Microsoft has a bright future, Ballmer said, echoing his theme from the previous week's meeting with Wall Street analysts. "I believe in you, I believe in the mission," he told employees, choking up. "We've been a great company for years. We will be a great company for many more years." "You work for the greatest company in the world, soak it in, all of you, soak it in," he said visibly moved. "We will deliver the next big thing ... we will change the world again." Ballmer's comments appeared to address widespread criticism of his tenure, during which Microsoft saw Apple and Google take a commanding position in smartphones and tablet computers which are eroding the market for PCs on which Microsoft built its fortune.