In the wake of Steve Jobs's recent death, the overwhelming interest in not only the details of Jobs's personal life, but also of his business philosophy, has naturally extended to other business titans, including to the one other person who is and always will be compared to Jobs: Microsoft Corporation founder Bill Gates. Consistently ranked as one of the world's wealthiest men u as well as one of the most controversial founders and CEOs in history u businesspeople of all stripes have for years taken their cues from Gates, using his words and business strategies to help create and grow their own companies. Despite the fact that he has certainly had his critics throughout the years, after he left running the day-to-day operations of Microsoft in 2008 to devote himself full-time to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, a kinder, gentler side began to emerge.
People involved in their own philanthropic efforts, whether in a professional or part-time capacity, began to take a second look at the man.