Green Light for Microsoft Campus Pub
Last week Microsoft employees were disappointed when the company pulled the plug on plans for a pub on its Redmond campus.
Dubbed the Spitfire, the venue was supposed to be a place where Microsofties could socialize and hang out in an appropriate setting. We can only assume the company would also use it for hosting events and the like as well because, well, why the heck not.
The Spitfire was nearly finished, signs were hung in anticipation of its opening, food and drink vendors had been contacted, equipment was installed and roughly 20 people were hired to maintain, clean and run the bar. Then, Microsoft shut the project down. The once suitable venue for employee socializing and company soirees was branding “inappropriate” by the software giant.
A Microsoft spokesperson said the following in statement, "The goal was always to create a cool gathering place for employees, but to do so in a manner that's consistent with a business environment. We took a second look at that, and we were sensitive to the business environment. We decided we should do something more appropriate, and that meant not having a pub."
The obligatory facebook group was formed (bring back the Spitfire) and that decision lasted all of a week. TechFlash yesterday reported that the company had reached an agreement to move forward with a new campus pub. Basically, it’s all a-okay as long as everyone promises to stay sober for the first half of the day/run off the pub every time the internet connect hiccups.
“Under the compromise plan, the Spitfire pub will serve beer and wine in the afternoons and evenings, after 3 p.m., but it will be open during those hours only for scheduled gatherings and catered events.”
Owner Sposato told TechFlash that the Spitfire will be open every day for lunch and said he still expects the venue to be busy every night, with multiple slots available for booking and plenty of Microsoft employees eager to use the new facility.
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We’re guessing this will either be a great venue and, like Sposato says, jumping most nights or completely dead because people don’t to blur the line between work and play. Although, given the fact that there was a facebook group started to bring the idea back to the table, we can’t imagine the latter being the case.
Jane McEntegart is a writer, editor, and marketing communications professional with 17 years of experience in the technology industry. She has written about a wide range of technology topics, including smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. Her articles have been published in Tom's Guide, Tom's Hardware, MobileSyrup, and Edge Up.
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danimal_the_animal Unless you work there.....why would one care?Reply
It doesn't improve my life one bit....... -
hellwig Trust me, Microsofties blur that line all the time. The group I used to work with had beer parties once a month in the lobby (during work hours). Many other buildings have arcades where people can relax. Heck, you'd be hard-pressed to find an employee who wasn't a beta-tester for the latest Microsoft or X-Box game.Reply
To be honest, I don't know how they got work done. It was probably the 10% of employees who weren't busy drinking or playing. -
apache_lives Beers on Bill Gates! 1 billion dollar tab woooooooooooooReply
we all know hes a party machine, him and his second man lol -
cruiseoveride @JeBuSBrian Don't expect literary content on sites like Tomshardware to be any better than a 4yrs old's vacation story.Reply
Pretty lame move. "Ok you can have a bar, but you need to have a "meeting" booked to use it"
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rabbitc lol@ cruiseoveride - too true. Sounds like life at P&G many moons ago. Wonder how long it will be until 'strongly suggested' attendance is stated for out-of-hours pub events just to justify the investment...Reply -
grieve The Pub idea on the M$ campos could be a great idea… make it a social lunch gathering place, liquer only after 3pm.Reply
One of the Colleges I attended had a pub. Befor 2pm no liquer was served but you could still eat, play pool or foosball and watch various sporting events. Often 2pm couldn’t come fast enough!