Microsoft is close to another restructuring that could see several senior managers moved sideways or leaving the company as it reduces its number of business units from eight to four.
The restructuring is being prepared by a small group of executives around CEO Steve Ballmer. It is believed that this group of executives will take larger roles at the company, helping to unite disparate, competing units.
However, as a result, many other senior executives at the company are fearing for their jobs. The big winners are expected to be Satya Nadella, president of Microsoft's Servers and Tools division; Tony Bates, president of the Skype division; and Don Mattrick, president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment division.
Terry Myerson, currently head of the Windows Phone division, and Julie Larson-Green, head of the Windows division, could also enjoy expanded roles.
The restructuring caps a lacklustre year for the software giant in which the long-awaited launch of its new Windows 8 operating system was widely regarded as a disappointment, while its Surface hybrid tablet computers also failed to take off.
The low-end devices were based on Windows RT, an ARM-based fork in its Windows 8 code incompatible with legacy Windows software, while the high-end Surface RT devices, based on standard Windows 8, have proved to be too expensive for the mass market.
Microsoft's reputation has also been tarnished by the recent revelations of internet spying by the US National Security Agency (NSA) in which Microsoft has appeared to be too willing a participant, being among the first to sign up to the NSA surveillance system.
This also helped to resurface old claims that Microsoft incorporated "back doors" in its operating system software and re-architected its Skype online communications tool to make eavesdropping easier.
In addition, it badly mishandled the launch of its new Xbox One games console, alienating much of its existing user base by insisting that games could only be played if the device connects to Microsoft every 24 hours, and making the trading of second-hand games unviable.
The Xbox One is not just about games for the company. It is also Microsoft's entry into the coming "battle for the living room" whereby companies as diverse as Amazon, Sony and Valve will compete for content download sales. This was emphasised at the Xboxlaunch in May in which the word "television" was mentioned more than "games".
Many observers, though, say that Ballmer is a major part of the problem at the company and that it is Ballmer who ought to go. In his tenure, the company has seen rivals make successes of such ideas as tablet computers that Microsoft had trialled first, while its own rival to devices such as the iPod - called "Zune" - also flopped.
Nevertheless, Ballmer intends to re-mould the company around "devices and services", which will mean more Surface devices and Windows Phones.
Indeed, talks to acquire Nokia's mobile phone handset division recently stalled over price.
