital futures Tech entrepreneur scaling innovation—solo or with friends I told her: Don’t let fear drown ambition. Let AI fuel curiosity. The future isn’t about job stability—it’s about designing, owning, and transforming what comes next. Engineering, paired with AI, is the passport to impact, independence, and imagination. So here’s my question for all of you—leaders, students, parents: Did I give my daughter the right advice? What would you tell a 10th grader standing at the edge of the AI era? What careers do you see thriving in tomorrow’s world? #GenZ #AI #Engineering #FutureOfWork #CareerAdvice #Innovation #Parenting #Leadership

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When someone feels heard by their leadership, performance shifts. A short conversation prevents weeks of rework. A direct question uncovers what a status update won’t. Being intentional about making the time to sit individually with team members, listen carefully, adapt to the person, and follow through has been game changing. I've seen the impact in how teams operate. Issues surface earlier. Dialogue improves. Ownership becomes clearer. #MastercardEmployee

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We had the privilege of hosting Quentin Clark — our board member and Managing Director at General Catalyst — during our recent leadership offsite at Eightfold’s headquarters in Santa Clara. Every moment of this session was filled with profound insights — the kind that make you pause and rethink assumptions. I tried to capture a few, though I’ll admit that taking notes while being genuinely awestruck is not easy! What are the three ills to ward off as companies grow: 1. Companies can get complacent. Current success can hinder future success. A very counterintuitive point: If you exceed the expectation and beat the plan, still be curious. “It still betrays!”.  2. Lowering the hiring bar. B-players hire C-players.  3. Not protecting the brand. What makes Eightfold such a hot prospect?  1. Eightfold was the first one to figure out how to apply ML for solving enterprise business problems - 9 years ago. A huge head start and a moat.  2. Eightfold is building a System of Agents in a world still stuck with Systems of Record. Traditional enterprise software makes you work — you have to pedal. Agentic AI flips that model: the system works for you. It’s a driverless engine, like Waymo.  3. AI used to be an unproven tech a few yrs ago, almost like selling snake oil. Today the AI tailwind is very real and Eightfold is in a position to build on the success rapidly. With so much money invested in AI, will there be a good ROI?  AI is bigger than the Mobile revolution, the Internet, and even the Mainframe era. It surpasses Integrated Circuits in its reach. Think about it — everyone today carries at least five IC-powered devices: a smartphone, a smartwatch, a health ring, earbuds, and often a laptop or tablet. AI will be an even more integral part of our personal and work lives. It took databases seven years to achieve a 10X leap in performance. Large Language Models did it in just three quarters. The acceleration curve of AI isn’t evolutionary — it’s exponential.   What about humans in an Agentic-AI world? Far from diminishing the value of people, Agentic AI raises it. As agents take on the repetitive, administrative, and mechanical tasks, humans are freed to focus on what only they can do — creating, problem-solving, and innovating. In this world, the regard for talent actually increases, because the leverage of each person is amplified. 

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When even someone like Gabriela de Queiroz -a trailblazer in AI, shaping AI at Microsoft and IBM, a founder of global communities, and a voice for inclusion - gets laid off, it reminds us that no one is immune in today’s fast-evolving tech landscape. Just two weeks ago, she was at TiE Silicon Valley - leading a hands-on workshop on building intelligent agents with Azure AI and inviting developers, founders, and enthusiasts to explore the future of conversational AI. Her response - Grace, gratitude, and strength. Showing up to say goodbye, smiling through uncertainty, and reminding others: you are not alone. That’s leadership beyond the title. Layoffs may be business decisions, but how we respond to them is deeply human. Her story is a powerful reminder: titles may shift, but true leadership shows in how you uplift others—even in moments of transition. #TiEcon2025 #AzureAI #AILeadership #TechLayoffs #Resilience #AICommunity #CareerTransitions

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Sajna Samad, CSCP and I met a few years ago when I was on a women in tech panel she curated at Oracle. At the time I was still at VMware. Since then we’ve had various conversations about the role of women in tech and AI, the role of value, fulfillment and purpose in the workplace, building powerful personal brands, and the differences between working a corporate job versus taking the leap of faith into entrepreneurship. She now runs the Lead 2 Impact podcast where she sits down with various leaders to explore career growth, leadership strategies, entrepreneurship, disruption in tech, strategies for success and risk taking, and more. She’s a savant and authentic host with a wealth of experience behind her as a technologist, leader, creator, mom and more. I joined her for an episode where we explore my blueprint for work and success in the age of AI, and this video right here is a little teaser into it! Thank you for having me Sajna. It’s been an honor. Stay tuned for the full episode!!! #Lead2Impact #AIEthics #FutureOfWork #WomenInTech #LeadershipDevelopmenr

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Great read outlining some key thoughts to consider to ensure cohesion from strategy through execution and some common areas that are often overlooked that may cause momentum to slow.

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How do we create a culture of excellence from day 1? I’m in Southern California this week and I had the opportunity to stop by our SSD Academy in SAX7. A few things are clear from this visit on how we are thinking about excellence for new leaders: 1) Excellent facilitators: Jasmine and Harold lead facilitation at this site, and this is where it all starts. During my roundtable with the leaders this week, the group started with an unprompted and energetic ovation to the teams teaching and leadership this week 👏 2) Excellent content: We work closely with the leaders who know our processes best, from ACES, Ops, PXT, Safety, and more. We don’t know it all in a silo, but we DO know the experts in each field and work with them closely to ensure we are presenting the most up to date (this is harder than it sounds for a business as rapidly evolving as SSD 🚀 ) and high level content. 3) Excellent relationships: Our leaders spend A LOT of time in Academy on the floor doing hands on activities and shadowing the process while they learn their roles. Having partners like Ernest (SAX7 Site Leader) and his entire team at SAX7 allows us to show leaders what excellence looks like from Day One. Ernest and his team practice what they preach, they lead a great site, with high standards, and they are a critical part of the success of this SAX7 Academy 💪🏻 I’m excited to see this latest cohort of leaders from Area Manager to Site Leaders get back to their sites to start making an impact 🚀 What are you doing to create a culture of excellence in your team? Idan Erez Steve Volk Ernest Ruffin Gaurav Sethia Avik Saha Nora Aboulhosn JP Quito Frederick A. “Chief” Becking III Rachel Roe Saad Rehman Michelle Wong Cesar Alvarez, MBA Gabrielle La Force Brandon Folse Toby Collins Erin Waldron

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For many years, multinational companies (MNCs) have been seen as the gold standard of workplace culture: offering stability, respect, and long-term investment in their people. Take Microsoft as an example. They’ve long been willing to invest in employee education and training, creating generations of leaders who grew through structured development. That kind of respect for talent remains valuable. But the landscape is shifting. • The R&D focus of many MNCs is no longer centered in China. • Their innovation hubs, strategic bets, and decision-making power are often located elsewhere. • As a result, the value proposition for local talent is no longer as strong as it once was. This is where Chinese companies have both a challenge—and an opportunity. There is still much to learn: how to respect talent, how to invest in people, and how to build long-term development pathways. But learning is not enough. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗰𝘁—𝗯𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵𝘀, 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁, 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲. The call for leaders is clear: 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘔𝘕𝘊𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘦, 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘯𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦.

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