The 2019 letter from a Microsoft Corp. engineer alleging an affair with Bill Gates that preceded his departure from the board was not the first time some Microsoft executives have confronted the billionaire's inappropriate behavior with female employees.
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More than a decade ago, Microsoft executives discovered emails between Mr. Gates and a mid-level employee at the company, while Mr. Gates was still an employee at Microsoft and chairman of the board, according to people familiar with the matter. In the messages, the then-married Mr. Gates flirted with the female employee.
Two top Microsoft executives, then-general counsel Brad Smith and then-company chief Lisa Brummel, met with Mr. Gates and told him the behavior was inappropriate and needed to stop. Mr. Gates did not deny the email exchanges but told executives afterward that it was a bad idea and that he would stop.
The executives informed certain members of Microsoft's board of directors, and a board committee discussed the matter. The board concluded that no further action was warranted because there was no physical interaction.
Microsoft spokesman Frank Shaw said that in 2008, shortly before Mr. Gates retired, the company became aware of the emails sent in 2007. In the emails, Mr. Gates suggested meeting the female employee outside of work and off campus, Mr. Shaw said. “While they were flirting, the conversations were not overtly sexual, but they were considered inappropriate,” he said. Mr. Shaw said the employee never reported the incident.
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Mr Gates' spokeswoman, Bridgitt Arnold, said: "These allegations are false, recycled rumours from sources who do not have direct knowledge of the facts.".
Mr. Gates, one of the world’s richest people, was Microsoft’s chief executive officer until 2000, a full-time employee until 2008 and chairman until 2014. He served on Microsoft’s board of directors for more than four decades until he stepped down in March 2020. The following year, Mr. Gates and his wife, Melinda French Gates, filed for divorce after 27 years of marriage. The divorce was finalized in August. The two continue to co-lead the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, one of the world’s largest philanthropic organizations.
Information source: wsj.com
