The Cutting Edge: COMPUTING / TECHNOLOGY / INNOVATION : Top Procter & Gamble Exec Named Operations Chief for Microsoft

On the eve of launching a $100-million advertising campaign, Microsoft Corp. on Tuesday lured a top executive from consumer products firm Procter & Gamble Co. to become chief operating officer.

Robert Herbold, 52, a senior vice president at P&G; who has been in the forefront of the advertising industry’s movement to interactive television, will join Microsoft’s three-member Office of the President with a mandate to help develop corporate strategy.

Microsoft Executive Vice Presidents Mike Maples and Steve Ballmer are the other members of the group, which works closely with Chairman and Chief Executive Bill Gates to coordinate the software giant’s efforts to continue its rapid growth.

Herbold is essentially taking over the role formerly played by Chief Financial Officer Frank Gaudette, who died in April, 1993.

Herbold will be responsible for worldwide operations, including finance, manufacturing, distribution, information technology and human resources. Maples oversees products and marketing, and Ballmer oversees sales and support efforts.

Maples said in an interview that it is a coincidence that the new Microsoft executive comes from Procter & Gamble, the nation’s biggest advertiser, just as Microsoft is about to launch a new brand-awareness campaign.