Satya Nadella or Jony Ive? Who’s the most influential tech executive?

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella heads Juniper Research’s newly-released rankings of the most influential executives in the technology space, followed by Apple’s Chief Design Officer, Jony Ive.

The rankings, which are based on Juniper’s assessment of key criteria including vision, innovation and personal capital, noted that Nadella’s implementation of ‘Windows-as-a-Service’ represented a fundamental change to Microsoft’s OS-focused business model, resulting in a very different process of development at Redmond in future.

“Nadella has articulated a vision of ‘Windows-as-a-Service’ to meet users’ needs where they are. In practical terms, he intends Windows services to be platform neutral,” the report states.

“There have been hints of these service-first or service-only offerings with Microsoft signing deals with Samsung and Cyanogen to integrate its software into a range of mobile devices offered by other vendors.

“This is a fundamental change to Microsoft’s business model. Instead of centring its offerings on the OS, Nadella’s Windows-as-a-Service will result in a very different process of development at Microsoft in future.”

Meanwhile, Juniper argued that Ive’s designs for the smartwatch - which include the doodle functionality, NFC and Wi-Fi capabilities - will be the benchmark for the category going forward.

Ive has also produced very strict guidelines for Apple Watch app design, influenced by the watch’s shape and the glance habit it engenders.

“The hype and sector awareness that the Apple Watch has generated means that Ive’s designs will be the benchmark for the category in future,” the report states.

“Consumer expectations will now compare features to the Apple Watch, even for non-iOS users.

“The guidelines for Apple Watch app development imply a very distinct vision from Ive and others about how a smartwatch should be used, more completely than the competition has articulated at present.”

Third place went to Min-Liang Tan, Razer Co-Founder and CEO of gaming products company Razer.

Juniper pointed out that as well as serving as CEO, Tan is also the creative director, giving him a large amount of control over the company’s direction.

The research house also noted that Tan’s involvement in the OSVR (Open Source Virtual Reality) platform, which allows Razer to showcase its software for use on third-party hardware, creates a common standard for VR program design.

In fourth place came Uber’s Travis Kalanick. The company is undercutting traditional taxi services in multiple locations, notably in New York City, where they outnumber the city’s famous yellow taxis.

Kalanick was followed by Reed Hastings, the CEO and Co-Founder of Netflix, who has supervised the company’s international expansion and its move into original content creation.

Below is the Top 10 in full

Satya Nadella - Microsoft CEO

Jony Ive - Apple SVP Design

Min-Liang Tan - Razer Co-Founder & CEO

Travis Kalanick - Uber CEO

Reed Hastings - Netflix Co-Founder & CEO

Jack Ma - Alibaba Founder & Chairman

Paul Eremenko - Google ATAP Director

Jeff Bezos - Amazon Founder & CEO

Elon Musk - Tesla Chairman & CEO

Lei Jun - Xiaomi CEO