Editor’s Note, Feb. 14, 2008 – Michael Sievert announced plans to leave Microsoft in February 2008 to pursue other interests.

As former corporate vice president for Windows Product Marketing at Microsoft, Michael Sievert was responsible for driving global marketing for Windows with customers and partners across all consumer and business segments. In 2006 and 2007, Sievert was responsible for the worldwide introduction of Windows Vista, which quickly became the fastest-adopted operating system in Microsoft history, achieving nearly 40 million licenses in the first 100 days.

Sievert joined Microsoft in 2005 after more than 15 years' experience in marketing, operations, and product and revenue management at leading technology companies, including AT & T Wireless Services Inc., and E*Trade Financial Corp. Before joining Microsoft, Sievert served for three years as executive vice president and chief marketing officer at AT & T Wireless, where he led one of the five largest marketing operations in the United States, in one of the most intensely competitive industries. Sievert was also responsible for revenue and product management of the company's $15 billion core business, with full profit-and-loss accountability for many of the company's product lines.

From 1998 to 2001, Sievert held a series of positions at E*Trade Financial, a leading Internet and financial services company, progressing from vice president of marketing to executive vice president and chief global marketing and sales officer. At E*Trade Financial, Sievert led efforts in product development, product management and engineering, and supervised the design team for the award-winning Web site http://www.etrade.com. Under Sievert's leadership, E*Trade experienced an eightfold increase in its customer base, and successfully expanded into a diversified financial services company.

Sievert worked for IBM Corp. from 1996 to 1998 as program director for IBM PC worldwide product marketing. His responsibilities included global marketing strategy and product management for the IBM PC commercial desktop brand. Sievert has also held brand management positions in the Health Care Division of the Procter & Gamble Company.

Sievert served on the board of directors for Rogers Wireless Communications Inc. from 2002 to 2004. While with AT & T Wireless, Sievert was twice named by Advertising Age magazine as one of the 25 most influential people in marketing.

Sievert grew up in Canton, Ohio, where he discovered his passion for technology at a young age. His first computer was a RadioShack® TRS-80 Model 1, which he bought in 1977 with half a year's income from a paper route. He graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor of science in economics from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Sievert lives in the Seattle area with his wife and two sons.