Microsoft is adding a new top channel chief with the appointment of Phil Sorgen as corporate vice president of the company’s worldwide partner group. His appointment floats in on a cloud, literally: Sorgen will manage a team of sales and marketing professionals tasked with tapping the cloud opportunity for Microsoft’s 640,000-member-strong partner community, along with other revenue opportunities in mobility, big data and enterprise social technologies.
A 17-year veteran of Microsoft, Sorgen previously led the company’s U.S. small and mid-sized business solutions and partners (SMS&P) group, which provides Microsoft technology solutions for more than 20 million small and midsized businesses in the United States. Before that position, he served as president of Microsoft Canada for three and a half years.
“Our partner ecosystem is a key asset to Microsoft and carries tremendous strategic importance to the company,” said Vahe Torossian, corporate vice president of worldwide SMS&P. Phil has been a member of Torossian’s extended leadership team for several years and has been involved in multiple global initiatives that have shaped the worldwide SMS&P business and partner strategies.
“Phil’s rich leadership experience in working with our customers and partners in the United States and Canada makes him an ideal fit to help our partners drive new opportunities as Microsoft transforms into a company delivering devices and high-value cloud services,” Torossian added.
Sorgen will officially assume his new role on Sept. 1, reporting to Torossian. He replaces corporate vice president Jon Roskill, who served for three years in the position.
