Cisco Welcomes Rodney Clark to Lead Global Partner Sales

Today, I am excited to share that Rodney Clark will be joining Cisco as our new Senior Vice President, Partnerships and Small & Medium Business. In this role, Rodney will empower and enable Cisco’s global ecosystem of partners, strengthen our position in routes to market like Managed Services and Cloud Marketplaces, and help Cisco and our partners maximize the massive opportunities in the Small and Medium Business segment.

Approximately 90% of our annual bookings runs through our partners, and Rodney is the perfect leader to drive our next phase of growth. Our ecosystem of partners is not only our single biggest advantage in the market, but it’s also fundamental to our transformation strategy. I am confident that Rodney will thrive in this job for three distinct reasons:

First, he is a proven global sales and business leader who has deep channel experience. During a nearly 25-year career at Microsoft, Rodney held various senior sales leadership positions, including serving as the Corporate VP, Global Channel Sales and Channel Chief. Prior to Microsoft, he spent nine years with IBM in sales, marketing, and management capacities. Most recently, Rodney was the Chief Commercial Officer at Johnson Controls. Through each stop, Rodney has driven transformation at scale, been a passionate advocate for the channel, and a strong, empathetic leader who invests deeply in his teams.

Second, Rodney has a great deal of knowledge and respect for everything that Cisco and its ecosystem of partners have accomplished together in 25+ years…but he has a bold vision for our future. To succeed in this role, you have to understand our legacy, but you can’t be beholden to it. Rodney will bring that perspective.

And finally, with all the accomplishments listed above, he’s an even better human being. He’s authentic, incredibly humble, and someone that will not only match but embody Cisco’s values.

A father of two, Rodney is a passionate supporter of education, community, and creating an inclusive future for all. He has served on the Board of Trustees for Middlesex School and as an advisor to The Craig School of Business, California State University, Fresno. He currently sits on the Board of Directors for both Entegris, Inc. and Groopit. He’s also an avid hockey fan, having played professionally while in college and early in career.

Earlier this morning, we kicked off Partner Summit 2023, our annual event where we get our most influential partners together to share our latest innovation, discuss our collective opportunities in the market, and commit to the road ahead. The theme this year is Greater Together, which speaks to our past, it shines a light on our opportunity, but more than anything, it’s a call to action for the future. Cisco and our partners are Greater Together. That story just got a lot better with Rodney on board.

I am incredibly proud of the work we’ve done with our ecosystem of partners over the last 25 years, and the business value that we’ve helped create for our mutual customers. Rodney is the right leader at the right time as we build on that legacy and push our partnerships into a new era.

Welcome to Cisco, Rodney. I can’t wait to do great things together.

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