Microsoft has appointed Mark Penn its new corporate vice president of strategic and special projects, the company announced today.
Microsoft said Penn will focus on key consumer initiatives for the company, lead a small interdisciplinary team and report to CEO Steve Ballmer.
Penn has worked with Microsoft since 1998 and has served as a strategic consultant at Fortune-500 companies including Intel Corp., Ford Motor Company, Merck & Co. Inc. and McDonald’s.
He is currently the worldwide CEO of the PR firm Burson-Marsteller and CEO of the polling firm Penn Schoen Berland LLC, a company he co-founded while attending Harvard University as an undergraduate.
Ballmer said he is hopeful that Penn’s experience and out-of-the-box thinking will help the company grow its market share.
