Will new Microsoft CEO be a change agent?

[SINGAPORE]

MICROSOFT'S new chief executive officer, Satya Nadella, has been described by analysts as a change agent with a proven track record of fighting some hard battles within the US technology giant

to move it forward, especially in the cloud and enterprise space. He is well respected, both for his abilities and intellect. But what would make or break his tenure at the top of one of the greatest technology companies in the world is how tough and ruthless he can be to drive change and not respect tradition.

As one commentator wrote, rather theatrically, the things to watch out for are: Can he fire folks in the lift? Can he yell at senior veterans in front of juniors? Can he say "no" to wel…