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Reorg Update: Microsoft Worldwide Partner Group Turns Over

Allison Watson fills holes in her team with Thompson, Brown.

Like a pond in spring, Microsoft Corporate Vice President Allison Watson's Worldwide Partner Group has turned over.

At the end of January Watson put the finishing touches on a changeover in her direct reports with the appointment of former Dell Inc. executive Mark Thompson to the post of general manager, partner marketing.

Thompson replaces Marie Huwe, an outgoing veteran executive who moved on to a position in the Microsoft Dynamics group at the beginning of 2009.

Earlier in the year, Watson lost her General Manager for Managed Partners Don Nelson to retirement after a long career at Great Plains and Microsoft, and Naseem Tuffaha, senior director for ISVs, who took an internal transfer to the Middle East citing family reasons. Those two positions were consolidated into one vice president-level post, filled by Ross Brown.

Figure 1
Still on Watson's team are Julie Bennani, left, general manager of the Microsoft Partner Program; Jenni Flinders, center, general manager of the transaction channel; and Todd Weatherby, general manager of product management.

Brown's experience includes stints as CEO of eEye Digital Security and vice president of worldwide channels and operations at Citrix Systems Inc. He's also worked at IBM Corp., McAfee Inc., Tech Data Corp. and MSi Consulting. (For the record, we missed the Nelson, Tuffaha, Brown shuffle in our Microsoft executives-to-know update in last month's Channel Report.)

About the Author

Scott Bekker is editor in chief of Redmond Channel Partner magazine.

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