Mark Straton is senior vice president of global solutions marketing at Siemens Enterprise Communications, Inc., 51% held by the Gores Group and 49% by Siemens AG. Siemens Communications is a top three market leader of VoIP, unified communication and data networking software, services, devices and services with approximately $3.0 billion in annual revenues and approximately 10,000 employees.

In this position, Straton has worldwide responsibility for solutions marketing including strategy and planning, product positioning and messaging, product launch and programs. Straton's responsibility is to position the unique value offered by Siemens Enterprise Communication solutions and introduce these to the market. From June 2006 to December 2008, Mr. Straton was senior vice president, global marketing and led the company’s global alliance, channel, sales enablement, sales promotions, product and solution marketing activities. Prior to this, he served as senior vice president of marketing and strategy at Siemens Communications in the United States from October 2004 until June 2006 with responsibility for fixed and mobile carrier networks, mobile phones and enterprise networks. From 2000 to 2004, Mr. Straton had worldwide responsibility for global marketing as well as U.S. regional field marketing.

Straton joined Siemens in 1984 as a member of the sales force based in Michigan and was repeatedly recognized nationally for his success in sales. He has held a wide range of diverse management positions and can be counted among the principal architects of Siemens HiPath VoIP brand, award winning LifeWorks vision, the innovative OpenScape unified communications solution and the Open Communications brand positioning. A featured speaker at numerous international industry events, Straton has appeared on Bloomberg TV on unified communication, testified before the U.S. Congress as an expert on teleworking and has penned articles for leading publications focusing on IP convergence.

Straton was selected as one of the Top 100 Voices of IP Communications by the editorial team at INTERNET TELEPHONY magazine as part of their milestone 100th issue. The committee looked back at the past nine years of growth and progress in IP communications and identified those leading voices and proponents who played an instrumental role in moving the industry forward and came up with 100 people who it felt should be counted among the Top 100 Voices.

Mr. Straton is also a recognized expert in high technology marketing and branding with a focus on strategic positioning and messaging, press and analyst relations, solution and product marketing, channel marketing, digital demand generation, social media marketing and sales enablement and certification. Mr. Straton believes that today’s marketing strategies should take a more balanced and cost-effective approach tightly linked to business and sales goals fully leveraging new social media outlets. This approach arms sales channels with quality demand generation programs, support materials and then integrates with advanced digital/social marketing, PR, AR and sales enablement strategies and programs. Traditional brand and marketing communication strategies can also be employed but in a more balanced approach that delivers lower marketing expenses and better results.

Straton is a previous board member for the IT Solutions Marketing Association and holds a B.A. degree in economics from the University of Michigan.

by - Mark C. Straton