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Software

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

By Sonja Thompson August 9, 2007, 4:08 AM PDT

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microsoft1.jpg
Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Microsoft Fargo

By Sonja Thompson

Microsoft Fargo

By Sonja Thompson

Microsoft’s Fargo campus was opened and occupied in 1999. This was originally the site of Great Plains Software, which existed since the early ’80s. To date, Microsoft Fargo is the second largest field campus — Microsoft’s Silicon Valley campus is the largest field campus.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon building

Horizon building

This is the main entrance to the Microsoft Fargo campus. Microsoft’s Horizon building will receive a 65,000 square foot amenities addition, including a new cafe, meeting rooms, an Executive Briefing Center, and a company store.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Bison art

Bison art

This bison art piece, created by a local artist, is located right outside the main entrance to Microsoft Fargo. The bison is North Dakota’s state animal.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Front desk, Horizon

Front desk, Horizon

The front desk and reception area of Horizon is where customers, vendors, and visitors sign in.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Entryway, Horizon

Entryway, Horizon

Here’s a look at the entryway of Horizon.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon front hall

Horizon front hall

This is a look down the front hallway of Horizon.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon art

Horizon art

Several pieces of art, created by various artists, decorate the walls of Microsoft Fargo campus.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon cafe

Horizon cafe

This is a coffee cart within Horizon, where Microsoft employees can get a quick snack or drink.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon cafe seating area

Horizon cafe seating area

This is the seating area to the left of the Horizon cafe.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon conference room

Horizon conference room

There are a lot of little coves and conference rooms at Microsoft Fargo to better facilitate office relations.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Conference room names

Conference room names

The conference rooms at Microsoft Fargo are scattered around the edges of the building. Some of the names of the conference rooms are of Great Plains people who received awards, which adds a taste of North Dakota into the office.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Soft and natural light

Soft and natural light

Soft and natural light filters through the Horizon building. The office is designed so that inside offices are against walls, providing the maximum number of people with the maximum amount of light.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon cubes

Horizon cubes

Peering down a cubicle hallway in Horizon.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon stairs

Horizon stairs

The tiles on the stairwell in Horizon, imported from India, were chosen for the broad range of natural colors they offer. The colors, textures, and materials, used in decorating Horizon have a definite agricultural motiff and are reminiscent of the great plains.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Vista building and room to build

Vista building and room to build

Burgum field, next to the Vista building at Microsoft Fargo, is a multi-purpose green space that makes up the “backyard” of the campus. It is used for events like the annual campus picnic, as well as for team member dodgeball and flag football games.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

New building location

New building location

The monument at Burgum field is a replica of the border markers used to delineate the North Dakota/South Dakota border. The name Burgum field was chosen to honor Doug Burgum and his family for all the time, money, and energy that they put into Great Plains and Microsoft Fargo.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

The Eagle's Nest

The Eagle's Nest

The Eagle’s Nest in the Horizon building offers a taste of North Dakota and a view of the surroundings.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

The Eagle's Nest

The Eagle's Nest

The lights in the Eagle’s Nest are also in the Microsoft campus at Copenhagen, Denmark.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

The Eagle's Nest and FireSide room

The Eagle's Nest and FireSide room

Here’s a view of the Eagle’s Nest from the outside of Horizon. Directly below the Eagle’s Nest is the Fireside room, which is a conference room and meeting area that contains books about the company and Great Plains.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Great Plains memorabilia wall

Great Plains memorabilia wall

Horizon also displays a Great Plains memorabilia wall.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Walkway between Horizon and Vista buildings

Walkway between Horizon and Vista buildings

An open-air walkway is the only connection between the Horizon and Vista buildings on Microsoft Fargo campus. Part of the expansion plans includes a connecting walkway with a roof.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Outside seating

Outside seating

Outside the Vista building is a seating area, where people sit especially in the spring.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Vista building

Vista building

Here’s a view of the inside of the Vista building. Vista is the newer (and more secure — a little Microsoft humor) building on the Microsoft Fargo campus.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Dev location

Dev location

The Vista building is where dev is housed. Employee cubicles are easily located by street signs, as you can see in this picture.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Moveable cube walls

Moveable cube walls

When Vista was built, they added a lot of things per employee input, such as moveable cube walls.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Vista cafeteria

Vista cafeteria

Take a look inside the Vista cafeteria. Microsoft subsidizes the cafeterias on campus to provide team members with economical food options.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Vista cafeteria

Vista cafeteria

Food options at the Vista cafeteria.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Vista Building entrance

Vista Building entrance

The entrance to the Vista building displays a variety of industry and local awards won by teams on the Microsoft Fargo campus as well as awards and recognition given to the campus as a whole.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Executive Briefing Center

Executive Briefing Center

The Vista building has an Executive Briefing Center, where partners and customers come in and learn how to use the software better, ask questions, and problem-solve.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Shared Services

Shared Services

Shared Services was off-limits during the Microsoft Fargo campus tour, but here’s a picture of the secured entrance.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Free beverages

Free beverages

Beverages at this location in the Vista building are all free, including orange juice, milk, V8, Starbucks coffee, and soft drinks. The most requested beverage on campus, believe it or not, is milk.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Free Starbucks coffee

Free Starbucks coffee

There are 16 Starbucks machines at Microsoft Fargo campus, at $10K apiece. Coffee, a necessary fuel for most IT professionals, is free to all Microsoft employees.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

More outside seating

More outside seating

Another seating area outside Vista.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Inside seating

Inside seating

Here’s a seating area on the second floor of Vista.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Small conference room

Small conference room

More conference or huddle rooms in Vista.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Performance Test Lab: Vista

Performance Test Lab: Vista

The Performance Test Lab in Vista holds approximately 700 machines.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Test Lab in Vista

Test Lab in Vista

If one person sat down and manually executed all of the tests Microsoft Fargo runs in one night, it would take that person five or more years to complete the task. These labs are accessed by Microsoft development personnel in Copenhagen, India, and Redmond, as well as Fargo personnel. The resident customer service and support teams also utilize the labs.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Test Lab in Vista

Test Lab in Vista

Tons of cable run through the Performance Test Lab in Vista.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Test Lab in Horizon

Test Lab in Horizon

There are approximately 400 machines in the Test Lab in Horizon.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Test Lab in Horizon

Test Lab in Horizon

Another look inside the Test Lab in Horizon.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Meeting room monitor

Meeting room monitor

Meeting room monitors allows employees to see who has scheduled meetings for that room throughout the day and if the room is currently occupied.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Meeting room monitor

Meeting room monitor

Here’s a closer look at the meeting room monitors in Vista.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon Hall

Horizon Hall

Horizon Hall is the main cafeteria and the largest meeting room on campus. This is where the expansion of Horizon will take place.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon Hall seating

Horizon Hall seating

Horizon Hall offers both inside and outside seating.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon Hall kitchen

Horizon Hall kitchen

Microsoft Fargo employees are getting ready for lunch at Horizon Hall.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Horizon Hall outside seating

Horizon Hall outside seating

Here’s a view of the outdoor seating for Horizon Hall. In the distance, the tall grass marks the spot where the new buildings will be located.

Take a tour of Microsoft Fargo

Maggie Orseth

Maggie Orseth

A special thanks to Maggie Orseth, a Student Experience Program Intern of the Microsoft Fargo Site Council, who provided the guided tour. Maggie was a high school intern last year. She graduated from Fargo South in 2006.

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By Sonja Thompson
My name is Sonja Thompson. I've worked for TechRepublic since October of 1999, starting with the enewsletter team, then with the Premium Products group (creating books and CDs), as well as programming some of the elements on the site. After leading t
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