Thomas H Vaughan III, President, Central Technology Solutions

“In the past, Rodney had said this job at Microsoft was a “destination role” and “dream job.” In the past we all may have felt the same in our careers. Something changed for him and the fact he is willing to leave vs holding on is a testament to his ability to be a good leader no matter the why.

“It looks like Microsoft is making some big changes that have, and will continue to upset the apple cart. Change is part of growth. Microsoft’s changes are a pain, but will help all the Microsoft partners get customers to the best place within the ecosystem. I like that the Microsoft Partner Network will become the Microsoft Cloud Partner Program and will be focused: Azure data and artificial intelligence, Azure infrastructure, Azure digital and app innovation, business applications, “modern work” and security. 

“We all should be focused on the same, with no real barrier to entry to being a computer company or MSP leads to confusion. Unlike my plumber and electrician who must be licensed, MSP’s can just open and start working. This leaves large gaps that customers don’t understand in offerings. 

“So you see, if Microsoft makes changes like this we all have to move with it. Customers will understand the changes and increases in cost when we have large companies like Microsoft pushing the changes. We are excited to see who will be leading this change. July at the partner conference we should find out who that is going to be. I will go ahead and throw my name into the hat.”