When did Microsoft start "stack ranking" employees?

Factual Questions
1

My impression is that Microsoft adopted the widely-loathed “stack ranking” employee-evaluation system in the late 1990s-early 2000s.

Does anyone know exactly when?

2

What is stack ranking?

3
4

From the above

[QUOTE=wikipedia]
Starting in 2006 Microsoft has used a Vitality Curve despite intense internal criticism. Mini-Microsoft, an anonymous blogger internal to the company, made “the curve” a frequent topic on his blog.
[/QUOTE]

5

This is interesting, now I know the name for this practice. It sounds like what <another large software corporation> does.

6

Thanks for link, jz78817.

I read a number of articles but none specified *when *MSFT started stack-ranking. My impression was that it started earlier than 2006; apparently not.

If anyone’s interested–good articles re MSFT and stack ranking:

http://www.fairsetup.com/2012/08/30/fairsetup-an-alternative-to-stacked-ranking-forbes-techcrunch-vanity-fair-on-downfall-of-microsoft/