Cisco Systems  (CSCO) has tapped Andrew Sage, its former worldwide Partner Led vice president and Small Business Sales vice president, as its new Americas Distribution vice president, taking Julie Hens’ former post when she was elevated to Worldwide Distribution vice president last week.

Wendy Bahr, Cisco Americas Partner Organization senior vice president, in co-authoring a blog post with Hens to announce Sage’s ascension, wrote, “Last week it was announced that Julie would be taking on the role of Vice President of Worldwide Distribution here in Cisco’s Worldwide Partner Organization (WWPO). We are now happy to confirm that Andrew Sage is our new Vice President, Americas Distribution.”

Sage, a 14-year company veteran who is known as a staunch channel advocate both inside and outside Cisco, will oversee sales, marketing, operations and logistics for the vendor’s Americas distribution channel. The unit, which accounts for some $6.3 billion in revenue, is “a cornerstone of our Partner-Led sales strategy,” said Bahr and Hens. Cisco’s worldwide distribution channel generates about $13 billion in annual revenue for the vendor.

“Andrew’s team has driven a cohesive strategy, including the launch of programs such as Partner Plus, and has brought to the market a bold message about how we’re targeting midsize customers through our partners, which was a major theme at this year’s Cisco Partner Summit,” said Bahr and Hens.

As worldwide Partner Led vice president, Sage is credited with building a team to craft a go-to-market sales model and a portfolio of initiatives that played to partners’ strengths and mapped to Cisco’s Commercial sales teams. In his prior small-business sales role, Sage managed Cisco’s go-to-market strategy for SMBs, including channels, field coverage models and sales programs. He also has served as Worldwide Channels Marketing vice president, handling global channel partner marketing in concert with Cisco’s central marketing organization and global field organization.