MICROSOFT CEO IN TEARS AS HE BIDS FAREWELL TO EMPLOYEES

Microsoft CEO breaks down in tears and dances around the stage as he bids farewell to 13,000 employees

• Steve Ballmer made the emotional speech during his final company meeting
• The 57-year-old said the company was like a 'fourth child' 
• Played his favourite song, Time Of My Life, from Dirty Dancing
• Employees said the event at Key Arena, Seattle, was like a 'rock concert'
• He has worked for the firm for 33 years, and has been CEO since 2000

Emotional: Steve Ballmer wipes away a tear as he walks around the stage at the 17,000 capacity Key Arena in Seattle

The outgoing chief executive of Microsoft broke down in tears and danced around to Michael Jackson as he delivered a flamboyant farewell speech during his final company meeting. 

Steve Ballmer, 57, who is stepping down from his post in the next 12 months, also sang along to Time of My Life from the film Dirty Dancing as he said goodbye to the firm he has worked at for 33 years.

The American Businessman played the song he used back at his first company meeting in 1983, Michael Jackson's Wanna Be Startin' Somethin.'

He jumped around and danced on stage claiming the track was 'the sound of Microsoft!', The Verge reported. 

At the end of the song, the 13,000-strong crowd applauded and he said, 'I just want to enjoy this for a minute'.

He added: 'Soak it in, you work for the greatest company in the world. And I want to say thank you.

This isn't about any one person, this is about a company.'

'A company that's important, that's forward-thinking, that's innovative, that's ethical, that hires great people and lets people lead great lives and helps people around the world realise their full potential.

'Microsoft is like a fourth child to me. Children leave the house, so I guess this is me leaving the house.'

He then introduced his 'favourite song', Time Of My Life from Dirty Dancing, as tears visibly streamed down his face.

He said: 'I wanted to pick a song that was exactly perfect. A song that looked back retrospectively and celebrated the future.

'It's one of my favourite movies and one of my favourite songs.

'It comes at the end of a movie where the actor gets on stage and talks about how he likes to do things. You've made this, the time of my life.'

'We have unbelievable potential in front of us, we have an unbelievable destiny. Only our company and a handful of others are poised to write the future.

'We're going to think big, we're going to bet big.'

He took aim at some of the company's rivals, calling Amazon 'cheap', while he said Google was focused on 'knowing more', but Microsoft was about 'doing more".

Employees took to Twitter after the speech and said the event, held at a venue reserved for sports such as ice hockey and basketball, was like a 'rock concert'.

Ballmer will retire within the next year and his replacement has not yet been announced by the firm.

While at the helm, he became known for his enthusiastic presentations in which he would routinely declare his love for Microsoft and its products.