Coercion
the use of express or implied threats of violence or reprisal (as discharge from employment) or other intimidating behavior that puts a person in immediate fear of the consequences in order to compel that person to act against his or her will
1: the act of compelling by force of authority 2: using force to cause something
Laura Longcore was very clear when I told her that something was wrong at Microsoft that I needed to quit talking. For instance, earlier I had complained to her that Microsoft was overcharging customers with the Microsoft Premier service contracts. A standard service contract included 4 annual subscriptions to the software package Microsoft Developer Network (MSDN) and it was a popular feature of the contracts among my customers. I pointed out to her that she was not offering the renewal discount of $500 per subscription. I estimated that Microsoft Premier was overcharging its customers by at least one million dollars per year. I expected an immediate correction to that policy because Microsoft Premier Support for Developers was marketed as a service that was supposed to save these customers money. But yet, if those same customers went to another Microsoft website and purchased the MSDN separately, they could get a $500 discount for each subscription. We added absolutely no value for the extra $500. I thought it was just a simple oversight that would be quickly corrected. It was also the kind of suggestion I thought she would appreciate. Not much earlier, she had given me the so-called "Bulldog Award," the second I had received in that group, and referred to me as a "rising star." I was also one of the lowest-level persons, in terms of pay grade, so I expected to at least receive a promotion for my due diligence. Instead, she told me to keep my mouth shut. I put in my notice after that and quit about 2.5 weeks later. I was hoping she would tell me that they were going to make the necessary corrections and I then would not have quit. I felt like I had a future at Microsoft.
