The new Intelisys senior vice president of sales has worked on multiple sides of the channel.

Michael Sterl will lead field and inside sales teams in his new role at the technology services distributor. He’ll bring entrepreneurial experience that he gained from launching multiple companies.

Intelisys’ Michael Sterl

“The paradigm for what a sales partner needs to be successful in this rapidly growing marketplace is changing, quickly and consistently,” Sterl said. “I’m 100% aligned with Intelisys’ strategic plan to use its platform to enable its sales partners to scale and take advantage of the connectivity and cloud marketplace opportunity. Intelisys is uniquely positioned to enhance the business of the sales partner community in a manner that no other can do.”

Intelisys president Mark Morgan described Sterl as a perfect culture fit. Morgan called Sterl’s mentality “channel-first.”

Intelisys’ Mark Morgan

“He has an intimate understanding of the business of the channel from all angles, and his insights will be instrumental in driving the sales partner experience at Intelisys.” Morgan said.

Background

Sterl has co-founded multiple companies. He launched unified communications service provider SimpleSignal in 2004. Vonage bought SimpleSignal for $25.3 million in 2015. Sterl went on to serve as Vonage’s vice president of indirect channel sales. He later launched a marketing firm geared toward channel partners. He also founded Cloud Optik, which gave service providers and channel partners a data insights platform.

Sterl started his telco career by working as an account executive for XO Communications in 2003.

“Michael’s track record as a trailblazer in the industry proves his vision is on target,” Morgan said. “I expect he will have an immediate impact on the resources we develop that help bridge our partners to the best solutions offered by our roster of suppliers.”

Sterl two years ago partnered with private equity firm Periscope Equity, which stated its intention of acquiring MSPs. Sterl also sits on the board of directors for Telecom for Change.

Intelisys recently announced its first “palladium” partner.